Wood Finishing

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THEARTOFWOODWORKING
HOMEWORI$HOP
WORKSHOP
GUIDE
CHOO'ING A BRUSH
Whilea eeaeonedfiniaher can apply
a atain or topcoat ekillfully with vir'
tually any bruah, moat peopleare
better off buyinqa qood-quality tool.
Thebruah ahowncut away at riqht
may coot more than a lower quality
model,but it includeacerLain featurea that willenaureconaiatently
4ood reaulto.
Thereare two kindaof bruaheaon
the market: natural- and aynthetic'
brietle ty pee. Natural - briatle
brueheeare made from boar, aable,
camel,ox or badqer hair, tsoarbriatle ("Chinahog") bruaheeare
ideal for applyinqvarnieh.)ther
natural-briatle bruaheaare beat
auited to lacauer and ahellac,
Theyare a po6r choice,however,for
opreadin4 water- baeed fi nishee
becauaethey may cauae the finiah
to foam up.
gynth dtic-fil a ment bruahea a re
made of nylon or polyeeter, or both.
Theaebruaheeare your beat bet for
applying water- baaed prod ucta.
Durableand flexible,they can alao
be uaed with varniahand
penetratin4 oil etains.
ANATOMY
OFA PAINTBRUSH
Retaining pin
Nailor rivet.that binde
ferrule to handle
Reaervoir
A apace that holda
finiahaa it ia beinq
opread on by briatleo
Divider
Taperedplu7 that
eeparatee bdatlea_
into qroupo, forminq
a reaervoir
Epoxyplug Bondaferrule-endof brietlee

together with epoxyqlue
Bristles
Natural bristlea or aynthetic
filamente; tipe can be cut flat
or tapered to a chiael tip
ANDSYNTHETIC
BRISTTE
TIPS
NATURAL
Tipped
)traiqht-cut
tipo recommendedfor
water-baged
finiahea
Ferrule
A riqid, corroeionreaiatant metal band
that holda brietlea
and epoxyplug
Handle
Can be made of plaatic
or hardwood;balanced
and deoi4nedfor comforb
Tapered
Tipehonedto a
fine point; ideal for
oil-baaedproducto
Itkevarnish
CHISEL-TIP
BRISTTES
Flagged
1plit enda hold
more finiah and
epread it more
omoothlythan
tipped or tapered Lipe
T I P SO NB R U S HS E L E C T I O N
. Paya littlemoreto geta superiorq u a l i t yb r u s ha; b e t t ebr r u s hw i l l
yourresults.
improve
. Avoidbrushes
with hollowbristles.
o n e sd o
U n l i k es o l i db r i s t l e sh,o l l o w
n o ts p r i n gb a c kt o t h e i ro r i g i n aslh a p e
whenbent.
. Fora good-quality,
all-purpose
brush,
choose
a chiseltip modelwith long
springybristles-softforthin waterbasedfinishes
andstifffor heaw-
lacquer
bodiedproducts
suchasshellac,
a n dv a r n i s h .
o lf youwanta brushwithf laggedbrissplitends,
tletips,checkforbranch-like
. l f y o ua r el o o k i n fgo r a t a p e r e d b r i s t l eb r u s hm
, a k es u r et h a tt h e
b r i s t r easr et h i c k ear t t h ef e r r u l e
e n dt h a na t t h et i o .
. B u yb r u s h etsh a t h a v eg o o ds p r i n g .
S q u e e zteh e b r i s t l ew
s i t hy o u rh a n d
a n db e n dt h e m ;t h e ys h o u l df e e l
f u l l a n ds p r i n gb a c kt o t h e i ro r i g i n a lp o s i t i o n s .
. Confirm
thatthe bristles
arediff e r e nlte n g t hbsy r u n n i nygo u rh a n d
fromthe
downonesideof the bristles
ferruleto thetip; the shorterbristles
shnrrldsnrino rrn
r Makesurethatthe bristles
aref irmly
setin the ferrule,whichshouldbe
fastened
securely
to the handle.
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THEARTOFWOODWORKING
WOOD
FINISHING
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THE ART OF WOODWORKING
WOOD
FINISHING
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TIME-LIFE
BOOKS
ALEXANDRIA,
VIRGINIA
ST.REMYPRESS
MONTREAL.
NEWYORK
THE ART OF WOODWORKING was produced by

ST. REMYPRESS
PUBLISHER KennethWinchester
PRES/DENT PierreLdveilld
SeriesEditor
SeriesArt Director
SeniorEditors
PierreHome-Douglas
FrancineLemieux
Marc Cassini(Text)
HeatherMills (Research)
Art Directors Normand Boudreault,SolangeLaberge
Designer Luc Germain
Research
Editor Iim McRae
PictureEditor ChristopherJackon
Writers TamsinM. Douglas,Andrew lones
ContributingWriter LauraTringali
Bourgeois,
Contr ibuting I llustrators Michel Blais,Jean-Pierre
RonaldDurepos,SergeGuibord,
RobertPaquet,facquesPerrault,
JamesTh6rien,focelynVeillette
Administrator NatalieWatanabe
ProductionManager MichelleTurbide
SystemCoordinator fean-LucRoy
Photographer RobertChartier
Index ChristineM. Iacobs
Proofreader Iudith Yelon
Time-Life Booksis a division of Time-Life Inc.,
a wholly ownedsubsidiaryof
THE TIME INC. BOOK COMPANY
TIME-LIFEBOOKS
President
Publisher
ManagingEditor
Directorof EditorialResources
MaryN. Davis
RobertH. Smith
ThomasH. Flaherty
EliseD. Ritter-Clough
Associate
Publisher TrevorLunn
MarketingDirector ReginaHall
Editorial Director Donia Ann Steele
ConsultingEditor Bob Doyle
ProductionManager MarleneZack
THECONSUTTANTS
Michael Dresdner is a former contributing
editor to Fine Woodworkingmagazine.He cur"Just
rently writes the
Finishing"column for
AmericanWoodworker
magazine.
Frank Klausz ownsand operatesFrank'sCabinet
Shopin Pluckemin,New Jersey.He contributes
to Fine Woodworkingmagazine
and hasmade
videotapeswith TauntonPress,including one
on wood finishing.
Paul McGoldrick ownsand operatesPianoforte
Inc.,a pianorestorationcompanyin Montreal,
for the maintenance
Quebec.He is responsible
and concertpreparationof the pianosusedby the
Montreal SymphonyOrchestraand the National
Arts CenterOrchestrain Ottawa,Ontario.
Giles Miller-Mead hastaught advancedcabinetrnakingat Montrealtechnicalschoolsfor more
than 10years.A nativeofNew Zealand,he previouslyworkedasa restorerof antiquefurniture.
JosephTruini is SeniorEditor of Hoze
Mechanixmagazine.
A former Shopand Tools
he hasworked as
Editor of PopularMechanics,
home improvementcontractor
a cabinetmaker,
and carpenter.
Wood Finishing
p. cm.-(The Art of Woodworking)
Includesindex.
(trade)
ISBN0-8094-9912-6
rsBN 0-8094-e9
r3-4 (lib)
l. Wood Finishing.
I. Time- Life Books. II. Series
TT325.W661992
684.1'043-dc20
92-32892
CIP
For information about any Time-Life book,
pleasecall I-800-621-7026,or write:
ReaderInformation
Time-Life CustomerService
P.O.Box C-32068
Richmond,Virginia
2326t-2068
@ 1992Time-LifeBooksInc.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproducedin
any form or by any electronicor mechanical
means,including information storageand
retrievaldevicesor systems,without prior
written permissionfrom the publisher,except
may be quoted for reviews.
that briefpassages
First printing. Printed in U.S.A.
Publishedsimultaneouslyin Canada.
TIME-LIFE is a trademarkof Time Warner
Inc. U.S.A.
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CONTENTS
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6 INTRODUCTION
12 SAFETY
20
22
24
30
35
43
50
51
PREPARINGTHE SURFACE
Toolsand accessories
Planing
Scraping
Sanding
Repairingsurfacedamage
Raisingthe grain
Filling the grain
54
56
57
59
60
64
68
75
76
80
CHANGING THE COLOR

Bleaching
The varietiesof wood stains
Dve stains
Pigmentstains
Stainingwood
Pickling a wood surface
Chemicalstains
Fuming
IIO
II2
113
118
122
DECORAIIVEFINISHES
Stenciling
Graining
Marbling
126
I28
I29
130
FINISHING TOUCHES
Preparingto rub out the finish
Rubbingout a finish
136 CLEANING AND STORAGE
140 GrossARY
I42 INDEX
I44 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
PROTECTIVEFINISHES
Choosinga protectivefinish
Finishingby hand
Settingup your sprayequipment
Working with sprayequipment
Anatomy of a sprayroom
Identifting and avoiding
sprayproblems
106 Frenchpolishing
82
84
86
91
93
97
I02
I04
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eboksdownloadrace.blogspot.in
INTRODUCTION
PaulMcGoldrickdescribes
FINISHING
APIANO
y careerin restoringpianosbeganlike a lot of opportunitiesin life-by chance.
When I was231 had a cabinetmakingshopin Montrdal;next door wasa
Parisian
cabinetmaker,
GillesJozon.
wasa cabinetmaker
oftheoldtradition
Jean
Jean
andI spentmanyhoursin hisatelierleamingaboutdifferentfinishingmethods-techniquesthathaven't
changed
for generations.
I laterfollowedhim to Parisandspent
aworkingholidaythererestoring
antiques.
ThroughmutualfriendsI metapianotechnician
namedGillesLosier,
andI began
doingfinishingworkonpianoshewasrestoring.
In hisyouth,Gilleshada foreman
whocouldselect
thewoodfor apianocase,
installthesoundboard,
stringthepiano,
cutthekeys,andassemble
andregulate
themechanism.
Hecouldevensitdownand
playa tune.Sadly,
craftsmen
withthatrangeof expertise
in thepianotradehaveall
butvanished.
pianospresents
Restoring
manychallenges:
Theinstrument
mustnot onlylook
great;it mustalsosoundsuperbandrespond
wellmechanically.
Theinstrument
shown
in thephotograph
isa7-footChickering
andSonsgrandpianobuiltin Bostonin 1875.
I counted10differentwoodsusedin itsmaking,although
theentiresurface
isveneered
with Brazilian
rosewood.
My firsttaskinvolvedfillingthegrainof thewoodwith a darkpastefiller.I then
applieda coatofsandingsealer,
andnextsprayed
Tokeep
oneightcoatsoflacquer.
thefinalfinishthinandto levelanydepressions
caused
bythelargeporesoftherosewoodveneer,
I cuteverysecond
lacquer
coatingwith 220-gritsandpaper.
TheIegsdemanded
special
attention.
Theywere
madefromlargeblocksof poplar
woodsoI hadto createmyownstain,blendingin justenoughyellowandredto simulaterosewood's
hue.I sketched
in gain linesusingacombination
distinctive
of feathersandbrushes,
with thetop of thepianostandingnearbyasa guide.Thegrain
patterns
in rosewood
cangetquitewild,soyoucantakeartisticliberties
in tryingto
it aslongasyourespect
simulate
a fewrules,suchaskeeping
thegrainlinesrunning
parallel.
Thefinalcoatof finishwassanded
with220-gritandthen400-gritpaper.
All that
remained
at thetimethisphotowastakenwasto rub thefinishto a softglosswith
0000steelwool,buffwitha cottonclothandapplyacarnauba-based
wax.
PaulMcGoldrickfinishesand restores
pianosin hisshopin Montrdal,Qudbec.
INTRODUCTION
ThomasMosertalksabout
LINSEEDOIL
y introductionto the craftof buildingfurniturewaswith l9th-Century
Americanantiquesandremnantsof antiques.I u'ouldbuy a chestof drawers
withoutdrawers,
for example,
andthatwouldleadme to figuringout how drawers
with olderpieces,
I wasattractedto buttermilk
weremade.Because
of my fascination
paint,earlyvarnishes
andFrenchpolish.
elegantfurnituremadeby the
Graduallymy interestwasdrawnto theausterely
and
Shakers
andoneof their favoritefinishes-boiledlinseedoil. I experimented
cameup with my own wayof applyingthe oil andthenpastewaxto createa clear
finishlikethe oneusedon thepiecein the photograph.Madeof cherry,it is what
"Bob
although
I callthe
Cratchetdesk."It'sa deskfor an accountant
or schoolteacher,
it canjust aswellbeusedasa lecternor telephone
table.It hasa draweranda removableoencilrack.
Linseedoil hasbeenusedto finishwoodfor centuries.
Unlessit is appliedwith
thewood ratherthancreatinga membrane
a shellacor varnishbase,it penetrates
the wood'sgrainand color,and
overit. It is this penetrationthat I feelenhances
of a naturalpatina,which is causedby exposureto
accelerates
the development
I feel,is far richerandmorehonestthan
sunlightandair.Thecolorthat is created,
anypigmentthat comesout of a can.Youjust haveto be a little patient.Youalso
polishedpiece.In manyshops,a finish
haveto besureto startwith a well-prepared,
before
serves
to concealflaws.I believethat a pieceshouldbevirtuallydefect-free
youbeginto applya finish.
Therearethreemajorrisksassociated
with boiledlinseedoil. Thefirst involves
Leftin a foldedrag,linseedoil cancombustspontaneously,
becomingalmost
safety.
explosive.
Second,
the finishaffordsno protectionfor wood againstwaterandother
Third,Iinkindsof stains.Thisiswhyweapplya pastewaxovertheoil asa sealant.
seedoildoesnot sealwoodagainstmoisturepenetration
thesamewaylacquers
and
morethanpaintvarnishes
do.Oiledoiecestendto shrinkandswellwith theseasons
pieiesdo.Soin designing
furniture,thisexpansion
hasto belaken
edor lacquered
into account.
Theprincipaladvantage
Scratches,
burns
of a finishlikelinseedoil is itsrepairability.
andchipscanbesandedandpolishedwith theoil. In a shorttime,thecolorwill come
backandyou won't evenknow it wasaffected.But if a membranefinish-especially
oneappliedovera stain-is chipped,scratched
or burned,moreoftenthannot it has
to be entirelyrefinished.
ThomasMoserispresident
andco-founder
of Thomas
MoserCabinetmakers,
in Auburn,Maine.
headquartered
INTRODUCTION
Prew Savoyon
THE,
CRAFTETHIC
hepieceI amworkingonin thephotograph
isaSheraton-sryle,
two-drawer
work
table,typicalof earlyl9th-CenturyAmerican
furniturebuilding.Knowinghow
to applytheappropriate
finishtakesagoodappreciation
of furniturestyle.Youhave
to approximate
theoriginalasclosely
aspossible-incoloraswellasin topcoatcomposition.Thebestwayto getontotherighttrackisto studyfurniturestyles
asthoroughlyasyoucan.Talkto people
experienced
withperiodpieces-museum
curators,
serious
collectors
andrestoration
or conservation
craftsmen.
Theyareusuallyvery
willingto sharetechnical
information.
Alsotry to seeasmanyoriginalexamples
as
possible.
Forthispiece,
I selected
naturalandchemical
dyesto makethecolorappropriate
to itshistory.Thetableismadeof cherrywithafiguredveneer
appliedto thedrawer
fronts.Twodifferentcombinations
wereused:logwoodextract(anaturaldye)and
(achemical
potassium
dichromate
mordant)ontheveneer;
andlyeandwalnutcrystalson thecherry.
Forthetopcoat,
I padded
a 3-pound-cut
orange
shellac
onthewood.I likeusing
apadmadeupof awoolinteriorandalinenexterior,
butotherfinishers
preferpolishingcloths-perhaps
good-quality
because
linenishardto find.Thetechnique
is
polishing,
calledFrench
butthetermcanbemisleading.
Thereareseveral
waysto apply
polish,someusingpumiceandoil to fill theporesof thewoodcompletely,
a French
providing
a mirror-likefinish.Thatisnotalways
pieces.
appropriate
for allAmerican
I tracemyinterest
in finefurniturebackto mychildhoodandmyparents
whowere
collectors
themselves.
AsanadultI spenttwosummers
workinswithaboatbuilder.
andmuchlaterstudiedwith George
Frankin China.WhenI iarted collecting
fine
furniture,I couldn'taffordthepieces
I liked,soI learned
to buildreplicas
instead.
I believe
thatcabinetmakers
shouldconsider
themselves
ascaretakers
of a sort.
buildingsomething
thatwillbepassed
downfromgeneration
to generation.
Youneed
to develop
whatI calla"craftethic."
Youhaveto lovewhatyoudo,notfor theresult
or for awage,butsimplyfor thesakeof findingthefinestwayof doingeachstep.
PrewSavoyspecializes
in furniturefinishingand
restoration.
He alsoteaches
woodfinishingat the
OldeMill CabinetShoppeinYork,Pennsylvania.
SAFETY
business
f, inishingcanbea dangerous
I' if vou are not well informedand
properlyprepared.Fromwood fillersto
waxes,polyurethane
varnishes
andtung
oil, finishingproductsfrequentlydepend
on toxic organicsolventsto do their
work.Without thepropersafetygearand
precautions,
short-termexposure
to these
solventscan resultin irritation to the
skin,eyesandthroat,aswellasdizziness,
headache,nauseaand shortnessof
breath.Longer-termexposureposes
morepotentialrisks;someeffectsmay
not be apparentuntil you haveusedthe
for monthsor evenyears.
substances
In additionto thehealthrisks,most
of thesesolvents
areflammable.Some
oil-derived
oroductslikelinseedoil can
combustsDontaneouslv
at room temperatureiithe vaporsaresufficiently
concentrated.
Whenvaporized
in a small
enoughconcentration
of air, a small
Dual-caftridge reapirator
Uae whenoprayin4 a finiah or workingwith
chemicale;rnterchanqeable
filtere and cartridqee ?rotect aqainet epecific hazarda,
Cartridgea purify air contaminated with
toxins ao they are inhaled,then expel
them throu4h exhalationvalve;ftlter
preventoinhalationof duat
Safety gogglea
Uae wheneprayin4 a finieh;
theae ventedgo7gleepre-vent finiahinqfumeafrom
irritating the eyeo
Neoprene rubber glovea

