Sawdust on the Floor » Woodworking Finishes

Finishes for Children’s Toys

The JerseyWoodworker — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 06:01:36 +0000

I’m up in the air about how I feel about this subject. Part of me thanks the good people at the Consumers Product Safety Commission for their good work, protecting us from unseen hazards, while on the other hand I want to shout” Come On, give me a break”. This past weekend I read an article about the pending CPSC ruling regarding toxicity of finish products used on children’s toys.

The gist of the article was that under this ruling, anyone producing wooden toys for children that have a finish applied must prove via an independent third party laboratory that the products they used do not exceed the limits set by the CPSC. This sounds like a good thing, particularly thinking back to the some of the horror stories we have all heard about toys being shipped from the Orient that contained massive amounts of lead paint. The down side of this ruling may, however, affect not only the large toy manufacturers, but the everyday woodworkers like you and I.

As explained in the article I read, this ruling as it stands would apply to every woodworker. Does this mean that I have to test the finishes I would use on toys for members of my family, I hope not. But maybe it would. More likely it would affect those among us who graciously give of their time and skills to make toys for gifts to charities at Christmas. So if you’re an independent woodworker who is a member of a that special class of woodworkers or a maybe a member of a woodworking club that intends to make toys for the less fortunate amongst us, take heed. Big brother is knocking on the door of your workshop.

I have read other articles that feel that the ruling will be relaxed somewhat. The revised rulings would allow for users to forego independent testing if the manufacturer provides documentation that proves there product meet the limitations stated by the CPSC.

Whichever way the final rulings come down; it surely will affect the way we as woodworkers conduct business in our shops. For now I guess the best approach would be for all of us to keep a vigilant eye on the materials we use to finish products intended for children and if in doubt about the toxicity of the product try another product. At the same time we need to keep an eye on the CPSC for future rulings that could affect all of us.

Is this a good thing or a bad thing? I’m not sure, like I said I’m up in the air about this. But I would love to hear from you, pro or con on how you feel about this subject.

Woodworking Finishes – Selecting a Finish

The JerseyWoodworker — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 13:56:36 +0000

When I was in school, I was taught not to answer a question, with a question. That was really good advice, but sometimes one just has to do just that. Answer a question with another question. If you were to ask me ” What is the best finish for my project”?, my answer would ” How and what are you going to do with the finished project”?

The reason that I asked was because how you intend for the project to be used really will dictate how you should finish it. Another question that should be asked is what material did you make the project out of?

If your project is something like a cutting board or a turned bowl, that is going to used in the kitchen and will come into contact with food, then your only real choice is to use a product such as General Finishes Salad Bowl Finish. You would apply several coats of this finish, either using or brush or wipe on with a clean rag. Allow the finish to dry completely before applying additional coats. When cured you will have a non toxic surface that is safe to use around the kitchen. This is also a good choice for any wooden toys that young children may put into their mouths. I have also heard of people using vegetable oil to seal the surface of a wooden kitchen project. This is not recommended because with age the oil can turn rancid, which can cause health issues.

If you made a project out of a soft wood like pine and you would like to apply either a water or oil based stain, it is recommended that you seal the wood prior to applying the stain. While pine is one of the easier woods to work with, it is also one of the hardest to finish correctly. The pores in pine are not uniform in size, some are much more porous then other areas on the same board. Those that are more porous will absorb more stain than the less porous area. The result is an uneven blotchy finish. After you finish your sanding, apply a coat of sanding sealer to the project, let it sit for at least 1/2 hour before you apply your stain coats. Sanding sealer can be applied either with a bristle brush or a foam brush. For best results, if your stain is water based, then use a water based sealer.

Outdoor projects present some unique challenges for finishing. Outdoor finishes most not only seal the wood from dirt and water, it must also protect the wood from UV rays from the sun. Mold and mildew are also problems with outdoor wooden projects. If your project is going to live out of doors, then use a product designed for that purpose. Personally, I love the look of an oil finish on a wood project, so my choice of a finish would be obvious, I would select a product like Generals Outdoor Oil. This product can be use by itself or as a top coat over stain. I would recommend applying this finish in a well ventilated area. Let the product cure completely before use.

For projects that are intended for indoor use only, and will receive a stain coat, I would normally recommend that you apply a top coat of polyurethane. Polyurethane is available in either a satin, semi gloss or high gloss finish. I personally feel that a high gloss finish can make the project look too much like plastic rather than wood, so I tend to go with either the satin or semi gloss finish. However, since I feel that the high gloss finish provides a little more protection than the satin finish, I don’t hesitate to use the high gloss for the first coat of polyurethane. Whichever finish you select be sure that your project is completely sanded and dusted before you apply a top coat of polyurethane. Light sanding between coats will help produce a smooth finish surface.

Polyurethane is also available as either a brush on finish or a wipe on finish. While both products will produce great results, there are a few interesting differences between the two products. Wipe on polyurethane is a thinner product than brush on polyurethane, which means that it will penetrate deeper into the pores of the wood. Which means that you get a stronger finish with the wipe on than you would with brush on poly. Of course, being a thinner product means that more coats are required as compared to the brush on version.

Brush on polyurethane can be applied with either a bristled brush or a form brush. Sanding between coats is recommended for a smooth finish. When you apply brush on poly, it is recommended that you move with the grain at all times. To help keep bubbles at a minimum, it is recommended that you make one final pass with just the tip of the brush making contact with the surface of the wood. Make this pass from one end of the board to the other, following the grain.

Getting back to your question, “What is the best finish for your project”. Well … let me ask you a couple of questions.

For more information on or to purchase any of the products discussed in this post, please click on the highlighted links and images in the post.

