miranthis Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 I am at the finishing stage on a presentation box. First coat was zinsser sealcoat with some dye followed by a good 320 sanding to pop some tiger maple grain. (TWW Grain Popping from episode 32 of the webseries) I then wiped everything down with a rag and a little DNA to get teh sanding residue eliminated and let it dry. Then applied first light coat of Arm-r-seal semi-gloss with a folded t-shirt. I used Marc's wipe on/no wipe off technique and it all soaked in to both the purpleheart and the tiger maple. This morning (8 or so hours after application) I used a grey scotchcbrite pad (the ones from Woodcraft) to rub it out and it dulled it considerably with residue. I then wiped it down with a clean t shirt to rid of the sanding residue and the color and sheen perked up a lot. I will apply coat 2 tonight. My questions are these - 1) after I do the buffing/scotch brite rub down what is the best thing to remove the sanding residue? Just a t shirt, or should I wet/dampen it with something like DNA or Mineral Spirits. 2) I read that the first coat of Arm-r-seal can look a little rough as it penetrates the grain, but how many coats until I can expect a finished look? 3) On the last coat do I just leave it, or do I let it dry and then buff it with the white scotchbrite pad and wipe it down? Thanks in a advance, Attached is a pic of the box before I started the finish. Jeff in KC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 You might be interested in buying Marc's finishing video from the Guild as it will explain everything http://thewoodwhispererguild.com/members/your-projects/simple-varnish-finish/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 One of the neat things about this finish is that you can keep adding coats until you get the finish and build up that you want. I typically light sand with 400 between coats and never on the last coat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 You might be interested in buying Marc's finishing video from the Guild as it will explain everything http://thewoodwhispererguild.com/members/your-projects/simple-varnish-finish/ I have the electronic version I will loan you for a couple of bucks! Just kidding Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miranthis Posted November 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 I appreciate the replies, but apparently I did not adequately preface my initial post to give you guys the info you needed to understand where my question is coming from. I have read everything I can find from Marc and the rest of the net including watching innumerable videos and listening to the podcast(s) and making test builds before starting the final project. Mid finishing I thought I might try to poll the collective wisdom here from folks like me that have done it and are not pros . I appreciate the reference to something I can buy and have shipped, but I had those 3 questions on a project that is due for delivery this week. I may buy the DVD at some point (one of the things on my x-mas list), but I need timely information, not a sales pitch, with all due respect. I have answers to 1 and 3, but the end user experience I am looking for in #2 is still not at the level that I feel comfortable I have enough information. I get the range of coats, but as I wait to go home from work and put on coat #2 I still am not confident that the first coat was put on ok. It just seemed to soak in a lot. Is that typical, given the wood and such? Thanks, Jeff in KC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 4 coats sanding between each with 400 to 800 grit is sufficient for a table top so should be enough for your box. Last coat needs to cure for a few days before hitting it with 4000 grit or a brown paper bag (seriously) to remove dust nibs. You might not have enough time left to allow it to cure sufficiently. It was not meant to be a sales pitch as I don't have anything to gain. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Yes, that is very typical with arm-r-seal. It will look less rough with each additional coat and you decide when to stop adding. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miranthis Posted November 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 4 coats sanding between each with 400 to 800 grit is sufficient for a table top so should be enough for your box. Last coat needs to cure for a few days before hitting it with 4000 grit or a brown paper bag (seriously) to remove dust nibs. You might not have enough time left to allow it to cure sufficiently. It was not meant to be a sales pitch as I don't have anything to gain. I just need to get the last coat ON it and dry tot he touch...the box is for my son and I can wait a few weeks for the final cure and denubbing. I just need it dry enough to do the presentation on Thursday. I am doing on more coat tonight and that may be the last on the inside and the trays, but will do a few more coats on the outside as time permitts with the 6 - 12 hour re-coat time. It will get no real wear, I just need it to build to an even semi-gloss sheen. I suppose I should have used High Perf, but I was going for the chatoyance of oil with the tiger maple. It worked and it is beautiful, but underestimating the number of coats of oil and a hinge screw repair put me several days behind. :-) Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 If you finish/store it in a warmer area, you don't need to wait 24 hours to recoat. 5 hours or so and it will be dry to the touch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Yes, Jeff HP may have been an option but ArmRSeal is great to make the beauty of the wood come through and as you have found is real easy to apply. The other waterborne finish that I can recommend for future projects is GF Enduro Var. It can be applied like ArmRSeal by wiping, sprayed or brushed. And it dries quicker than an oil. It does look like an oil finish when cured. Hope your son likes it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miranthis Posted November 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 If you finish/store it in a warmer area, you don't need to wait 24 hours to recoat. 5 hours or so and it will be dry to the touch. Mother in law is in town so the heat is cranked up and we have really low humidity in the house....I will move the finishing into the office downstairs to speed up the drying.....:-) I will post pics once I get it done. I really like how the finish pulled out the purple in the purpleheart and the tiger stripes in the maple after the dyeing. Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Mother in law is in town so the heat is cranked up and we have really low humidity in the house....I will move the finishing into the office downstairs to speed up the drying.....:-) I will post pics once I get it done. I really like how the finish pulled out the purple in the purpleheart and the tiger stripes in the maple after the dyeing. Jeff I look forward to seeing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewyo Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 I just used arm-r-seal for the second time. Full strength as indicated on the can. Applying with a rag on knotty alder the first coat soaked in and I would describe the result as barely a sealer coat, especially on end-grain and the knots. On the larger flat surfaces I used a foam brush and it was pretty much the same. The second coat wasn't much better. The third left just a few spots that were not quite there yet, and the fourth coat was sufficient. The point being...it didn't look very good until that fourth coat. The foam brush helped to build up the finish quicker, but it was more difficult to keep out the runs and drips. Oh, and I used a tack cloth to clean up the sanding dust between coats. I used 0000 steel wool after the first coat, but switched to a maroon or gray scotchbrite thereafter because I was picking up a lot of tiny metal fragments on the tack cloth and figured that couldn't be good. I don't think it could hurt to use mineral spirits, but I'm no expert and I don't even play one on TV. The white scotchbrite can work for final polishing but I find that it dulls the finish more than a paper bag. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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