Uaeto protect the akin
whenoprayin1 or mixinq
cauatic finiahinqproducta;
o n ug -fitti nq a urqeon'e
gloveoare auitable for
moat other finiehin4taeke
quantityoflacquerthinnercancausea
life-threatening
explosion.
All thisis not to suggest
that working
with finishingproductshasto be dangerous-only that it canbe if you takea
cavalierattitudetowardstherisks.If you
sprayfinishes,considerbuyinga spray
booth (page.13)
or constructing
a spray
roomofyour own(page102).Asmostof
the harm from organicsolventscomes
from inhalation,weara dual-cartridge
Claaa ABC flre

ertinguiaher
For puttin4 out a
small frre in the ehop
\)
9teel waate dispoaal container

For temporary
aafe diapooalof
aolvent-eoaked
raqa;dampenra7a
with water firat
Rubberapron
Frovideeprotection
whenworkinqwiLh
a wood bleachor
chemicaletain
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SAFETY
respirator(page14),particularlyifyou
or willbe exposed
to fumes
arespraying
for morethan an hour.To Dreventeye
goggles,
unddonrubinjury wearsaiery
bergloveswhenworkingwith causticor
toxicfinishingproducts.
possible,
choose
a product
Whenever
that combinesthefinishyou wantwith
low volatility and toxicity (page19).
Workwith thewindowsoDenandusea
to keeptheair
certified
spark-prooffan
moving.Thiswill helppreventthefumes
in your work areafrom reachinga toxic
or flammablelevel.If you experience
fatigue,headache,
blurred
drowsiness,
numbness,
irritationof
vision,weakness,
ofbreath
theeyes,skinor throat,shortness
whilefinishing,
or a lossof coordination
stopimmediatelyand leavethe work
areauntil the symptomsclear.Afterwards,ventilate
theworkareathorougfrly
andusea differentfinishingproduct.
SPRAYING
SAFELY
SAFETY
TIPS
. D o n o t e a t ,d r i n ko r s m o k e
w h e nu s i n gf i n i s h i n gp r o d u c t s .
. K e e pf i n i s h i n gp r o d u c t sa w a y
f r o mc h i l d r e n .
r A v o i de x p o s u r e
to organic
s o l v e n t si f y o u a r e p r e g n a not r
breast-feed
i ng.
o I n s t a l la t l e a s to n e s m o k e
d e t e c t o ro n t h e c e i l i n go f y o u r
s h o pa b o v ep o t e n t i af li r e h a z a r d s ;
k e e pa f u l l y c h a r g e dA B Cf i r e
e x t i n g u i s h en re a r b y .
. N e v e sr t o r es o l v e n t os r c h e m i c a l si n u n m a r k e d
containers.
C h e m i c aslo l u t i o nssh o u l da l w a y s
b e s t o r e di n d a r k g l a s sj a r s t o
s h i e l dt h e mf r o m I i g h t ,w h i c h
m a yc h a n g et h e i rc o m p o s i t i o n .
r Do notflushusedsolvents
down
the drain.Consult
the YellowPages
t o f i n d o u t w h oh a n d l e cs h e m i c a l
d i s p o s ai n
l y o u ra r e a o
, rcheck
w i t h y o u rl o c a lf i r e d e p a r t m e n t .
Usinga spraybooth
y x i co r f l a m m a b lvea p o r so, r
S p r a y i nagn yf i n i s h i n g
m a t e r i apl r o d u c epso t e n t i a l tl o
b o t h .E v e nt h e f u m e sr e s u l t i nfgr o ms p r a y i nw
g a t e r - b a s er e
d s i n sw i t h l o w e ro r g a n i c
s o l v e nct o u n t sc a n b e h a z a r d o uusn l e s st h e ya r ep r o p e r lvye n t i l a t e d .
A s p r a yb o o t hm a k e ss p r a y i n cgl e a n ear n d s a f e r r, e d u c i n gh e a l t hh a z a r d bs y
c o n t a i n i ntgh e o v e r s p r aayn df u m e s t, h e nf i l t e r i n ga n d e x h a u s t i nt h
g e m .T h e r e
a r ed i f f e r e nm
t o d e l sd e s i g n e fdo r d i f f e r e nst p r a y i n a
g p p l i c a t i o nTs h
. e yr a n g ei n
e o d e l sl i k et h e o n es h o w na b o v ew
s i z ef r o mc o m p l e t e
r o o m st o p o r t a b l m
, h i c hm a y
b e y o u rb e s tb e t i f s p a c ei s a p r i o r i t yi n y o u rw o r k s h o p
o r i f y o u o n l ys p r a ys m a l l
p i e c e so f f u r n i t u r e .
B e c a u s oe f t h e t o x i ca n d v o l a t i l en a t u r eo f m o s tf i n i s h i n gp r o d u c t sa, l l s p r a y
b o o t h sm u s tm e e tO c c u p a t i o nSaal f e t ya n d H e a l t hA s s o c i a t i o( 0n S H A ) g u i d e l i n e s
I n s o m es t a t e ss, p r a y i nigs i l l e g ailn u r b a na r e a su n l e s ys o u h a v ea p r o p e r lby u i l t
sprayroom(page102).
SAFETY
I
USINGA RESPIRATOR
'l
thecartridges
lnstalling
I W e aa
r d u a l - c a r t r i drgees p i r a t o r
Institute
of
bythe National
approved
Safety
andHealth(NIOSH)
Occupational
youspraylacquers
orvarnishes
whenever
t h a tc o n t a i vn o l a t i loer g a n isco l v e n t s ,
stainsor work
orwhenyoumixchemical
(lf youhavea beard,
you
withammonia.
To install
needa fullfacemaskor hood).
thecartridges
onthemodelof respirator
screw
themontotheinletvalves
shown,
(/eff).Always
in pairs,
buycartridges
theyhave
andkeeptrackof thehours
beenused.
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.) lnstalling
filters
with
L Usedustfiltersin conjunction
if youaresanding
respirator
cartridges
ind o o do r a p p l y i nf g
c h e m i c a tl lrye a t ew
i s h r nm
g a t e r i asl us c ha ss h e l l a cl a, c q u e r
Choose
theapprostains.
or nonwater-based
priate
filterforthetaskat hand,thenfit
(rrghf).
Snapthe
a filterintoeachretainer
retainer
ontothecartrrdge.
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SAFETY
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Testing
therespirator
P l a c et h e r e s p i r a t o rn y o u rf a c e ,
wtththe top strapoverthe crownof your
h e a dP
. u l lo n t h e s i d e s t r a pusn t i lt h e
f a c e p i e coef t h e r e s p i r a t ofri t s s n u g l y .
T e s t t h e d e v i c eb y b l o c k i n tgh eo u t l e t
v a l v ew i t hy o u rh a n da n de x h a l i ngge n t l y
(above).
Thereshouldbe no air leakage
a r o u n dt h e f a c e p i e c el f. t h e r ea r e a n y
gapsa
, d l u s t h e s t r a p sf o r a t i g h t e r
fii
l f n p r p s s arrJ r' r ri vpr snv lv . a c pi h p f : e c n i p n p
according
to themanufacturer's
instructions,or replace
therespirator.
llllillltllllll lllj]ll1
tl]ltlllljlJlil llutlllullljllllllttiillillllJ
1HO?TI?
Storing reegirator
cartridges
Evenwaler vaVor
can deVleteLhe
purifyinq
chemicals
in reepira- ,/.
Lor car._.,.;,
4ffi
tridqee.
t-'.....*._-*\ ;
To extend
their life, et ore lhe
carlrid,qeein a d,ry,airliqhl
-\
environmenN,
suchas a plastricfreezer baq.KecordtrheamounN
of Nimethe
cartridgeehavebeenusedand replacethem
afLereiqhthoursof uoeor ae eoona6 you
can emellthe finiehinq
producLthrouqhIhem.
S E ;r. -.r
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SAFETY
()RCHEMICAL
SPILL
CLEANING
UPA TOXICSOLVENT
Disposing
ofsoiledrags
andwindows,
openall doors
lmmediately
of heatandturn
anysources
extinguish
Wearing
a rubber
sources.
offallelectrical
rubbergloves,
apron,rubberboots,heavy
soakup
anda respirator,
safetygoggles
towels;
then
thespillwithragsor paper
olace
t h e mi n a m e t acl a nd o u b l e - l i n e d
garbage
plastic
bags.Add
withheavy-duty
spontato prevent
of water
a smallamount
Youcanalsospread
neous
combustion.
to
andallowthesolvent
theragsoutside
ofthem.Clean
before
disposing
evaporate
solwiththeappropriate
upanyresidue
v e n tl i s t e di n t h e c h a r tb e l o wl.f t h e
product
or poisof lammable
is extremely
nousandmorethanonegallonhasbeen
leave
theworkareaandcallthe
spilled,
of the
Otherwise,
dispose
firedepartment.
theenvironmental
soiledragsfollowing
in effecttnyourcommunity.
regulations
s-s
FORA SPILL
SOLVENT
THERIGHT
PRODUCT
SPILLED
REQUIRED
SOLVENT
M i n e r as lp i r i t s
andwater
Household
detergent
Turpenti
ne
detergent
andwater
Household
Paintremover
spiritsor paintthinner,
andwater;
or mtneral
Household
detergent
detergent
andwater
thenhousehold
Denatured
alcohol
None
alcohol
Methyl
None
Acetone
None
t hr i n n e r
Lacque
None
Water-based
stainor latexpaint
detergent
andwater
Household
andwater
deiergent
thenhousehold
Mineral
stain
0il-based
Urethane
or polyurethane
Varn
ish
andwater
detergent
thenhousehold
Mineral
andwater
detergent
thenhousehold
Mineral
Lacquer
t hr i n n e r
Lacque
Sh el l a c
L i n s e eodi l
(ethylalcohol)
alcohol
or methyl
Denatured
alcohol
paint
household
detergent
andwater
thinner,
then
Mineral
spiritsor
TungoiI
detergent
andwater
thenhousehold
Mineral
woodbleach
acidortwo-part
Oxalic
soda
Water
andbaking
Lye
mixedin equalparts
Water
andvinegar,
16
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SAFETY
BEINGPREPARED
F()RA CHEMICAL
FIRE
Using
a fireextinguisher
T o c o n t r oal s m a l lc, o n t a i n ef idr e ,u s e
a d r y - c h e m i cf iar e
l e x t i n g u i s hr e
a rt e d
yourself
ABC.Position
safely
awayfrom
t h ef i r ew i t hy o u rb a c kt o t h e n e a r e s t
e x i t .H o l di n gt h ee x t i n gi u
s h eu
r pright
o n a l e v esl u r f a c ep ,u l lt h el o c kp i no u t
(inseta
) ,n da i mt h en o z o f t h eh a n d l e
zleat the baseof theflames.Squeeze
the handleleverstogether
andspray
in
a quick,side-to-side
motion(right)
u n t i lt h e f i r e i s e x t i n g u i s h e
l fdt h. e
flamesspread,
leavethearearmmediately andcallthefiredepartment.
Dispose
of burned
wastefollowrng
theadvice
of
thef iredeoartment.
Havetheextins r r i s . h p rr p c h : r o o d
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Checking
a smoke
detector
A smokedetector
is an essential
safety
feature
in a finishing
shop.
Testthedevice
onceeverymonth.First,press
thetest
button.
Then,blowouta lit matchbelow
a vent,letting
smoke
enterit, or holda
flamebelowit (left).Replace
thebattery
if thealarmdoesnotsoundfor both
t e s t s - o ri f i t e m i t sa c h i r p i nsgo u n d ,
indicating
thebattery
isworn.
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DECIPHERING
THELABELINFORMATI()N
lnhalation warnin4
lndtcaLee1,ha1,
Lheproduc1;te exLremelyhaz'
ardousdurinqprolonged
e x p o e u r ec; a u t i o n e
aqainef inLenLional
ah"ae
nf
lhe
Directione for uee