Woodworking Finishing Tips

The JerseyWoodworker — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 13:35:13 +0000

Like most people wanting to learn a new skill I turned to the experts in the field for advice. In my case that was my late father in law, who was a professional cabinet maker for many years. When I talked to him about how to refinish an old dresser that had been painted over many times, his advice was to strip off the paint and refinish it with a good oil based stain and top coat it with polyurethane. This was very good advice, and the dresser turned out very well. It turned out that the dresser was made from a beautiful maple and has become a favorite piece of furniture in our house.

His method for applying the top coat was to brush on the poly, let it try completely and then sand it with steel wool. With each successive coat, using a finer steel wool. This method still works today, if and only if you are not using a water based polyurethane. Today a lot of finishers have turned to water based finishing products instead of the traditional oil based products. These water based products have several advantages, reduced odor, lower VOC and ease of clean up.

When you use a water based product and you use steel wool as a sanding medium, you have to be sure that you get every last piece of the steel wool off of your project before you apply the next coat. If you don’t, you will find a very unpleasant surprise when the finish coat dries, little RUST spots in your finish coat. Remember, this is a water based product and water and steel can result in rust.

If you are planning on using a water based top coat, I would recommend that you use either wet/dry sand paper, or a synthetic sanding medium. Most DIY stores carry several different grits of sanding sponges, which will work well with the water based products, which will not react to the water in the polyurethane.

If you’re like me and still prefer to use the oil based products, then the lesson I learned a long time ago still applies. Apply a quality oil based stain, let it dry completely, then apply several coats of top coat. Sand between coats with steel wool to remove any defects. The result will be a smooth finish that you can be proud of.

Woodworking Finishes – Stain and Wood Filler

The JerseyWoodworker — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 13:22:58 +0000

Let me ask you a serious question. Are you ever really dissatisfied with the way your latest woodworking project accepts the stain finish that you just applied? Is the finish uneven, are there contrasting shiny and dull spots? If you did a good job of sanding the wood before you applied the stain, and you also did a thorough job cleaning the wood, then I may have a solution for you.

In my mind, we can divide wood into two categories, dense and open grain woods. A dense wood would be something like Ironwood or Koa. The grains of these woods is so tightly packed together that the wood will not readily accept a finish. Open grain woods, like Oak, or Walnut are comprised of many uneven open cells or pores. The fact that the pores are of an uneven size, is why your finish is not even over the entire surface. For the finish to be even, we have to make all of the open cells the same size. And the solution for that is actually very simple.

The trick, which I learned from my late father in law, is to seal the wood as we are staining it. I know that sounds kind of like double speak, but hear me out. His method was to take a small amount of a quality wood filler and dilute it with paint thinner, until it was the same consistency as your stain product. Then he would mix the wood filler and the stain together in a separate can. Use a rag or brush to apply the mixture to your project as you normally would, then allow the stain mixture to sit on the project for about five minutes. Then using a course material such as burlap, wipe off the excess stain. Now here was the important part. When you wipe off the excess, you wipe it off cross grain. This forces the mixture into all of the open cells of the wood, and produces a even finish over the entire surface.

Many manufacturers make products that are sold as wood fillers, and most of these are good products. I would strongly advise you to stay away from any product that has words like “plastic” in the name. These products are designed to fill holes in your wood, however most will not accept stain.

I have tried this method and I have to say that it works. I can also testify to the fact that it is not an easy task. If you wait too long and allow the stain to start setting up before you wipe off the excess, your arms will be in for a good work out. My advice is to work in small sections of your project, don’t get to far ahead of yourself. If you are applying stain to a cabinet, consider working on one door at a time.

Wood filler should not be confused with another product that is marketed under names like “Grain Tamer”. These are products that are designed to be applied to the entire surface of the project before you ever apply stain. I am not fond of the results of these products, they give the wood an unnatural finish almost like a plastic coating.

Wood filler is readily available at most woodworking supply stores and burlap can usually be found at a garden center or the gardening department of your local DIY store.

So what have you got to loose, an even finish and a cardio workout at the same time, a true win win situation.

Woodworking Finishes – Wipe on Polyurethane

The JerseyWoodworker — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 12:47:24 +0000

Over the past year we have been building and finishing custom kitchen cabinets for our home. Being somewhat of a wood purest, our cabinets were made of solid hardwood, no particle or veneers allowed. The final design was a blend of many ideas; the same can be said about the layout of each cabinet. I can’t tell you where each idea came from, the concept evolved over time to something we are really happy with.

One thing we were sure of when we started was that the cabinets would be stained and top coated with Polyurethane. After discovering the joys of stains by General Finishes, we felt it only made sense to also use General Finishes Polyurethane. I am not a chemist, so I can offer no scientific proof, but it seems logical to me that the formulation of Polyurethane from one manufacturer would work best with stains formulated by the same company instead of mixing top coats and stains from different manufacturers.

As the name implies, Wipe on Polyurethane can simply be applied by wiping it across the across the project with a lint free rag. We choose to use disposable foam brushes instead of the rag method, we found it less messy. One of the draw backs or maybe a blessing is that by wiping on the top coat, the thickness of the coats tends to be thinner then when the traditional polyurethanes. A draw back, because this will requires more coats and a blessing because there is less chance of the top coat getting that plastic look when too much Polyurethane is applied.

We choose to use a semi gloss finish as the first coat, and then following up with several coats of satin wipe on polyurethane. Using the same logic, both were from the same manufacturer. Is there anything we don’t like about General Polyurethane? Yes. General products are not carried by our local DIY centers, so we need to visit the local Woodworking store to get this great product and this is much farther away from our home. Of course, you really need to twist my arm to get me to visit a woodworking store!