Replies

1. 
   qtsam2 | Mar 19, 2006 05:17am | #1

   bumping myself

2. 
   BG | Mar 19, 2006 01:29pm | #2

   qtsam2,
   Doing a quality finish in a week is a significant constraint. The BLO could take two or more days to dry depending on the circumstances. I also would not use a filler with red oak...but that is personal preference. For a fast really nice finish, I'd apply the BLO, let dry and then 3-5 coats of Min-wax Wipe on Varnish, satin. Put on a light coat.(like wiping the kitchen table with a wet sponge)..lightly sand between coats. Wax with 0000 steel wool...

1. 
   qtsam2 | Mar 20, 2006 03:46am | #4

   i don't have to have the finish done in a week just wishful thinking! lol  would the wipe on finish be an issue on the inners of the dresser as far as the smell? what types of oil compounds do you recommend as far as by manufacturer? thanks again everyone

1. 
   stantheman | Mar 20, 2006 05:23am | #5

   qtsam2

   what are you trying to achieve?  BLO on red oak doesn't provide much if any protection, just darkens it some.  Do you want a gloss or satin finish?  Couple of coats of polyuerthane will do.  If you want to fill all the pores and make it galss smooth, you will need a filler.  You have to go to a wood working store or order some on line.   Or you could try using shellac - which does dry fast.  Put on thin coats and sand between them, and eventually the pores are filled.  But that would be a glossy finish, and less protective than poly.  You can find shellac pre-mixed anywhere. 

    

1. 
   qtsam2 | Mar 20, 2006 08:16pm | #9

   i guess i'm trying to achieve the simplest finish i can and yet still be able to get good quality looks  and protection. i am pretty new at this as i am sure you all can tell. i read somewhere that the best overall finish is an oil based polyuerthane. i do want a satin finish but would like the pores to be filled. i can do with out the pores being filled and stick with polyuerthane though. is it going to be alright for the insides if i go that route? what brands do you recomend? thanks again

1. 
   SteveSchoene | Mar 20, 2006 11:05pm | #14

   Polyurethane is a good finish for floors. For furniture it has some drawbacks. It is not as clear as traditional resin varnishes, and it is difficult to rub out to an even sheen, because it is softer than the traditional varnishs in order to resist abrasion. If you want a very protective finish, with fully filled pores, you will have to use a pore filler, and for a complete job, probably two coats. Since you want to finish in a week it will have to be a water based pore filler, since you want to wait nearly a week for oil based pore filler to cure before applying a top coat. Waterbased can be coated after overnight drying, usually. There are completely clear pore fillers and others that can be tinted to color the pores a little lighter or darker than the base wood tone. For a top coat, after pores have been filled, a good alkyd varnish such as Pratt & Lambert 38 or McCloskey Heirloom is good, and relatively light colored. These will rub out more easily than any poly (although not as nicely as lacquer or shellac.) As far as protection they run a very close second to oil based poly and ahead of water borne finishes and the lacquer which until recently was the standard for all most all commercial furniture.

2. 
   qtsam2 | Mar 21, 2006 04:59am | #15

   i like this look here.  a poster from sawmill creek states  "The stain is a custom blend of Minwax stains that I came up with to match the stain the Amish furniture makers use." what do the amish use?  it seems in my research that miniwax is not highly favored is this true? why?

   
2. 
   John_D | Mar 20, 2006 08:29am | #6

   On the inside, avoid oils or they'll stink it up.  If you must finish inside, shellac is the safest bet.

   If you do use oil on the outside, wait until you don't smell the oil any more, before you go ahead and wax it, if that's what you're going to do.  Waxing before the oil dries will get you a mess.My goal is for my work to outlast me.  Expect my joinery to get simpler as time goes by.

1. 
   qtsam2 | Mar 20, 2006 08:18pm | #10

   if i used oil on the outside and not on the inside will i run into movement issues? thanks again

2. 
   loucarabasi | Apr 02, 2006 04:15am | #17

   To all, Spray lacquer and be done with it!!!!

   LMC

3. 
   ring | Mar 19, 2006 02:52pm | #3

   If you want to finish quickly, use an oil compound with driers in it, like Watco. If you wet sand (with very fine wet-or-dry paper) the first few coats, the slurry will more or less fill the grain. You should be able to do one coat a day and have a reasonable finish before the end of the week.