Detailed inel;ruct,ione on how
Lo uee Lhe product, tncludin4
puiace preparat ion, mirinq
9"16quant triee. appltc2Ti611
niquee and clean-up
nrn,'lttrl
9afety precautiona
lneLruct;tonefor eafe handltn7 and etora7e ofthe
product, incl ud inq praper
venLilaLronand warntnq
e,7ne of prol6n4ederpoeure 1;.ofumea
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Emergency/Firat aid
proceduree
'gpectfiee
immedtaLe
acLion Lo be Laken in an
emerqency involvinq ekin
or eye conLacL,inhalation or inqeel,ion
Prod u ct identification
The Lype of product and
the brand name 7iven by
1,hemanufact.urer to
idenLtfy Lhe producL
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VOC(Volatile Organic
Compound)rating
Warning
lndicaLeswheLherLhe
A meaEureof Lhe amounL

of volaLtleorqantc compounda in Lhe producL, in
percenl,, grame per liter
or pounde per qallon
nrn)t
rrf
ia rnrrnaitte
flammable or Loxtc
Product i ncom patibility

A ltat of frntehtnqproducto
l;hat; are chemtcallytncom'
pattble wt1;hthe product
Vapor preooure
lndicaLee Lhe force exerted by
evaporaLed vapo16 on the aLmoephere dtrectly above Lhe ltqutd,
meaeured in milltmel;ereof mercury.
The qreater Lhe vapor preeeure, Lhe
more volattle Lhe producL
R e a d i nagp r o d u cl ta b e l
T h el a b e o
l n a c o n t a i n eorf f i n i s hi s m o r et h a nj u s ta t r a d e m a r k
a n da s e to f i n s t r u c t i o n lst.i s b o t ht h e k e yt o c o m p a r i ntgh e
f i n i s h ' sc h a r a c t e r i s t w
i cist ht h o s eo f o t h e rp r o d u c tasn da g u i d e
Aative ingredients
Indtcatea the common and/or chemtcal
namee and proporl,rone of bol,h volatrle
and non-volaLtlein4redienLetn 1,heproduct, euch ae reetne, eolvenLs.driers and
flatLenere: aleo tndtcaLea wheLher Lhe
eolvenLis aenattiveto liqht and phoLochemically reacLtve,whtch can crealie
atrbarne polluLante
t i n n ss n e c i f i e nd n t h e l a h e tl o s e t r r nt h e n r o n e vr e n t i l a t i o n
l f i t ht h ef i r s ta i d
a n dw o r k i n cg o n d i t i o nas n
, df a m i l i a r i zyeo u r s ew
i n s t r u c t i o ni ns t h e e v e n o
t f anaccident.
t n r r s i n o i h p c , r r h c , l : n . ps . : f p l v n t h p s h n n T h e r ^ o m n n s i t el : h e l
S o m es t a t e sa l l o wt h e u s eo f T r a d eS e c r e R
t e g i s t rny u m h e r sf o r a n r o d r r cst i n p r e d i e nttos n r o t e cnt a t e n t ecdh e m i c a l
s h o w na b o v ei n c l u d etsh e f e a t u r eyso us h o u l dl o o kf o r w h e n
^ ^ r ^ . , ; ^ ; + . -, ^ + , ^ ^ \ / ^ ^ - - +
e h n n q r n o : f i n i c . .h. i. n. bg rn.r n- uf ,u, L.- L{ , ^) u. ,Lî fl d
drf o r m u l a sl.f y o uf i n d t h e i n f o r m a t i oonn t h e l a b e lt o o v a g u e ,
) L U T L T L ryd L i l 1 5 .v v u
i n g ,v a p o rp r e s s u raen df l a m m a b i l i t R
r e q u e sat l V l a t e r i S
a la f e t yD a t aS h e e t( l v l S D Sf )r o m t h e
y .e f e tro t h e c h a r to n
n : o p l Q i n d p i p r m r n p t h p l n v i r - r l vn f : n r n d r r r ^ t ':sr ^ t i v pi n o r c d i m a n u f a c t u rief ro n e i s a v a i l a b l e
A.n M S D Sw i l l e x p l i c i t l y
sgrslignla
t s w e l la s p r e c a u e n t sa n dc o m p a r teh e mw i t ht h o s eo f o t h e rs i m i l a rp r o d u c ttso
d e t a r tl h e p r o d u c t 'hs a z a r d o ui n
h e l py o uc h o o s e
t h e l e a s t o x i cf i n i s h .F o l l o w
t h e s a f e t yp r e c a u - t i o n sf o r s a f eh a n d l i nagn d u s e .
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SAFETY
CHOOSING
A SAFE
FINISH
F i n i s h i ncgh e m i s t hr ya sc h a n g erda d i c a lilny r e c e nyte a r s .
Themostsignif
icantadvance
hasbeenthedevelopment
of
w a t e r - b a sfei ndi s h eisn r e s o o n st oe b o t ht h e h e a l t hr i s k s
posed
b ys o l v e n a
t sn dc l e a n - alier g i s l a t i tohna tl i m i t st h e
percentage
of V0Cs,or volatile
organic
compounds,
in solvent-based
f inishes.
Mostof theseregulations
areprimarily
intended
forf urnituremakers
whousemorethanonegallon
predictthatbythe
of finishperday,yet industry
experts
m i d - 1 9 9 0V
s ,O C - c o m p l if ai nni ts h ewsi l lb et h er u l er a t h e r
thantheexception
foreveryone
in the UnitedStates.
I n h a l a t i oi snt h e m o s tc o m m ow
n a yt h a ts o l v e n tasr e
absorbed
intothebloodstream,
buttoxinscanalsobe ingested fromfoodandbeverages
leftin theshop.Others
canbe
a b s o r b eddi r e c t ltyh r o u gthh es k i no r e v e nb ys w a l l o w i n g
v a p o risn s a l i v a .
ln theirmostpoisonous
form,solvents
cancausedamage
nervous
to thecentral
system
andrespiratory
tract.Methylene
chloride
f o, re x a m p l e
i s,s u s p e c t eo df b e i n ga c a r c i n o g e n ,
whilesomeglycolethershavebeenlinkedto birthdefects.
K e e pi n m i n d ,h o w e v etrh, a tt h e h e a l t hh a z a r dosf a n y
f i n i s h i npgr o d u cdte p e n od n a n u m b eor f f a c t o r sM. o s t
p r o d u c tosn t h e m a r k eat r ea c t u a l l b
yenign
w h e nu s e d
o n l yo no c c a s i oann, dc o u l do n l yb ec o n s i d e r p
eo
di s o n o u s
i f s w a l l o w eddi r e c t l yS. o m ec a ne v e nb e m a d en o n t o x i cs; h e l l aics c o m m o n ul ys e da sa n i n g r e d i e innt
confectioners'glaze.
W h e nc h o o s i nagf i n i s h i npgr o d u c bt ,e a w a r e
ofthe
combinatio
a n dc o n c e n t r a t ioofno r g a n isco l v e n ti sn i t s
m a k e u pp,a r t i c u l a ri fl yy o ui n t e n dt o u s et h es u b s t a n c e
periods
for extended
of time;prolonged
exposure
maybe
h a z a r d o uTsh.ec h a r b
t e l o wl i s t st h es o l v e n ct so n t a i n ei n
d
a v a r i e toy f f i n i s h i n p
g r o d u c tasn de v a l u a t et hse r e l a t i v e
toxicityof eachone.Always
choose
thesafestproduct
for
j
o
b
the
athand.
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Toxtc
sotvENTs
FINISHING
PRODUCT
W o o fdi l l e r( p a s taen dl i q u i d )
e ,i p i n gN, G Rg, e la n dg l a z S t a i n(sa n i l i n w
ingstains;
colorpigments)
(whiteandorange)
Shellacs
(spray
Lacquers
andbrush,sanding
sealers)
Lacque
t hr i n n e r
R u b b i nogi l s( D a n i sohi l ,a n t i q uoei l )
SOLVENT
Petroleum
naphtha*,
mineral
spirits*,
acetone**,
methylethylketone**,
methyl
isopropanol**,
isobutyl
ketone***
glycolethers***
Ethanol*,
mineral
spirits*,
toluene***,
xylene***,
methanol***,
Ethanol*,
methanol***
Acetone**,
glycol
methyl
ethylketone**,
isopropanol**,
methanol***,
xylene***,
ethers***
glycolethers***,
Acetone**,
methyl
isopropanol**,
ethylketone**,
toluene***
VM&Pnaphtha*,
turpentine**,
toluene***
Drying
oils(boiled
linseed
oil,polymerized
t u n go i l )
(tungoilvarnish,
Varnishes
sparvarnish,
varnish
stain)
(polyvarnish,
Polyurethanes
urethane
starns)
Mineral
spirits*,
turpentine**
Lacquer/varnish
removers
(pastewax,furniturewax)
Waxes
Acetone**,
xylene***,
methanol***,
methylisobutyl
ketone***,
toluene***
M i n e r as lp i r i t s V
* ,M & Pn a p h t h a *
M i n e r as lo i r i t s t*o. l u e n e * * *
Petroleum
naphtha*,
turpentine**
*
product
Safest
** Mildlyhazardous
product
*** Product
to beavoided
if possible
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*rif"a!
,r
. \ , J- t {{ ,
i.
I'i!r
t:*l
h.
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PREIARINGTHESre
ld-timewoodfinisherssmoothed
whichcanscratch
enededge,however,
wood with sharkskinand rush.
thewoodasbadlyascoarse
sandpaper.
filled its poreswith plasterof Parisand
Sanding
with successively
finergrits
pulverizedbrick, coloredit with matepreparation.
completes
thesurface
For
rials such as iron filings and walnut
hand-sanding
a fairlysmoothsurface,
a
shells.and finishedit with secretcomtypicalprogression
is 150grit,followed
Modern
binationsof oils and beeswax.
by220andthen280grit.(lfyoudidnot
finishingtechniquesaremundaneby
smooththewoodwithacabinet
scraper,
comparison,
but theobjectis thesame:
youmightneedto startwith 80or 120
to bring out the beautyof the wood.
grit.)Neverskipanintermediate
gritor
youwill leave
Whetherthis meansa glassyfilm on the
scratches
in thewoodthat
surfaceof thewood or a finishthat softAmongits manyuses,thehandscraper thefinishwill magnifr.With anorbital
ly glowsfrom within dependson the
plan
canhelpclearawaydriedadhesive
sander,
usethesamegritsequence;
typeofprotectionthewood needsand
aftergluingup a carcase
or drawer.
on hand-sanding
with thefinalgrit to
the effectyou wish to achieve.Because
remove
anywhorls.
Afterfinalsanding,
"raise
tasteis involved,thereis no singleright answerto everyfinishing you maywish to
the grain"andthen resand,to remove
question.But all professional-quality
finisheshaveonething
the whiskeryfibersthat might otherwisepop up throughthe
in common:painstakingsurfacepreparation,which readies finishon thefirsthumid day.Thisstepis essential
whenapplythewood to acceptthe finishingmaterials.
ing anymaterialwith a water,ratherthan solvent,base.
Theamountof time you spendon surfacepreparationand
Whetheror not you fill the poresof the wood is againa
the toolsyou usedependin'largepart on your'workhabits matterof taste.Ifyou like a natural-lookingfinishthat allows
"read
and your wood. Surfacesspeckledwith dried glueobviously you to
thewood grain,"do not usefiller.Close-grained
requiremore work to smooth.Looseknots,splitsand other
speciessuchaspine and cherrydo not requirefilling in any
defectsneedrepairprior to finishing;sodoeseverydent and
case,
but ifyou wanta glassy
finishon anopen-grained
species,
chiselnick.Thewood probablyhasjointer andplanermarks, suchasoakor mahogany,
you mustfill the wood.
which you can removewith shallowcutsusinga smoothing
A washcoatmaybe appliedto the wood beforeor after
plane.Theplanemustbeproperlyadjusted
andsharp,soit cuts staining-or not at all ifyou areapplyinga penetratingoil finwoodfibersratherthantearingthemandrougheningthesurish.A washcoatcanbe nothingmorethan a half-and-half
face.Ifthe woodhasan irregularpattern,soyou cannotavoid solutionof your final finishandthesolventrecommended
by
tearingthe grain asit changesdirection,substitutea cabinet its manufacturer(for lacquer,usesandingsealer).
Thepoint of
scraper-athin, flat pieceof steelwitha burrededge.(Forultiusinga washcoatis to preventthewoodfrom unevenor excesmatesmoothnesof straight-grained
wood,useboththesmooth- siveabsorptionof finishingmaterials.When appliedbefore
ing planeandcabinetscraper.)Cabinetscraperstakepractice the final finish,thewashcoatkeepsthewood from drinking up
to sharpenand use,but oncemasteredtheycansubstantially the finish,therebyreducingthe numberof coatsrequiredto
reduceyour sandingtime. Bewareof an improperlysharp- build up theproperthickness.
Despitea modernbladeadjustmentmechanism
that enables
thetoolto sliceoffpaperplaneretainsthehandcrafted
qualityof a traditional
thin shavings,
thissmoothing
handtool.Producingsmoothsurfaces
is a crucialstepin finishingfurniture.
2I
TOOLSAND ACCESSORIES
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Honing guide
and anglejig
For honinqplane
bladee.Deviceholda
bladeat appropnaLe
anqlefor honinqa
bevel;rotatinq the
wheelon Lop of
the ji4 eete angleo
bef,ween15oand 35o
9moothing plane
For smooLhinqwoodaurfacee
with the grain, ueuallyprior to
scrapin4and oandinq.Blade
muELbe aharpenedand properly adjuated before uee
Grinding jig
For holdin4planebladea
in aliqnmentwith grindin4
wheeldurinq aharpeninq
File alamp
HoldE file perpendicula r
to cutting edqeof ocraper
durtnqeharpeninqof
ocraper, enaurinq atra i7ht
and square eaqe
Tri-burniaher
Uaedto form amall burr, or hook,on
cuLtrn4edqeoof ecraperafter honin4;
combtnesround,trianqular and
oval burnisherain one tool
Mill baetard file

