Anybody know anything about furniture refinishing

[Doomer]

I'm trying to refinish an old table top. what I want is a smooth, glass like finish. Exactly how to accomplish this eludeds me. It real wood and laminating it is out of the question.

Thanks

 

[Electric Amish]

Strip it.
Sand it.
Stain it.
Lightly sand it.
Wipe with tacky cloth/cheese cloth.
Apply lacquer.
Lightly sand.
Wipe with tacky cloth/cheese cloth.
Apply lacquer
Lightly sand/steel wool
Wipe with tacky cloth/cheese cloth.
Apply lacquer.
.
.
Repeat until desired effect
.
.
.
Profit

 

[T2T III]

As an option to lacquer, you could use polyurethane (oil based). If you go this route, thin it with a little paint thinner/mineral spirits so that you get a nice, even and smooth coat.

 

[Doomer]

Thanks, what I've done so far is to sand it and put polyurethane on. I had two problems with this. 1. it was rough and scratchy. I assume this was because I used the wrong grade of sand paper. I thought it had to be rough so the poly would stick 2. the coating was grossly uneven and looked too ghetto to suit me.

 

[Electric Amish]

Originally posted by: Doomer
Thanks, what I've done so far is to sand it and put polyurethane on. I had two problems with this. 1. it was rough and scratchy. I assume this was because I used the wrong grade of sand paper. I thought it had to be rough so the poly would stick 2. the coating was grossly uneven and looked too ghetto to suit me.

You need to sand with relatively fine paper/steel wool and re-apply the polyurethane 3-4 times AT LEAST.

 

[Doomer]

Originally posted by: Electric Amish

Originally posted by: Doomer
Thanks, what I've done so far is to sand it and put polyurethane on. I had two problems with this. 1. it was rough and scratchy. I assume this was because I used the wrong grade of sand paper. I thought it had to be rough so the poly would stick 2. the coating was grossly uneven and looked too ghetto to suit me.

You need to sand with relatively fine paper/steel wool and re-apply the polyurethane 3-4 times AT LEAST.

Cool, I'll try that. Gonna get some steel wool tomorrow.

Any particular type or style of brush I should be using ?

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Do you know the kind of wood you are finishing?

 

[Crazymofo]

Originally posted by: Doomer

Originally posted by: Electric Amish

Originally posted by: Doomer
Thanks, what I've done so far is to sand it and put polyurethane on. I had two problems with this. 1. it was rough and scratchy. I assume this was because I used the wrong grade of sand paper. I thought it had to be rough so the poly would stick 2. the coating was grossly uneven and looked too ghetto to suit me.

You need to sand with relatively fine paper/steel wool and re-apply the polyurethane 3-4 times AT LEAST.

Cool, I'll try that. Gonna get some steel wool tomorrow.

Any particular type or style of brush I should be using ?

If you want a smooth finish you have to SAND the wood until its smooth to the touch... Lacquer and polyurethane will not fill in voids to make a smooth finish.

You need to finish with at LEAST 600 grit sand paper and thats after doing the brunt of the work with 200 or lower grit and then working your way up to the higher grit... that's what gives an even smooth finish not what you cover it with. Steel wool will work great for the inbetween stages of the polyurethane like the instructions posted above but as a sanding eliment would take much to long to get a smooth finish like you want...

Hopefully you actually stripped the old covering off the table before sanding because its a lot quicker to get the wood smooth and ready for the new finish that way then it is trying to sand off the old stain/lacquer...

Good luck!

 

[Doomer]

I think it's oak.

 

[IamElectro]

Originally posted by: Doomer

Originally posted by: Electric Amish

Originally posted by: Doomer
Thanks, what I've done so far is to sand it and put polyurethane on. I had two problems with this. 1. it was rough and scratchy. I assume this was because I used the wrong grade of sand paper. I thought it had to be rough so the poly would stick 2. the coating was grossly uneven and looked too ghetto to suit me.

You need to sand with relatively fine paper/steel wool and re-apply the polyurethane 3-4 times AT LEAST.

Cool, I'll try that. Gonna get some steel wool tomorrow.

Any particular type or style of brush I should be using ?

Foam brushes always gave me the best presanding finish with polyurethane. Be sure and get some that are solevent safe if you are not using a water based polyurethane.

 

[Doomer]

Originally posted by: Crazymofo

Originally posted by: Doomer

Originally posted by: Electric Amish

Originally posted by: Doomer
Thanks, what I've done so far is to sand it and put polyurethane on. I had two problems with this. 1. it was rough and scratchy. I assume this was because I used the wrong grade of sand paper. I thought it had to be rough so the poly would stick 2. the coating was grossly uneven and looked too ghetto to suit me.

You need to sand with relatively fine paper/steel wool and re-apply the polyurethane 3-4 times AT LEAST.

Cool, I'll try that. Gonna get some steel wool tomorrow.

Any particular type or style of brush I should be using ?

If you want a smooth finish you have to SAND the wood until its smooth to the touch... Lacquer and polyurethane will not fill in voids to make a smooth finish.

