Low cost hassle free set and forget paint, stain, finish mixer

[toneslinger]

Hello everyone,

Gonna take a stab at a tip for the shop and see if anyone does the same thing. Like most of you, I have a cabinet full of stains, finishes, and paints. some half used, some never opened, some so old and rusted you need a grinder to get the lid off.

If you're like me you hate to waste anything and sometimes when you are slapping something together in a hurry you want to put a quick coat of stain or paint on it. There is all kinds of urban legends about bubbles are bad if you shake it, dont use it if it smells sour, etc etc. But I know when I open up a can of stain that is used I dont want to spent ten minutes stirring it to see if its any good. So recently I've been using another solution.

I've reliced a lot of guitars to make them look aged. One technique is aging the metal hardware to make it look aged by knocking off the finish and dulling up the edges on the plating. to get an even consistency, I purchased a rock tumbler from Harbor Freight. It was very low cost and perfect for throwing all the small metal parts in with an abrasive to knock the shine off the parts.

Now, when i'm working on a project and i'm a few hours away from staining or finishing. I grab the cans (this model handles up to two 1 quart cans) and slap them on the rock tumbler. The tumbler slowly turns the cans silently for a few hours and when i'm ready, the cans are already mixed and ready to go.

Like I said, I use the dual drum version that will hold two 1 quart cans or three of the tiny pint cans. It wont work well for a gallon can because the can has the handle attachment which wont allow it to turn freely.

Here is the link to the tumbler version I use. Keep your eyes open, they often drop the price to $24.

Dual Drum Rotary Rock Tumbler

[PaulMarcel]

Dang, and I was looking at paint shakers recently in case someone had a cheap one online. That's a great idea. Get some powder abrasive and toss some rocks in the tumblers, too, so they run when you aren't mixing stain and you'll have a nice surprise after a month. Thanks!

[petersb]

Thanks for the tip. Now I want to go get a rock tumbler and try it out!

[kesac]

Hello everyone,

Gonna take a stab at a tip for the shop and see if anyone does the same thing. Like most of you, I have a cabinet full of stains, finishes, and paints. some half used, some never opened, some so old and rusted you need a grinder to get the lid off.

If you're like me you hate to waste anything and sometimes when you are slapping something together in a hurry you want to put a quick coat of stain or paint on it. There is all kinds of urban legends about bubbles are bad if you shake it, dont use it if it smells sour, etc etc. But I know when I open up a can of stain that is used I dont want to spent ten minutes stirring it to see if its any good. So recently I've been using another solution.

I've reliced a lot of guitars to make them look aged. One technique is aging the metal hardware to make it look aged by knocking off the finish and dulling up the edges on the plating. to get an even consistency, I purchased a rock tumbler from Harbor Freight. It was very low cost and perfect for throwing all the small metal parts in with an abrasive to knock the shine off the parts.

Now, when i'm working on a project and i'm a few hours away from staining or finishing. I grab the cans (this model handles up to two 1 quart cans) and slap them on the rock tumbler. The tumbler slowly turns the cans silently for a few hours and when i'm ready, the cans are already mixed and ready to go.

Like I said, I use the dual drum version that will hold two 1 quart cans or three of the tiny pint cans. It wont work well for a gallon can because the can has the handle attachment which wont allow it to turn freely.

Here is the link to the tumbler version I use. Keep your eyes open, they often drop the price to $24.

Dual Drum Rotary Rock Tumbler

Sounds good to me. I wonder how it would work with aerosol cans? On the subject of bubbles in the finish, when you have small amounts of poly, you can shake it real hard and paint it on while full of bubbles and get a good nonskid surface. Some jigs that I used to glue sandpaper to for that purpose, look a lot nicer and more professional with a coat of poly and bubbles than with shreds of sandpaper hanging on to them from previous uses