For equartnqcuttin4 ed4eo
of ecraperoprior Lo honin7
and burniehinqthem
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Block plane
For omoothin4end
4rain and chamfered
aur-facea;ueuallyueed
with onehand
Abraaive pade
An alternattveto eandpaperfor
smoothinqwoodaur-faceeand abradinq
inf,ermediatefinieh coata by hand;
abraaiveparticlee of aluminumoxtde
and etliconcarbtdeare bondedto evnLheLicfiber pade. Laat lonqerthan
sandpaper;can be waehedand reused
Combination
aharpeningatone
For eharpentn4planebladea.
Coaraeside removeemetal
quickly;fine atde createg
emoof,hed4e.Lubricated
wtth water or orldepending
on the type of stone
Hand ecrapere
Kecta ngula r acraper amootha
flaL aurfacea:curvedmoaele
workwellon contouredeurfacea,moldinqaand epindlee
Cabinet scraper
For amooLhinqwood aur-facea,typically
afLer planing;wellauited far levelinqknote
and cuLtingawaydried qlue.Elade ocrapea
a paper-Lhinehavtngfrom aurface:has
twin handleafor 4reater convenience
and
control than hand acraper
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Eelt eander
Towereander ueed to remove
atock and eliminateflawa
from wood aurfacea. and
for amoothinq.Iandinq
belta availablein qrite
from coarae to fine
Random-orbit sander
Fowersander uaedfor fine amooLhinq and removinqawirlmarka left
by belt or orbital aander; ideal for
contouredaurfacea
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5t'eel wool
9pectally made woodworkinqeteel
woolia oil-freeand featurea
lonqeretrande than etandard
varietiea: leeo likelyto
Cont'ouredeanding bloak
Holda aandpaperfor
amoothinqcurvedand
irreqularly ahaped eurfacea by hand: featurea a
narrowardefor reachin7
into nqht epota
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FIat aanding block

Holds aandpaoerto
smooth flat aurfacea
by hand
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Alcohol lamp and burn-in knife

Uaedto apply ehellacatick to
damagedareag on woodaurfacea;
flame from lamp heato knife, which
rn Lurn melLEahellac,drippin4it.
onto aurface
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Grinder
tharpenin4 wheel
Ganbe uaedto
regrind bevelaon
planebladee
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Orbital
palm eander
Fowereander
for omoothinq
aurfaceethat
are difficult
to reach with
6rqer 9anaer
ZJ
PLANING
f hoosingthebestwayto smootha
\-r woodsurface
is a matterof individualpreference.
Therearenoordained
stepsor prescribed
rules.Somewoodworkersplaneandthensand;others
planeandscrape
beforesanding.
Whicheversequence
you decideto
follow,theobjectisto producea surface
thatisassmoothasglassandjustasflat.
Thissectionof thebookexplains
the
useof a smoothingplaneto beginthe
process
of preparing
a woodsurface
to
accept
a finish.
A well-sharpened
bladein a properly adjusted
planecanshearofffineshavingsof wood.Youcanmakeall the
adjustments
with only a screwdriver,
despitetheplane'sapparently
complicateddesign(below).
Planebladesrequireregularsharpening.Althoughyoucanhonea blade
byhand(page
26),a grinderisthebest
toolto bringacuttingedgeto peakper- square

its end(page
25,step1).Fora
formance.
Fora nickedbladeor anold newbladeor onethathashaditsbevel
out-of-square
oneyouwishto salvage, wornaway,
honeanewbevelonthecutting edge(step2). Tomaintaina keen
edge,honethebladefrequently
on a
sharpening
stone(step3).
Before
usinga plane,setthedepthof
cut to removeonly a thin shavingon
eachstroke.Because
anexcessive
depth
gouges
settingmayproduce
in thework
piece,youshouldtestyoursettingfirst
on a scrapboard.Forbestresultson a
largesurfaceusea longplane;a short
onewill bemorelikelvto followexist
ingcontours.
Setaplaneon itsbottomwhenstorPlaningtheedgesof a workpiecewith a
ingthetooltopreventtheironfromgetsmoothingplane-alsoknownasedge tingnickedbyothertools.Occasionally
jointing-is usuallydonebeforeplanrub a thin film of light machineoil on
ing thefaces.Thisallowsyou to remove thebladeto preventrust.Onceayear,
any blemishes
or depending
ontheamountof use,take
from thefacesleft by
thejaws of a clampor a vise.
thetoolapartfor a general
cleaning.
ANATOMY
OFA SMOOTHING
PTANE
Cap iron aarew
Adjuete offaet diatance between
cutting edqe of blade and end of
cap iron; to avoid blade chatter,
'la inch io ideal
6ap
Leveraap acrew
)ecures levercap,
cap iron and
blade to fro4
Levercap
Allowaquick
removalof cap
iron and blade
Late ra I a dj uati ng lever

Centera the blade in the
mouth of the plane by
aettin7 the lateral, or
aide-to-aide, poaition of
the blade
Cap lock
Holda lever
cap in place
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BIade
Alao knownaa olane iron. lnstalled
beveldown on fro4; for beat reeulta,
ahould barely probrudefrom mouth
Frog adjuetin7 earew