   DR

4. 
   user-75913 | Mar 20, 2006 04:23pm | #7

   why not try some tried and true original http://www.homesteadfinishing.com/htdocs/oils_varnish.htm

1. 
   qtsam2 | Mar 20, 2006 08:24pm | #11

   how does the protection on these compare to just a polyuerthane finish? what advantages do these finishes offer? thanks again

5. 
   pzgren | Mar 20, 2006 05:49pm | #8

   Finished a red oak book case for my wife's cook books early last fall. Used 2 coats of BLO and 4F pumice for filler...darkened the wood a bit and gave it an "antique" kind of look. Those took 2 to 3 days each to completely dry to the touch; actually waited a week between BLO/pumice coats. Finished it off with about 6 thin coats of tung oil/ varnish mix (Formby's glossy); waited 2 to 3 days between coats, then waited about 10 days for it all to cure better. Finished the whole thing off with two coats of paste wax. All of this was done in a desert environment, with average temp of 75 to 80 deg F and about 15% humidity.

   Depending on where you are and what the temp/humidity is, it may take a bit longer or a bit less time for the BLO/pumice and tung oil/varnish to cure, if you decide to go that route. In the early spring, and if you want individual coats to cure properly, I'd say that your desire to do the finish in a week is rather unlikely, if you want a good quality finish. General rule of thumb that I've read is that oil type finishes require at least a month to completely cure, depending on conditions.

   James

   ---

   Edited 3/20/2006 3:06 pm by pzgren

   
   

   ---

   Edited 3/20/2006 5:46 pm by pzgren

1. 
   qtsam2 | Mar 20, 2006 08:28pm | #12

   the week thing is pretty much out the door, my youthful impatience was getting the best of me! i'm back to reality. lol  thanks again

1. 
   pzgren | Mar 20, 2006 10:33pm | #13

   <<the week thing is pretty much out the door, my youthful impatience was getting the best of me! i'm back to reality.>>

   Glad to hear it!  ;-)

    My perspective is that if you are going to devote the time and effort (not to mention the expense for the materials) to build a nice piece of furniture, then it deserves an equally good finish. Realistically, expect to spend about as much time finishing your piece as you did constructing it. (Finishing = final sanding and/or planing/scraping; pore-filling as required; fuming, bleaching, staining, dyeing as required; and top coating.)

6. 
   mike4244 | Mar 23, 2006 11:13pm | #16

   You can buy a stain and pore filler. I buy it at a paint store. Do not recall the brand,any good paint store can get it for you if it is not in stock.The stuff I used is labled natural oak.Looks like what generally is described as honey oak. There are many oak stain and pore fillers to choose from. Do a online search, I'm sure you will find what you need.

   This product goes on with a brush with the grain. Then push it into the pores with a 3"putty knife. File the sharp corners off the knife first.When it starts to haze over, remove the excess ACROSS the grain with the putty knife. This prevents pulling the filler out of the pores. Get clean burlap from a garden center, cut the burlap into about 12" squares.Fold the pieces over twice to get a 3" square. Remove the rest of the excess filler with the pad. Turn the pad frequently so the pad is removing filler,not just moving it around. Usually takes about 3 or 4 applications with the pads to remove excess. When no more filler comes off ,your done except for clear top coat. Wait at least three days,use a compatible clear coat.Do small areas at a time as the porefiller with stain sets up fairly quick. Start with a drawer or door first to get the hang of it. When you get to molded edges and the like, forget going across the grain.Just remove the excess the best way you can. You'll find with the molded edges they still look the same as the flat areas, even though most of the filler will not be in the pores.

   I have only used solvent based products, no expierience with water based.Experiment on scrap or the back of the dresser.

   mike

7. 
   forestgirl | Apr 02, 2006 09:08pm | #18

   Ditto to Ring's suggestion of wet-sanding with a Danish oil.  The process produces a slurry that both helps fill the open grain of the red oak, and reduces the dad-blasted bleeding problem.  I love the look it produces.

   Beating the drum again:  develop your technique using scrap, then approach the workpiece.  Though with some woods you might want to go to higher grits, oak does not require (IMHO) much more than 220.

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-) 
   

1. 
   qtsam2 | Apr 03, 2006 11:48pm | #19

   well guys and gals i still am dizzy about all the choices but the picture i posted i found the "formula" used. he used 3 parts minwax stain.

   1 part Minwax Natural (209)1 part Minwax Golden Oak (210B)1 part Minwax Cherry (235)

   I really like the amish look myself as well and will be using this mix. would topcoat with zinnser bullseye shellac be durable enough for a dresser? do i have to stain the insides of the dresser as well? can i use these stains on the inside without odor problems? thanks again all!