You need to finish with at LEAST 600 grit sand paper and thats after doing the brunt of the work with 200 or lower grit and then working your way up to the higher grit... that's what gives an even smooth finish not what you cover it with. Steel wool will work great for the inbetween stages of the polyurethane like the instructions posted above but as a sanding eliment would take much to long to get a smooth finish like you want...

Hopefully you actually stripped the old covering off the table before sanding because its a lot quicker to get the wood smooth and ready for the new finish that way then it is trying to sand off the old stain/lacquer...

Good luck!

Thanks Crazymofo, I bought some 220 grit today and i'm using it to take off the screwed up poly. I've just about got it down to bare wood again. I'll have to find some finer sand paper. I got the 220 at Harbor Freight and that was the finest they had.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

You have several options here, and you should consider them all before going to a conventional poly finish.

Pic 1

Close up

Different angle closeup

That's a curly maple table top being finished with Watco Danish oil. I have worked on it occasionally since then, and it is smooth as glass.

Straight poly often (very often) gives inferior results. It is NOT an easy finish to get right, although it is easy to pour out of a can.

If interested, I have a few suggestions.

 

[Doomer]

I'm all ears Winston. 🙂

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Ok, if you are trying to get a finish that is truly mirror like, you have a job ahead of you.

First you need to strip away the old finish, and if you do not have an orbital sander, seriously (very seriously) consider getting one. It will save many hours sanding this one project alone.

Anyway, you need to sand the table as smooth as you can up to and including 320 grit. Wipe off with a rag with a little mineral spirits to clean it up.


Oak is an open grained wood. For a really smooth finish, you need to use a grain filler. Lowes, HD and the like have them. Follow the package directions for this. If it is oak, then you WILL have the grain show (which is not bad, but will not work for your purposes). No amount of poly is going to make up for missing this step.

You can find combination stain/fillers at Lowes, etc.

Once you have the filler in, you need to sand with 320 paper, being careful not to sand through the filler.


I would recommend using wipe on poly. It is easy to apply, but you need to use many coats. Use a clean rag, not a brush (hence wipe-on) For a table top, 10 is not too much. Between coats you lightly sand with 600 grit paper. Once you have the look you like, coat and sand once more, but with synthetic steel wool. I like it MUCH better that SS wool as it doesn't leave metal fibers in the finish.

The thicker poly tends to sag and indeed looks too plastic for my tastes.

Oh, almost forgot. Do not forget to wipe off the table before applying the next coat.

The result is a finish which is smooth and glossy without feeling like plastic, yet is durable.

 

[Doomer]

Cool. 🙂 Thanks Winston. I'll be off to Lowes and Home Depot tomorrow to round up all the ingedints. I do have an orbital sander. I've been using it to take the old poly off. It does save a ton of work.

Thanks again.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

If something else comes up, please feel to PM me. If I don't know a particular answer I can find it out easy enough. I am going to try French Polishing. If you look that up you will see it's a ton of work, but produces wonderful results. Not really appropriate for a table top seeing regular use though. For jewelry boxes or some furniture it's really impressive.

I really like using Danish oil though. For more tight grained wood, it can't be beat for ease of application and results.

 

[ICXRa]

I have had good luck using the 3M sandblaster line of sandpaper. I have found it at lowes but not at Home Depot. I have also had good results using Purdy brushes but it can still be difficult not to get bubbles in urethane finishes.

 

[Doomer]

I hear ya. I've seen some truly amazing finishes on furniture that left me wondering how they did it.

 

[Doomer]

Originally posted by: ICXRa
I have had good luck using the 3M sandblaster line of sandpaper. I have found it at lowes but not at Home Depot. I have also had good results using Purdy brushes but it can still be difficult not to get bubbles in urethane finishes.

Those look like expensive brushes. I let a salesman at Lowes talk me into buying an $8 brush and I couldn't tell the difference between it and a $2 brush.

 

[ElFenix]

the sandblaster sanding sponges are awesome, btw

 

[ICXRa]

I got one that is for oil based finishes. I just looked at it and the best I can tell that is it. It was only about ten or twelve dollars if I remember correctly. I myself am not very good putting down a good even coat without getting bubbles in the finish but my wife makes it look easy so I do the sanding and she applies the finish. I don't know what I am doing incorrect but it must be something but it seems to be no problem for her.
Good luck!

 

[Doomer]

UPDATE.

I went to Home Depot this morning. they didn't have the pre-made sanding pads for my orbital sander so I had to get sheets and cut my own, uck. I also picked up some steel wool. They didn't have the artifical kind so I had to get the real thing. I also got some foam brushes.

I started out with 220 grit then went to 400 grit then to 600. It's as smooth as a baby's butt and I'm ready to apply the poly. (I looked for grain filler at HD and couldn't find it. I asked 2 of the loser employee's and they had no idea what I was talking about so I guess I'll have to skip that step.)

Should I use any kind of cleaner on it before I apply the poly or is wiping with a dry rag followed by a blow job from my air compresser good enough ?