Turnedto alide frog back and forth; poeitioned to eet cuttinq edge of blade about
1/azinch from front edae of mouth
Frog
9upporbe
blade
24
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SHARPENING
A PLANE
BTADE
WITHA MACHINE
theendoftheblade
1 Squaring
whether
I Usea trvsouare
to check
the
cuttine
g d g eo f t h eb l a d ei s s q u a r el f. i t
is not,square
it ona grinder
witha rough
positioned
wheel.
Withtheguardproperly
a n dt h eb l a d e
c l e aor f t h ew h e e sl ,w i t c h
onthemachine.
Holding
thebladebetween
theindexfingerandthumbof yourright
hand,setit beveluponthegrinder's
tool
it toward
restandadvance
thewheeluntil
yourindexfingercontacts
thetoolrest
(right).Slidethe bladeside-to-side
across
pressing
thewheel,
lightly
whilekeeping
yourfingeronthetoolrest.Thetip of the
l at rh e
b l a d es h o u l sdt a yp e r p e n d i c ut o
wheelthroughout
theoperation.
Dipthe
it
bladein wateroccasionally
to prevent
fromoverheating.
Check
thebladefor
regurany.
square
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r) Creating
a hollow-ground
bevel
Z . S h a r p e n ian pg l a n eb l a d ei n v o l v e s
threesteps:
creating
a bevel
ontheblade's
cuttingedge,honing
another
bevelon
partof thef irstone-calleda microbevel-thenremoving
theburrthatresults
fromthehoningprocess.
Tocreate
the
f irstbevel,
clamptheblade
topfaceup
jigsetto create
grinding
in a commercial
a 30" bevel.
Runthecutting
edgeacross
thewheel
asyouwouldforsquaring
the
b l a d et h
; ej i gw i l lk e e pt h eb l a d e
square
to the wheel(left).Checkthe cutting
edgeperiodically
andstopgrinding
when
thebevel
forms(lnsef).
Asa ruleof thumb,
thebeveliscorrect
whenmost
of thesparks
showering
trom
t h eg r i n d ef ra l lo n t h et o p
faceof theblade,
rather
than
belowit.
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25
themicrobevel
Q Honing
r-,f Place
a combination
sharpening
stone
finesideuDona worksurface.
Nailcleats
to thetableagainst
thestoneto keepit
frommoving.
Oneof thecleats
should
be
thesameheightasthestoneand4 to 5
inches
Iong;
thiswillallowyouto usethe
full length
of theabrasive
surface.
Clamp
thebladein a commercial
angle-setting
h o n i n g u i d ew i t ht h eb e v et lo u c h i n g
the stone.Saturate
thestonewiththe
appropriate
Iubricant-either
wateror
a lightoil-untilit pools
onthesurface.
guide,
Then,holding
thehoning
slidethe
b l a d eb a c ka n df o r t hf r o me n dt o e n d
alongthestone(lefil,applying
moderate
pressure
untila microbevel
forms(insef).
Continue
untila burr-athinridge
of metal-forms
onthef latface
o f t h eb l a d eT. h e nl a pt h e b u r r
a sy o uw o u l dw h e ns h a r p e n ian g
planeby hand(sfepbelow).
SHARPENING
A PTANE
BTADE
BYHAND
[apping
thebun
guide
Clamp
thebladein a commercial
(stepabove)
andgrinda 30" bevelusing
thecoarse
sideof thestone.
Thenreoositionthebladein theguideandturnthe
stoneoverto honethe microbevel.
To
remove
the burrfromthe blade-a
process
woodworkers
call"lapping"
the
burr-remove
the bladefromthe honing
guideandsaturate
thestoneonceagain.
Holding
thebladeflushonthestone,bevpatiern
el sideup,moveit in a circular
on
(righil
the stone
unlilthe flat sideof the
cuttingedgeis smooth
to thetouch.A
fewstrokes
shouldsufficeto eliminate
theburr.Testthesharpness
of thecuttingedgeon a pieceof paper;
a sharp
blade
willslicea sliver
fromtheedse.
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26
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Assessing
a planeblade's
cutting
edge
Nomatter
howwellit is adjusted,
a dullor poorly
sharpenedplanebladewilldoa poorjobof smoothing
thewood
surfaces
of yourfurniture.
Moreover,
itscondition
willonly
deteriorate
if youpersist
in usingit, losingits beveled
cutting
edgeandpossibly
evengoingout-of-square,
as
in the bladeshown(far/eft).Sucha bladewouldneed
to besquared
andsharpened
ona grinder.
A well-sharpenedblade(nearleft)hasa vrsible
bevelandmicrobevel,
making
iI a razor-sharp
cuttingimplement.
Thisblade
needs
onlyanoccasional
honing
ona sharpening
stone.
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ADJUSTING
A PTANE
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Levercap ecrew
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Froq eetecrew
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'l
Positioning
thecuttingedge
I Loosenthe levercap screwand removethe bladeassemb l y - i n c l u d i n gt h e l e v e rc a p ,c a p i r o na n d b l a d e - f r o mt h e
p l a n eT. h e nl o o s e tnh e c a p i r o ns c r e wa n ds l i d et h e c a p i r o n
o n t h e f a c eo f t h e b l a d et o l e a v ea g a po f a b o u t% o i n c h
b e t w e e tnh e e n do f t h e c a p i r o na n dt h e c u t t i n ge d g eo f t h e
b l a d e .T i g h t e nt h e c a p i r o ns c r e w .N e x t ,p l a c et h e b l a d e
assembly
in position
onthefrog.Thegapbetween
thefront
edgeof thebladeandthefrontof themouthshouldbeabout
t/rcinch.lf not,loosen
bothfrogsetscrews
about1Zturn,
thenturnthefrogadjusting
screwwitha screwdriver
to set
gap(above).
theproper
Lockthe bladeassembly
in position.
27
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r) Centering
thebladeand
Z- setting
thedepth
of cut
e ss h o w ns,h i f t h e
H o l d i nt gh ep l a n a
lateral
adjusting
lever
to onesideorthe
thecutting
edgein the
otherto center
mouth.
Tosetthecuttingdepth,turn
adjustment
knobso
thedepth-of-cut
thatnomorethanaboulrhzinchof the
fromthemouth.
cutting
edgeprotrudes
Checkthedepthof culby eye(right),
t h e nc o n f i r m
t h es e t t i nbgym a k i nag
testcutona scrapboard.
Theshavings
bepaper-thin;
thefinerthecut,
should
t h em o r et r a n s p a r et n
h tes h a v i n g s .
Adjust
thecutting
depth,if necessary.
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WITHHAND
PLANES
SMO()THING
plane
Usinga smoothing
w i t hs m o o t he, v e n
G u i d ea h a n dp l a n ea l o n ga w o o ds u r f a c e
Alwayscut with the grainof the wood;planingagainst
strokes.
t h e g r a i nw i l l t e a rt h e w o o d ,r a t h e trh a ns h a v i n gi t o f f c l e a n l y . l f y o uc a n n o d
t e t e r m i nteh e o r i e n t a t i oonf t h e g r a i n ,l i g h t l y s l i d et h e p l a n ep a r a l l e l taon e d g ei n o n ed i r e c t i o nt h, e n
r e p e a itn t h e o p p o s i t d
e i r e c t i o nT. h ec u t t i n ge d g ew i l l c h a t t e r o r c a t c ho n t h e w o o df i b e r sw h e ni t i s c u t t i n ga g a i n stth e
g r a i n .l f t h e g r a i no r i e n t a t i ocnh a n g eosn t h e s u r f a c es,w i t c h
. o s m o o t ha
o f y o u rs t r o k et o f o l l o wt h e g r a i n T
thedirection
s u r f a c es u c ha s a t a b l e t o pm
, o v et h e p l a n eb a c ka n d f o r t h
as shown
usinga seriesof straightpasses
thatslightlyoverlap,
inthediagram
a t r i g h t .W h e np u l l i n gt h e p l a n eb a c ka f t e r
e a c hf o r w a r ds t r o k et,i l t t h e t o o lt o o n es i d et o l i f t t h e c u t t i n g e d g ec l e a ro f t h e s u r f a c e .
2B
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Smoothing
a face
faceupona work
Secure
theworkpiece
s u r f a c e0.n c ey o uh a v eo r i e n t etdh e
plane
withthewoodgrain,
lineupyour
s h o u l daenr dh i pw i t ht h et o o tl o h e l p
y o um a i n t a ifnu l l c o n t r ool f t h ec u t .
withbothhands
as
Gripping
theplane
pushthetoolalong
thesurface
shown,
awayfromyourbody.Applyf irmand
s u s t a i n epdr e s s u dr eu r i n g
t h es t r o k e ,
pressing
downonthefrontof theplane
at thestartof thepass.Oncetheplane
iscompletely
onthesurface,
evenout
thepressure
to
thepressure,
shifting
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t h e r e a rn f t h e n l a n ea i t h e e n d o f t h e
Examine
asyouwork
stroke.
theshavings
andadjust
thecufting
depthif youwanta
finercut.Keepplaning
untilthesurface
becomes
shinyandsmooth
to thetouch.
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endgrain
Smoothing
U s ea b l o c kp l a n et o s m o o t ht h e e n d so f
a w o r k p i e c eT.h e r ea r et w ow a y so f p l a n i n g e n d g r a i n ,b o t h i n v o l v i n tgw o s t e p s
c a l c u l a t etdo a v o i dt e a r o uat t t h e e d g e s .
F o re i t h e rm e t h o ds, e c u r et h e w o r k p i e c e
e n d u p . I n o n em e t h o db, e g i na s t r o k e
a t o n ee d g eo f t h e b o a r dg, u i d i n gt h e
p l a n ea l o n gt h e s u r f a c eu n t i l t h eb l a d e
is abouthalfwayacrossthe end (left).
R e p e atth e p r o c e s fsr o mt h e o p p o s i t e
e d g e .I n t h e s e c o n dm e t h o ds, t a r tb y
c u t t i n ga c h a m f ear t o n ee d g eo f t h e
boardh
, o l d i n gt h e p l a n e
a t a n a n g l et o f l a t t e nt h e
corner(inset).Then make
a p a s sa c r o s tsh e e n t i r ee n d ,
b e g i n n i ntgh e s t r o k ea t t h e
o t h e re d g e .
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29
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SCRAPING
is an interQ crapingwoodsurfaces
planingand
stepbetween
rJ mediate
A sharpscraper
canremove
sanding.
high spots,tearoutand glue lines,
andcleanup marks
smootha surface,
leftby a plane.Thetool is inexpensive,
simpleto sharpeasyto useandrelatively
en.Tho commonlyusedtypesarethe
handscraper-asinglebladeof steelablademountscraper,
andthecabinet
ed in a metal or wood body that
Thisimplement
resembles
a spokeshave.
for two-handfeatures
wingedhandles
edpushingor pulling.
Scraper
bladesaremadefrom thin
to
ofspringsteelandsharpened
sheets
forma cuttingedge.Theyareavailable
on
in differentthicknesses,
depending
theworkyouwantthemto perform.
for heavycuts;
aresuitable
Thickscrapers
areusedfor finerwork.
light scrapers
hasa
Unlikea planeblade,thescraper
hook-a smallflarealongthelengthof
page32).The
thecuttingedge(inset,
hook'scuttingactionallowsthescraper
in anydirection,
to bepulledor pushed
andtightspots
soyoucanreachcorners
inaccessible
to a plane.
dullquickA scraper's
cuitingedges
which
ly andrequireregularsharpening,
filing,honingandburnishing.
involves
shavings
signal
Thesizeof thescraper's
its condition:thedullertheblade,the
a scraper
Properlysharpened,
will producefiner andshorter
shavingsthana plane.
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theshavings,
untilfinallythetool
smaller
produces
onlysawdust.
needto befiled
Mostnewscrapers
smoothbeforeuse.It mayhelpto apply
alittlelubricatingoil onthecuttingedge
beforeburnishing,
butbe
ofthescraper
carefulwith theoil: If it getson your
handsorbenchit couldendupstaining
theworkpiece.
thecutting
Apartfrommaintaining
keepin mindthatthe
edges
of ascraper,
toolwill performwellonlyifyouholdit
andpush
atanangleto thewoodsurface
or pull itwhileapplyingafairamountof
Ifyou
pressure
closeto ttrecuttingedge.
holdthescraper
almostperpendicular
to thesurface
andapplyhealypressure,
wood,but
thetoolwill quicklyremove
the
it mayalsogouge,
dentor scratch
Heldat moreof anangle,the
surface.
removes
lesswood,butproduces
scraper
asmoother
surface.
Onemethodof finding theright angleis to holdthetool
almostparallelto theworksurface;begin
gradually
raisingtheangle
scrapingwhile
of thebladeuntilit bitesintothewood.
SHARPENING
A SCRAPER
square
1 Filingtheedges
hookon a
I Tofileofftheexisting
scraper,
clampthetoolin a visewith
a
onelongedgefacingup.Holding
filefirmlywithboth
sharpmillbastard
passes
handsasshown,makeseveral
backandforthalongtheedgeof the
ng moderate
downward
scraper,
exerti
pressure
and
untilthebundisappears
filings,
theedges
areflat.Toremove
periodically
tapthefileona firmsurfaceor usea filecard.Turnthescraoer
for the
overandrepeatthe process
otheredge.
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30
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fiu|ltfilrililllttljJ
llillliltl]J
fillltJilllllltlll tllllll filtl]ll
5HO7Tt?
Uoinga file clamp
Deeiqned
Noholda file
perpendicular
to the edge
of a ocraVer,
a fileclamp
makesit, eaeytro remove
hooksand fileoLraight
edqeeon Ihe trool.To
use
the fileclamp,securethe
ocra?erin a vieealong
wilh a woodblockon one
eideto keepit,riqid.lneerL
I h e f i l ei n t h e c l a m pa n d
f i x i t i n p l a c eu o i n q l h e
Lhumbscrewe
on Iop of the
i m p le me n t . 7 oE i Loi n L he c la m p
on lhe edgeof the ecraVerand file lhe ocraVer'e

