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I am totally sold on Enduro even with a brush. I brushed on 5 coats on BalticBirch and it does not look plastic. Instructions recommend a minimum of 3 coats.
Carolyn
Trip Blog for Twelve Countries: [url=http://www.woodworkingtraveler.wordpress.com[/url]
"It's good to know, but it's better to understand." Auze Jackson
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That ended up looking fantastic, Damon. Well done and good choices you made, there.
I couldn't help but notice that you've picked up a few more handsaws! Hah! Can't resist 'em, can we?
It appears your table gets used much like mine. Our cats like to be up there, too. The kids know to wipe the table before dinner, thankfully.
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09-08-2016, 11:56 PM
(This post was last modified: 09-08-2016, 11:58 PM by Stwood_.)
Lookin good there Damon.
First few pics of your lumber. Looks like you have a mix of black walnut and american walnut. American is lighter, black is a darker brown, almost black color with finish applied.
Transtint dye is great stuff. I always added it to my top coat finish, right in the lacquer or poly when I sprayed it. Multi coats will be darker each coat.
With that wide of a top, and air dried lumber, your bread board ends will be longer than the width of your top within the first season I would say.
Looks awesome BTW.
Steve
Mo.
I miss the days of using my dinghy with a girlfriend too. Zack Butler-4/18/24
The Revos apparently are designed to clamp railroad ties and pull together horrifically prepared joints
WaterlooMark 02/9/2020
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Another excellent result, Damon. Your patience, persistence, and drive for perfection are unmatched. I would have been very surprised had you not liked EnduroVar. It can orange peel if you don't get it atomized finely enough, but your setup must have worked well because the result looks great. People who poo-poo WB finishes should try EnduroVar or Enduro Clear Poly, or Crystalac based on the results Dave Diaman and Grey Spider have posted here. If you put Sealcoat shellac or dye under them they do not look cold, blue, or plastic like unless you apply way more than the recommended number of coats.
On a project where you want a dead clear finish, give Enduro Clear Poly a try. It's as clear as HP Poly with much better chemical durability.
BTW, I typically use EnduroVar on the drawer boxes I build. I spray a coat of Sealcoat and then two coats of EnduroVar Satin. On both BB plywood and maple boxes it comes out beautiful.
John
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Well thank you all for the nice words. I'll post some more photos and a few build photos when the chairs arrive.
Greg, yes it's hard to pass up a really nice WWII or older Disston when I run across them. Nice ones are getting harder to find though. The cat does like the table and thanks to the fast drying WB poly cat hair isn't an issue. It's hard to believe that I was able to do two coats of NGR dye, a seal coat of shellac and then two coats of poly all within the morning. Then, it was dry enough to carry it inside an hour after the last coat of poly. Probably quicker but I didn't want to push it too much.
John, I had discounted a WB poly for the topcoat because I didn't want "to ruin it". You are right though, the shellac and dye under the Enduro doesn't rob from the beauty. There is still a nice walnut "shimmer" with changes in lighting and viewing angles. The breadboard ends will look very dark at one angle then lighter than the long perpendicular boards when looking from the other end. I am still amazed at how much I like the Eduro. I can see myself using it much more often in the future especially now that I can spray using a 1 qt. cup.
The Enduro is glass smooth on this top and it's only gotten better with more cure time. The sheen has started to settle down a bit too with more time. I'm glad it is because I thought it was pretty glossy for a stain. I believe it's rated at 30-40 on the brightness or flatness level. I can't think of the proper term right now.
I could of bought the EnduroVar locally, which would of been great, but amber tint wasn't something I wanted with this table. I'm just not a big amber tint guy and I've worked hard to rid my floors and kitchen cabinets from the orange and amber tones that were in the house when I bought it. Not to mention all the Minwax pigmented stains that splotched the hard maple cabinetry. I'm sure it's a great product though and maybe I'll pick up a qt to play with. I'd really like to use more of GF's finishes but they are still pretty expensive to purchase just to play with them.
The Graco 4 stage HVLP I recently purchased has been a dream. I've gotten quite familiar with it and it's one of those things that I wish I would of done sooner. Granted, this was a deal I couldn't pass up but I wish I would of bitten the bullet for a 1 qt. cup gun sooner.
On a side note, I recently sprayed BM's house brand pre cat lacquer--Lenmar. I wasn't very impressed with it all. Even after a 10 day cure time, it's not a very hard finish compared to SW's pre cat. I know many manufacturers are constantly changing their formulas to lower VOC's but this was still very much solvent based. The Enduro is considerably harder and just as clear IMO. Stinky chemicals aside, I'd still use the Enduro over the Lenmar pre cat. I'm very anxious to try the white and black Enduro. I'm sure it shoots wonderful as well. Another interesting fact is that I shot the Eduro clear when it was probably 90 degrees in my garage and relative humidity was casted at 76% that day. Neither presented a problem. Lacquer would of blushed like crazy if retarder wasn't used and that would of slowed the dry time.