ed4eunlil it,
feelesharp,takinqcarenot Io cuXyouroelfwhenNeeLinq.
r) Honing
theedges
L Secure
a combination
sharpening
stone
finesideupto a worksurface
with
cleats
andlubricate
it asyouwouldwhen
honing
a planeblade(page
26) Holding
thescraper
flatagainst
thestone,
rubthe
faceonthestone
witha circular
motion
(left).Applymoderate
pressure
andconproduced
tinueuntilanyroughness
byfilingdisappears.
Turnthescraper
overand
repeat
fortheotherface.Tocomplete
the
honing,
holdthescraper
edgedownand
slideit backandforthdiagonally
across
thestoneuntiltheedgeissmooth
with
sharpcorners.
Repeat
fortheotheredge.
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to starta hook
theedges
Q Burnishing
r.,l Placethescraoer
f laton a work
withtheedgeto besharpened
surface
extending
offthetable.Holding
a burnisher
at a slightangle
to thescraper,
passes
makeseveral
backandforth
alongthe edge(left),applying
strong
pressure
downward
to startturning
overtheedgeintoa hook.Burnish
the
edgethesameway;turn
othercutting
thescraper
overandburnish
theedges
ontheotherface.
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Completing
thehook
Securethe scraperedgeup in a vise
perpendicular
Holdtheburnisher
almost
to theedgeandrunit along
theedgein
onedirection
untiltheedgeswells
slightly,turningoutward
on oneside(right).
presForbestresults,
applymoderate
s u r eT. h e nh o l dt h eb u r n i s hseort h a t
t h eh a n d liesa t a 1 0 ' t o 1 5 ' a n g l e
abovethe edgeof thescraper
andcont i n u eb u r n i s h i u
nn
g t itl h ee d g e
turns
over.Repeat
theprocess
to forma hook
ontheothersideof theedge(inset),
this
timeholding
thehandle
withyourother
youapply,
hand.Thegreater
thepressure
iho hioopr thp hnnk
Turnthescraper
over
andburnish
theopposiie edsp
Tpsi thp .r ri-
tino pdooc nn a nipnp
of scrap
wood,burnishingthemagain,
if necessary,
untilyouhave
thehookyouneedfor
t h ej o ba t h a n d .
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flllllllllllllllllllrulll1
ililllllllllllltllllullilllllllllllllltlllt
1HO?TI?
Using a variableburnisher
l,oldinq
a
o l d t n qa O
burnieher
u r n t e na
aL
e tr tthe riqht.
anglefor turnin4overa
hookon a ocraVerie no
eaoylaok. Oneanswer
jiq Ihal
ie a commercial
provideoVrecioecontrol
of the burniohing
anqle.
Theactual burnisher
ie
a carbiderod mounled
wilhinLhe body;a knob
o n N h e N oapd j u o t o N h e
anqleof Nherod belweenOoand 15o.Iouse
Nhe
L
ne a
burnieher,
u r n t ? n e r?
oecure
, e c u r eT
the
, n eS
ecraVer
c r a ? e rtin
n a vviee
t 6 ea
and
na
:
f i I i t e b l a d e i n t h e b u r n i s h e r ' ee l o N :r u n n i n qt h e b u r n i e h e r
back and f or\h alon4 the blade wilh moderale downward
?re6ourecreaLeea hook of NheapVropriaLean4le.
SMO()THING
A SURFACE
WITHA HANDSCRAPER
Using
a handscraper
Secure
thestockto a worksurface.
Standing
at oneendof theworkpiece,
curlyourfingers
around
thefrontof the
scraper
andpress
onthebackwithyour
thumbs
to makethetoolbowslightly
outward.
Tiltthescraper
forward
about
20'fromthevertical
andscrape
the
in thedirection
surface
thatthebowis
facing(left).lf thecuttingedgedoes
notbiteintothewoodproperly,
adjust
theangleof thetoolslightly.
Workat
a s l i g hat n g l e
t o t h eg r a i na, p p l y i n g
pressure
moderate
andmakinglong,
fluid,overlapping
strokes.
At theend
of eachstroke,
lift thescraper
offthe
surface
before
stopping.
Youcanalso
pullwiththescraper,
butbesureto
you.
flexthe bowtoward
I
SCRAPER
SMOOTHING
WITHA CABINET
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theblade
1 Adjusting
edge
I lnstall
withthehooked
thebladein thescraper
t/zzinchfromthesoleof the
facingforward
andprotruding
Lockthebladein placebyturning
thetwothumbscraper.
(abovd.
fhen
clockwise
screws
onthefrontof thescraper
b o wi t s l i g h t lbyyt u r n i n tgh et h u m b s c r et hwa tp r e s s e s
against
thecenter
of thebladeattheback6f lls scr:ner
r) Using
thescraper
Then,standing
at oneendof the
Z Secure
theworkpiece.
withthe
firmlywithbothhands
stockandholding
thescraper
preshookfacingawayfromyou,pushthetoolwithmoderate
(abovd.
lift
At theendof eachstroke,
surealongthesurface
io
thescraper
offthesurface
andturnthetoolupside-down
thebladefromclogging.
dislodge
theshavings
andprevent
ltljulllllrl]l]llllllllllllllrllllllllllllllllfifillllr]l]llrlllllilIl
1HO?Tt?
Uoingold oara?erblades
to cut half-blind dovetaile
Youcan aet eornemore
mileage
ou| of an old
ocra?erby uoin7it
Nocomplelelhe eaw
cuNemadeto fashion
half-blinddovelails.
Tlacelhe bladein the
kerl and tap il with
a hammerunLilit,
reachesthe shoulder
lineof the ioinLThiewillmakeiN
eaeierLo finiehNhecut with a chisel,
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SANDING
Q andingis the final stagein smoothJ ing a pieceof furnitureand is also
indispensable
in eliminatinganyblemishesleft by planesand scrapers.
Both
toolssometimesleavemarksandridges
Theycanalsocomon wood surfaces.
presswood fibersandclosetheporesin
thewood,inhibitingits capacity
to properly accepta finish.Sandingasthe final
stepopensclosedpores,allowingthe
finish to penetratethe surface.
A wide varietyof naturaland manmadesandpaperabrasives
areavailable
for thewoodworker,
from naturalmaterials suchasflint, garnetand emeryto
artificialoneslike aluminumoxideand
you
siliconcarbide.Formostapplications,
needa sandpaperwith
hard,sharp-edged
particlesttratarenot easilydislodgedfrom
their paperbacking.Garnet,siliconcarbideand aluminumoxidearethe abrasivesthat bestsatisfythesecriteria.
A typical sandingsequence
begins
with a 120-or 150-gritpaper,depending
on whetheror not you useda scraper
(page30).Youmayfirst needan 8O-grit
abrasiveto eliminatedefectsor irregularitiesfrom a surface.
Continuesanding
witha220-gritpaper,movingto increas-
ingly finer abrasives

to removethe
scratches
leftby thepreceding
operation. Fora surface
thatis to receive
a
glossy
finish,youwill needto useapaper
atleastasfineas320grit.Howhighup
thegrit scale
youclimbdepends
on the
finishingproductyouintendto apply
Keep
andtheeffectyouwishto achieve.
in mind,however,
thatpolishinga surfaceto a highglosswith anultra-fine
papermaykeep
astainfrompenetrating
evenly.
Referto thecharton page37for
Combiningtheconvenience
of a
powertoolwith thefine touchof
handsandinga palm sanderreadies
a cabinetfor a finish.
informationon the differentsandpaper

gradesandgritsandwhento usethem.
Apart from selectingtheappropriate
grit, you alsoneedto choosebetween
paper.Theabraopen-andclosed-coat
paperscovsiveparticleson closed-coat
er almost the entire surfaceof the
backing,and arebestsuitedto sanding
hardwoods.Open-coatpapershave
morewidelydispersedparticles,covering only 40o/oto 700/o
of the backing.
Theseareyour bestbet for softwoods
because
theyarelessproneto cloggingby
moreresinouswood.
fu shownon thefollowingpages,
sanding canbe equallywellaccomplished
by
hand or with power tools.Although
handsandingis laborious,it allowsyou
greatercontroloverthe process,
especiallywhenworkingon contouredsurfacesor in cornersandtight spots.
Whichevermethodyou select,you
canjudgewhetherthesurfaceis smooth
enoughby pulling a pieceof fine nylon
fabricoverthewood;the clothwill snag
on roughspots.Thenexaminethewood
undera beamoflight playedacrossthe
surfaceat a low.angle.The^lightwill
expose
anyremalnmglmperfecuons.
SANDING
FLAT
SURFACES
Using
a beltsander
Clamp
theworkpiece
downandinstall
griton
a sanding
beltof theappropriate
yourbeltsander.
Holding
thetoolabove
thestockwithbothhands,
switchit on
andgentlylowerit flatontothesurface.
Guidethesander
fromoneendof the
workoiece
to theotherin smooth
and
passes
straight
overlapping
thatfollow
thegrainof thewood(/efil.Keepthe
f latandmoving
sander
at alltimesuntil
is uniformly
Avoid
thesurface
smooth.
leaving
thetoolononespotwhileit is
quickrunning;
it cancutintothesurface
ly,leaving
a gouge.
Cleanupthesand(page42)beforerepeating
ingparticles
withafiner-gritbelt.
35
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Handsanding
Attacha pieceof sandpaper
of the appro'
p r i a t eg r i tt o a s a n d i n gb l o c k G
. r i pt h e
b l o c kf i r m l ya n d s a n dt h e s u r f a c e
with
s t r a i g h to, v e r l a p p i n g
b ,a c k - a n d - f o r t h
s t r o k e sa, p p l y i n gm o d e r a t ep r e s s u r e
a n dw o r k i n g
w i t ht h e g r a i no f t h e w o o d
(above,left), Keepthe blockf lat on the
s u r f a c ea t a l l t i m e s ,p a r t i c u l a r lwyh e n
you reachan end or edge.To smootha
s m a l lo r r e s t r i c t esdu r f a c es, u c ha s t h e
a r e a sb e t w e etnh e s o i n d l e os f a c h a i r
a s s h o w nu, s ea c o m m e r c i as la n d i n g
^+l^t,
>LtL^
/^^^,,^
lauuvc,
-:^L+l
r tBr tL,t.
lttlllllilllllilillll]lll]ltilllll[l]lllllllltllllilllilitilltruilfl
1HO?Tt?
Shop-madeoandingblock
CUIa woodblockthalyou can
qrip comfortably.OnIhe top
face of the block,cuLlwo
narrowqrooveo,
then cuI two
wedqeehapedwoodobripo
NhaI fit, in Lheqrooveeenuqly.To
gluea fel|
provideeveneandinq?reooure,
or cork pad t o NheboLbomlace of the block.
T ou s e t h e b l o c k , w r aa?p i e c eo f e a n d V a V e r
aroundit,,inoertNheendeinNolhe qroovee,
then
tap in the wedgeoto holdNheVaVerin Vlace.
t
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ABRASIVE
GRADES
ANDGRITS
SANDPAPER
Grade
Grit
Medium
8 0 , 1 0 0 ,1 2 0
Uses
Initial
smoothing;
removing
shallow
depressions
and scratches
F in e
1 5 0 ,1 8 0
Intermed
iatesmoothing
Veryfine
220,240
Finalsmoothing
beforeapplyinga f inish
Extrafine
280,320
Removing
dust particlesand air bubblesbetween
finishcoats
360,400
F i n a sl a n d i n g
b e f o r ef i n a lc o a to f f i n i s h ;i n i t i a l
sandingfor highglossfinish
6 0 0 ,1 2 0 0
Rubbingdownthe final coatof highglossfinish
Medium
Lightremovalof particlesand raisedfibers;

smoothing
of shallowdepressions
and scratches
Fine
00
Smoothing
beforeapplyinga clearf inish
Extrafine
000
Smoothing
betweencoatsof finish;lightcleaning
and deglossing
of a finishor polish
S u p efri n e
0000
Polishing;
waxing
S u p efri n e
STEEL
W(lOL
lluljlJlllllll tllilltt]l]lllllllttllllljlltlll}ljltflltllllilltl]ll
1HO?TI?
Makinga aandpaperauttingboard
To cul sheeleof oandpaperquickly
and accuraLely,
ueea ohop-made
cuttinq board.Screwa hacksaw
bladeto a pieceof plywood
with a washerundereach
endto raiseit eliqhNly
off the Vlywood.To
cuTa sand?a?er
sheet in half, ,./ ..
elideiI under
1,r)r \
li.i';\
;:
rino'i'
.','*^*
t .-s-o
d
"
ki**"*":
the blade.
H o l d i n 4o n e
end down,Near
\
the other part,of the
eheetoff. Fora quarEersheel,
marka lineparallel
NoNheblade
Nhat,isone-quarLer
ofLhewidlhof a
e h e e Xf r o m t h e l e e l h . T h e n a l i g nl h e e n d
ol f,he eheet wilh lhe line and lear.
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37
Choosing
sandpaper
gritsin the
Therange
of sandpaper
chartat leftwillserve
foralmost
any
f i ni s hi n gj o b .W h e nb u y i nsga n p
da p e r ,c o n s i d ei trsc o m p o s i t i oAnl u. minumoxidepaperworksbestwith
a beltsander.
Choose
silicon
carbide
p a p eirn g r i t sa b o v 2
e 2 0f o rf i n i s h
s a n d i nwgi t ha no r b i t asla n d e r .
PREPARING
THE SURFACE
SANDING
CURVED
SURFACES
Using
a random-orbit
sander
Withitscompact
andpliable
sanding
pad,therandom-orbit
is ideal
sander
forsanding
contours
suchasa cabriole leg(left).Clampdowntheworkp i e c ea n df a s t e n
a s a n d i ndgi s kt o
pad.Withthetoolclear
thesander's
of thestock,switchit onandlower
thepadontothesurface.
Applying
pressure,
moderate
workalongthe
length
of theworkpiece
in back-andf o r t hp a s s eusn t rtl h es u r f a cies
s m o o t hR. e p o s i t i o
t hne p i e c ei n
theclampas necessary
to smooth
^:i^^^-+ ^,,"+-^^^
duldutrrrL)ur iduc).
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Hand
sanding
Smoothing
contoured
surfaces
usingonlysandpaper
risks
creating
blemishes
onthewoodorf lattening
outthecurves
pressure.
padthat
withexcessive
Fora shop-made
sanding
canfollowcontours
withoutoversanding,
wrapa sheetof
sandpaper
around
a thicksponge
thatyoucancomfortably
grip.Holdthepaper
around
thesponge
andsandalong
the
length
of thesurface
withf irmpressure.
U s i n ga s a n d i nbgl o c k
S e c u r et h e w o r k p i e caen d a t t a c ha p i e c eo f s a n d p a p et or
a c o m m e r c i ac lo n t o u sr a n d i n gb l o c k .O n t h e t y p es h o w n ,
t h e e n d so f t h e p a p e ra r e p i n c h e dt o g e t h ear n d h e l d i n a
s l o to n t h e n a r r o ws i d eo f t h e b l o c k .F o rm o s tc o n t o u r s ,
s a n dw i t h t h e c i r c u l a sr i d eo f t h e b l o c ka g a i n stth e w o o d
( a b o v e )F. o rc r e v i c e sa n d o t h e rt i g h t s p o t s ,w r a pa s h e e t
o f s a n d p a p earr o u n dt h e b l o c k ,h o l di t i n p l a c ea n d s a n d
w i t h t h e n a r r o ws i d e .
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BLOCK
CONTOURED
SANDING
Smoothing
thecontours
of a pieceoI
its
molding
evenly
without
damaging
is a difficulttaskwithonly
contours
sanding
sandpaper
or a conventional
youcanusea short
block.However,
your
sample
of themolding
to shape
ownsanding
blockthatcorresponds
exactlyto the surfaceof the workpiece.
Fashioning
theblockrequires
bodyfilleror modeling
rubber,
used
to makea moldof theorofile.
To prepare
themold,nailtogether
a smallboxslightly
longer
andwider
thanthesample
molding
andabout
r/qinchdeeper
thanthethickestpart
of themolding.
Prepare
thefillerfollowing
themanufacturer's
instrucfill
about
half
the
boxwith
tions,then
it. Laya single
ihickness
of plastic
wraDoverthebox.Whilethefiller
themolding
samis stillsoft,press
pleintotheboxandclampit firmly
against
thefiller.Letthefillerhardremove
en,ihencarefully
themoldingsample
fromthebox.Sawoff
theendsof thebox.
Totransform
theboxintoa sandingblock,stretch
a pieceof sandpaperabrasive
sideup across
the
molded
sideof thebox.Usethe
thepaper
molding
sample
to press
filler,then
against
the hardened
staoletheendsto the sidesof
thebox.
Tousetheblock,clamptheworkoiecedownandslidetheblockback
(/eff).
andforthalongthemolding
?o
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grooves
Smoothing
andturnings
grooves
Tosandnarrow
in turnedpieces
suchaschairspindles,
usecommercial
abrasive
cord.Cuta pieceof cordlongenough
to extend
a fewinches
on eachsideandwrapit around
the
groove.
Pulloneendandthentheotherrepeatedly
to sandhalf
(above,
left).Workfromthe
thecircumference
of thegroove
opposite
sideto smooth
theotherhalf.Tosandturnings
or
largergrooves,
useabrasive
tape(above,
right),whichis wider
thanabrasive
cordbuthandled
identically.
Smooth
intricate
pads.
turnings
andmoldings
usingsteelwoolorabrasive
r]llilI1
illlltllltlilllfilltllllll}ulli]IlultllllilIlil1j
ilutjllfit1
?HO?TI?
Shop-madeabraaivetape
1andingbelNeare an excellenl
oourceof abraeiveLapeo.The
belbereadilyNearin parallel
ebripe,makinqiL eaeyto
obtaina lenqthof abrasive
of Yhewidthyou need.)ince
uoinqabraoiveNapeinvolvee
crooo-qrain
oandinq,
uoeonly
slrios from fine-aritbells.
Coalrserabrasivis may leave
ecrabchee
and makeabraded
area6?roneNoabeorbinqmore
slain Nhansurroundina
areao.
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IN TIGHTSP()TS
SANDING
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r[ IltlfiIlllllllllijllltlillrilllllrrlltiltrinllllilI]illlllltlll]
1HO?TI?
.$o.
Findingflawo
O o m e b t e m i e hoener h e
\2"
eurtaceof a Vieceof furni'
Lure may noNbe aVVarent,
to ./, ,;
LheLouchor underordinary
l i q h t , b u t b e c o moeb v i o u e t
in a floodof light.Tocheck
your workafLereandinqa workpiece,cleanoff the eandinqVarLiclee
(paqe42),then aim a beamfromaflaehlightaNIhe
eurface,bouncing
il otr LhewoodaNan oblique
angle.griqhl
directeunliqhtworkoequallywell.Clooely
examine
Nheeuryour headup and downolowlyIo benefiLfrom
f ace,bobbinq
everyanqle.Takenole of any flawoyou miesedearlier.
panel's
Smoothing
a raised
edges
jobscallfora certain
Somesanding
degree
of improvisation.
Forexample,
to smooth
the beveled
edges
of a
panel(above)
raised
without
rounding
thesquare
edges
of theframe,
use
a piece
of sandpaper
folded
inthirds
to aboutthewidthof the beveled
section.
Holdthepaper
in a U shape
andplaceonefingerbehind
it; the
your
foldedpaper
cannot
slipagainst
finger.
Sandtheedges,
applying
even
pressure
parallel
andworking
to the
woodgrarn,
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CLEANING
SANDING
PARTICLES
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Removing
sanding
dustfrom
a woodsurface
Cleanparticles
offwoodsurfaces
after
everystageof sanding
before
moving
onto a f inergritabrasive
or applying
. e m o vaesm u c hd u s ta n d
a f i n i s hR
gritaspossible
witha vacuum
cleaner,
ragor benchbrush(above,
/eff).Then
w i p et h es u r f a ccel e a nw i t ha t a c k
yourhand
clolh(above,
nghf).Sweep
across
thesurface
to checkforany
particles.
remaining
Wipeagainwith
thetackclothif necessarv.
ilIllluillIllrilllllrllr1
tlllfillllltltflfiIlllllilltltljlllllltllI]
9HO7Tt?
Makingataak aloth
Makea tack clothNomatchthe
tiniehinqproducLyou inhendt o
uee.Fora water-basedfinieh,
oimVlydamVena cleanVieceof
cheeeeclothwilh waten Fora
eo l ven I - ba eed f i n i s hd, a m pe n
trhecloth wiNhmineralspiiits,
then workina fewdropsof varnioh.?queeze
Ihe cloLhre?eatedlyunbiliNbeginoIo feelobicky.
Add varnishwhenit,loeesits
Nackyfeel.)tore a tack cloth in
a plaelic bagwith a labelidentityingit as eilher waNer-or solvent-based,
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REPAIRINGSURFACEDAMAGE
canshow
Tl lawson a woodsurface
.F throughalmostanyfinish.In fact,a
clearfinishlikelacquermaymagnify
Beforeyouapplya finimperfections.
ishto a pieceof furniture,youneedto
find and mendanysurfacedamage.
Mostdefects
stickout,but youneedto
thelessobvious
blemfindandeliminate
ishesaswell.Tiy runningahandacross
thewoodandfeelingfor them.Youcan
withlowanglelight
alsowashthesurface
(page
4) andlookfor them.
to a repairand
Thebestapproach
requireddependon the
thematerials
repair
A suitable
natureof thedamage.
isto lift it with
for a dent,for example,
if thewood
steam(page4).However,
ratherthansimply
fibersaresevered
crushed,
steamwill not work;a wood
Forsmall
fillermaybethebestremedy.
waxor shellac
stick canproblemishes,
ducea virtuallyinvisiblefix. Bothare
in.avarietyof colorsto match
available
manywooospecres.
Youcanbuy specialburn-inkits
for applyingshellacsticks.Thetypiincludesa burn-inknife
calpackage
stainless
steelblade;
with a gentlybent,
an alcohollampfor heatingtheknife;
a felt
anda special
solutionfor soaking
therepairwiththesurblockthatlevels
roundingsurface.
arebestconMostlargerblemishes
withwoodfiller.Althoughmany
cealed
you cantint filler

tfpes arepre-colored,
yourselffor a perfectmatch.Testthe
filler on a scrapof the targetwood
beforecommittingyourselfto a particularformulation.In situationswhere
the
a filler is inappropriate-because
damagedareais too largeor the filler
would be conspicuous-youcanmend
the defectwith a shop-madepatch
fashionedfrom a wood scrapof the
samespecies(page47).
stickremainsoneof thebest
A traditionalshellac
methodsof repairingminordamagein wood.
Heatedby thellamefrom an alcohollamp,a
burn-in knifemeltsa small bit of theshellac
sticl<,whichfills theholelevelwith thesurface.
C(lMP(lUNDS
W(l(lDPATCHING
TYPE
CHARACTERISTICS
USES
G(lMPATIBILITIES
Woodfiller
or water-based;
depending
Solventontype,canbetintedwithstainor
purchased
pre-tinted
Fillinglargeholes,gouges,
cracksanddents
withmostfinishes;
Compatible
applybeforeor afterstain
Waxstick
in
Wax-andresin-based;
available
a varietyof colors.Setsquickly
stick
Shellac
available
andresin-based;
Shellacin a varietyof colors.Setsquickly
to forma hardsurface
with
scratches Maybe incompatible
Fillingsmallholes,
lacquer;
applyafterf inishing
andcracks
withalcoholor
Maybe incompatible
dents
Fillingscratches,
finishes;
applybefore
lacquer-based
andgouges
or afterfinishing
Shop-made
filler
mixedwithbinder,
Sawdust
canbe
suchashideglueorshellac;
tintedwithstain
Fillingnanowcracks,
gapsandsmallholes
t
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Mostmodernpatchingcompounds
comto bechemically
areformulated
patiblewith avarietyof finishes,
but in
contain
cases
wherethetwo products
finish
can
dissolve
thesamesolvent,
the
below
to help
thefiller.Usethechart
compound.
choose
theappropriate
Forall your fixes,whetherlifting a
lightlysandthe
dentor fillinga gouge,
repaironceyouaredoneto levelit with
thesurrounding
surface.
43
withmostfinishes
Comoatible
LIFTING
DENTS
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Repairing
a dented
surface
Onewayto fix a dentin woodis to
swellcrushed
woodfibersto theiroriginalshaoe.
Turna household
ironto
its highest
setting
andallowit to heat
uo.Meanwhile.
soaka cleanclothin
water,foldit overa fewtimesand
placeit onthedent.Press
thetip of
theironagainst
theclothoverthedent
(above),
holding
it in placeuntilthe
clothsteams.
Thesteamwillswellthe
woodf ibers,
liftingoutthedent.Add
waterto theclothasnecessary
and
avoidleaving
theironontheclothfor
toolong,whichmayscorch
thewood.
llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll'fiItl|llll llltfllllll]illlilltllllllt
9HO7Tt?
Gluingan edgeeplinter back
A emalleplinteron the edqeof a workViececan be qluedin Vlace,ao lonqao
iNie eLillafLached.Clamotrheetrockin a
vieeand equeezeoomeqlueinto lhe qap
beiweenNheeolinterand Lhewood.Then
eplinlerinto placeand secure
preeeNhe
it wibhmaekinqtape.)nce the qlueio
dry,removelhe IaVe and sandthe repair
fluehwilh adjacenteurtacee.
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FILLING
SMALTNICKSANDNAILHOLES
A p p l y i nwg o o df i l l e r
C h o o sa
e f i l l e rt h a t i s c o m p a t i b lw
ei t h
t h e i n g r e d i e n at sn dc o l o ro f t h e f i n i s h
y o uw i l l b e a p p l y i n gU, s ea p u t t yk n i f e
t o w o r kt h e f i l l e ri n t ot h e h o l ea n do v e r f ill it slightly(left),thenscrapeoff the
e x c e stso l e v e li t w i t h t h e s u r r o u n d i n g
surface.Avoidspreading
fillerontoundamagedareas,whereit maycauseuneven
c o l o r i nigf a s t a i ni s a p p l i e d .
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gun
Melting
shellac
stickwitha soldering
Select
a shellac
stickof theappropriate
colorandseta solderinggunon Low.Holding
thestickoverthehole,meltit with
thetip of thegun(above,
lefil.Dripenough
of theproduct
to
f i l l t h eh o l eW
. h i l teh ef i l l e irss t i l l s o f ut ,s ea k n i f eo ra w o o d
chisel
to press
it evenly
intothedamaged
area.
Workcarefully
to avoidmarring
thesurrounding
areawiththeknifeorchisel
b l a d eA. l l o w
t h ef i l l e tro c o o lT. ol e v et lh ef i l l e w
r i t ht h es u r rounding
surface,
soakthebottom
of a feltblockwitha small
a m o u notf c o m m e r c li e
a vl e l i nsgo l u t i oann dl i g h t l ryu bt h e
blockbackandforthacross
therepau(above,
nghf).Theslowacting
solvent
in thesolution
dissolves
excess
fillerwithout
harming
thewood.
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Applying
shellac
stickwith
a burn-in
knife
Lightthealcohol
torchandholdthe
knifeoverthewickforseveral
burn-in
Withtheshellac
seconds.
stickover
thedamaged
area,press
the knife
against
thesticksothatenough
filler
meltsanddrrpsintothehole(above)
Reheat
theknifeasnecessary
until
h
o
l
e
i
s
f
i
l
l
e
d
.
k
n
i
f et o
the
U s et h e
f
i
l
l
e
r
F
i
n
i
s
s p r e atdh e
evenly.
thh e
r e p a iwr i t hl e v e l i nsgo l u t i oann da
f p l i h l n n k (t Pnv ab vo e 1' .v 6
t )
iitiiltllrillllll1
illrr]lllrlllliilllrll}ll11
lll1
ilI]iltrxlllllfilt
5HO7Tt?
Ueinga gluegun to apply
shellacstick
A qluequn offeroa oimplealternalive
lo a burn-inknifeor solderina
aunfor
repairinq
damaqewith a ehellac
stick. Ueea oharpknifeNo
whiltlea ehellacelick oo
"'
that, iNfit 6 in Nhebarrelof
y o u r4 l u e4 u n . I om e l L l h e
-.'.
filler,pullLheLriqqerae
/.
y o u w o u l d NaoV V l q
y lue,
Ihen dripLhemelLedehellac
eNickonto Nhedamaqedarea.TressNhefiller
inboNheholewiLha knifeor woodchiee|and
leveliNas shownon ?aqe45-uoinq a felN
blockand levelinq
eolulion.
46
/'
' / /
//
/ /
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PATCHING
A LARGER
HOIE
andoutlining
thepatch
1 Making
I Aneffective
wayto menda larger
holeona woodsurface
is to cuta patch
a n da m a t c h i nm
g o r t i soev e tr h eh o l e ,
t h e ng l u et h ep a t c hi n p l a c eU. s i n ga
cut-offscrapfromtheworkpiece,
or a
p i e c eo f v e n e ewr i t hs i m i l agr r a i na n d
color,cut a patchthatis slightlylarger
thanthehole.Givethepatcha diamond
shape,
lessconspicuous
thana square
patchafterthefinishis
or rectangular
applied.
Usea woodchiselto bevelthe
edgesof the bottomfaceof the patch,
thensandbothfaces.Place
thepatch
overthehole,aligning
itsgrainwiththe
grain,andmarkitsoutline
surface
with
a sharppencil(righil.
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r) Chiseling
themortise
L Secure
theworkpiece
witha clamp
if necessary.
Select
a woodchiselslightly
narrower
thanthesidesof themortise
to
cutalong
theoutline.
Tiltthetoolwithits
bevel
facingupto produce
ananglecorresponding
to thatontheedges
of the
patch.Remove
theremaining
waste
from
theoutline
withthechiselbevelfacing
down(left).Periodically
test-fitthepatch
in themortise
untilthemortise
isslightly
shallower
thantheoatchisthick.
47
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downthepatch
Q Gluing
r-,1Spread
somegluein themortise
andsetthepatchin place.Laya piece
overthepatch,
thenposiof waxpaper
t i o na w o o db l o c ko nt o p .( T h ep a p e r
w i l l k e e pt h ep a t c hf r o ma d h e r i nt g
o
where
lf thepatchis located
theblock.)
youcannot
seta board
clampit directly,
a t o pt h eb l o c ka n dc l a m pt h ee n d st o
pressure
onthepatch
focustheclamping
(left).Workquicklyto prevent
the
patch
f r o ma b s o r b i nmgo i s t u rfer o m
t h eg l u ea n ds w e l l i n g .
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PATCHING
A DAMAGED
CORNER
'l
area
Preparing
thedamaged
I A d a m a g ecdo r n eirs b e s tr e p a i r e d
w i t ha p a t c hl.f t h ee d g e os f t h eb r e a k
areragged
or sharp,usea woodchisel
e do r t i s e
t o c u t a s h a l l o wo,v a l - s h a pm
w i t hs m o o t e
h d g e as r o u n tdh ed a m a g e .
H o l dt h ec h i s ewl i t ht h eb e v efla c i n g
d o w na n dw o r kw i t ht h es r a i no f t h e
wood(right).
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48
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PRE,PARING
THE SURFACE
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r) Installing
thepatch
patch
L Cuta
thatroughly
fitsthe
mortise,
thenshape
it withsandpaper
ora chiseluntilit fitsperfectly.
Spread
s o m eg l u ei n t h e m o r t i s ae n ds e t
thepatchin position,
aligning
itsgrain
withthatoftheworkpiece.
Usemaski n gt a p et o k e e pt h ep a t c hi n p l a c e
whilethegluedries.
Tolevelthepatch
withthesurrounding
pare
surfaces,
away
theexcess
withthechisel(above).
C u tw i t ht h eg r a i nk, e e p i nt h
g ec h i s e l
bevelsideuo.
illrultlltl|ltll]llltllllllllilltilllfiijtlllllilljl]lltljljtjll]jll
1HO?TI?
Filling a
damagedaorner
An alternalive
Nopatchin7a
aamaqedcorner
is lo reconslrucL
it wilh woodfiller.
SecureNheworkpiece\
in a vise.Makea form
NokeepNhefillerfrom
ea4giiqbytaVinq,
l\
6ffl\
,*./*-\
lntn ?teceol meLalor

or a tonque
\\
VlaeLic,
'depreooor
\ \
to thi sideof the
slock.lf you uoea tonqe..de?reooor,
placea etrip of waxVapei
underneath
Lo keepNhefillerfrom bondinq
to the stick.Applythe
fillerwiLha ?uLIyknife,then LaVea eecoid form Lo the ilp\r,fra"".
RAISINGTHE GRAIN
Wetting
thesurface
phase
Every
of working
withwood-from
j o i n t i nagn ds a w i nbgo a r dt so p l a n i n g
andscraping
them-compresses
the
fibersonthesurface.
Exoosure
to water
causes
thefibers
to standup,rougheningthesurface.
lf youintendto usea
water-based
finish,wetthesurface
to
raisethegrainbefore
applying
thefinishing
solution.
Spray
wateronthesurface(left),thenwipeofftheexcess
with
a cleancloth.Allowthesurface
to dry,
thenlightlyscuffthewoodwithvery
fine(220-griI)
Avoidoversandpaper.
whichmightexpose
freshgrain,
sanding,
making
it necessary
to repeat
theprocess.
Raising
thegrainhasotherbenefits,
such
asliftingshallow
dents,exposing
defects
a n dh e l p i nagf i n i s ha d h e r e .
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iltillti]l]llltilltultilt]iltluuilul]llillJ
ilu]lilj-tluuullllt
5HO?Tt?
Coloringgrain filler
qrainlillercan
Untrinted
becoloredf,o
malchor
conlrast with Ihe slain
onYourworkoiece.For
a
waier-baseAfiller,usean
oil-freepiqmenL
in liquidor ?owderform,suchas universallinlinqor dry earLhcolors.TinL
an
.'. ,.:.
. -.#
oilbasedfillerwiNhan oil-based s\\\-..' - -:-:
piqmenl,euchas arf,ieI'soil or
japancoloro,To
the filler,
prepare
pourit.inhoa diehandadd a emallamounN
of the colorin7aqent,
MlixtheIwo inqredienlewibha putty knife.Contrinue
addinqcolorinqaqenLunbilNhefillerNakeeon the d,eeired
color.Teet,the filler
illo your workViece.
on a 6cra?boardbetoreaVVlying
Add more
coloring
aqenN
NodarkenNhemixlure:add fillerNoliqhlenit.
s0
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FILLINGTHE GRAIN
f, illingthervoodgrainis theeasiest washcoat (pnge53),and finallyapplyt rvayto achieve
a highgloss,
mirror- inga fillerwitha conl.rasting
color'.
likefinishon open-grained
like
species
Fillercomesin sereralcolors;choose
ash,oakandmahogany.
Grainfiller,also a shadeslightlydeeperthanthervood
knorvnasporefilleror pastewoodfiller,
is not arppropriate
for everyjob,howevwoodhasno need
er.A closed-srain
for filler,andiome woodrvorkers
avoid
fillersaltoeether
in favorof a morenatt t
ttrat looK.
Ifyou decideto fill thegrainofyour

wood,youshouldunderstand
thevariousoptionsregarding
ivhento applythe
filierandexactlywhattypeto use.Filler
is usuallyappliedbeforestain;if you
chooseto stainbeforefilling you must
becarefulnot to damage
thestainwhen
removinsthe excess
filler.Yetanother
alternatirie
isto applythestainandfiller
togetheron therarvwood,althoughthe
resultis oftena flat, monochromatic
appearance.
To bring out the character
of .t species
likenrahogany,
tly stainirrg
thewood,thensealing
thestainwith a
Applying n .filler to ttrtoperr-grttitted

specieslike onk doesrtnre tlmrr
sitnplylill tlrc woodpores.ht corttrast
with the rnturttl sttrfaceon the riglrt,
theJiller added to the sartrple
on the leJiltasaccerrtrtsted
tlrc
wood'sgrairrpntterrt.
Forbestresults,
makesurethat the
workpieceis cleanand dust-free.
Then
prepirethe fillerfollowingthe manufacturer's
directions;
it shouldhavethe
consistency
of thickcream.
Because
erainfiller canabsorba lot
of finish,ali,aysapplya washcoatto a
filled surfacebeforestaininsor finishing it. Thewashcoat,consiiting
of the
finishyou plan to r-rse
dilutedby the
appropriate
thinner,creates
a barrier
betleenthe fillerandthe finish.With
sornespecies
likemahogany,
a washcoat
is advisable
beforefilling,to preventthe
fillerfrom developing
unsightlywhite
spotsseveral
monthsafterit is applied.
onthefiller
1l Brushins
-
I W i t ht h e w o r k p i e cfea c eu p o n a
w o r ks u r f a c ep, o u rs o m eo f t h e f i l l e r
i n t oa c o n t a i n eAr .p p l yt h e f i l l e rw i t h
a p a i n t b r u s h( l e f t )o r a b r a s i v ep a d s .
U s i n gb a c k - a n d - f o r tohv.e r l a p p i n g
strokes,coverthe surfacecompletely
w r t ht h e f i l l e r w
, o r k i n fgi r s tw i t ht h e
grain,thenacrossit. Examine
the workn i e c er r n d edr i r e c tl i p h tt o c o n f i r m
thatthe surfaceis covered
thoroughly.
A p p l ym o r ef i l l e r ,i f n e c e s s a r y .
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con-lDlltaIlon.
APPLYING
A FILLER
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soit willmatchastheivooddarkens
r,vith
age.Youcanalsobuyuntintedfillerand
colorit yourselfinthe shop (pnge50).
Beforecommittingyourself
to a particularsequence
oLcolor,applythe filler
to piecesof scrapwood both before
andafterstaining,
andchoose
thebest
5l
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otfexcess
filler
O Wiping
I
Once
thefillerbegins
to dry,losing
itsshineandturning
hazy,
wipeit with
piece
a
of cleanburlapfoldedintoa
padtighil. Startingat oneendof the
workpiece,
workwitha circular
motion
to packthefillerintothewoodpores
andremove
theexcess.
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up
Q Cleaning
r.J Ona detailed
workoiece
suchasa
raisedpanel,remove
excess
fillerfrom
hard-to-reach
spotswitha sharpened
tonguedepressor
wrapped
in a clean
pieceof burlap(lefl. Dabthe pointed
endintocorners
andalongedges
to
remove
filler.Allowthefillerto
excess
dry,thensmooth
thesurface
with220to 320-gritsandpaper.
lf a second
coat
is required,
applyit thesameway.
52
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APPLYING
A WASHC()AT
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onthewashcoat
1t Brushins
I Prepare
a 50/50solution
of thefinishyouintend
withthe
to use,diluted
h l o n tgh e
a p p r o p r i at ht ei n n e B
r .r u s a
woodgrainto applya light,evencoat
of thesolution
to thesurface
bbove),
t
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r) Rubbing
inthewashcoat
L tJsea clean.lint-free
clothto
workthewashcoatintothe pores
of thewood(lefil. Allowthewash
coatto dry,thensmooth
thesurfacewithextrafinesandoaoer.
t",^t*
!
':1".e-
n*Eq;
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\*_.-
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CFIANGNGTHECOLOR
notallwoodcriesout
Of course,
to bechanged;
somespecies
arebest
dense
richness
of thepigment-tintleft aunatureLlt ishardto imagine
edvarieties,
thematerialsusedin
improvingon therichpatternsof
coloringwoodafforda greatdegree
rosewoo{Macassar
ebonyor Grpaof latitude.Sainsallowyouto make
thianelmburl,justasit seems
futile
whitewoodscolorful,lightwoods
to altertheshocking
intensity
of purdar( plainwoodsfancyandsteaked
pleheart,
padaukor Osage
orange.
woodsuniform.
Butformostwoodworkers,
opporThroughout
thelonghistoryof
tunitiesto workwith perfectspecifurnituremaking,
stainshavebeen
mensarerare.Thetypicalproject
calleduponto fool the eye.They
involvesmakingdo with whatever
havehelpedcommonwoodstake
materialsareavailable
andaffordon theappearance
of moredesirStainingallowsyou to dramaticallyalterthe
able.Stainshelp
to makethis
feasible.
ableones,addingcolorandfigure
outwardappearance
of wood.Thismaple
Ebony-costlyanddifficultto
piano benchwasebonized,
whereit waslacking.Theyhavealso
or coloredblacl<"
wor( butsnikinglybeautifirl---offen
produced
colorsandpatternsthat
with multipleapplications
of tintedlacquer.
aprimeexample
ofthespecial
effecs
natureneverimagined.
thatstainingmakespossible.
Even
Onetrick involvedinlayingmahogany
surfaces
with pat- whenthewoodis available,
thesmalltreediametermakesit
ternsof whiteholly.Thechallenge
wasto darkenthe sur- impossible
to obtainwideboardsandthenaturalinstabilityof
roundingwoodwithoutdiscoloring
theinlay,andthesolution thewoodvirtuallyassures
pieceof ebony
thata good-sized
layin awashof potassium
permanganate
or dichromate.
The will cracksooneror later.Fortunately,
a widelyusedstaining
"ebonizing"
washreacted
with thehightannincontentin themahogany, technique
called
givestheappearance
ofebonyto
bringingoutrichredsandbrowns,but it leftthetannin-free morestableandaffordable
woodslikemahogany
andmaple.
hollyunchanged.
Perhaps
moreimportantthanmerefakeryistheabilityof
Modernstainsfall into two broadcategories:
thosecon- stainsto createnewwoodsbyaddingunlikelycolorsto familtainingdyesandthosewith pigments.
Dyesimparttranslu- iar materials.
But not all stainingis soblatantlyobvious.A
palette
centcolorto wood,alteringnature's
whileleavingthe moresubtle,
butequallyvaluable
useof stainisto addto furintricategrainpatternsvisible.Pigmentstainscontainopaque niturethatmostelusive
of traits:age.Morethanone"antique"
colorants
thatclingto thesurface
of thewood.Pigments
can hascometo marketwith adroitlyappliedmixturesof waxand
beusedto addpatterns
andcontrast
to thewoodgrain,or to
rottenstone,
or evenshopdustandjapancolors,hidingthe
bringdefinitionandhighlights
piece
to corners
andcarvings.
factthatthe
onlyrecently
leftitsmakerthands.
rom the deep,clearandbright
tonesof dye-tintedstainsto the
A colonialredanilinedyestainenlivensa palepieceof oak.

Whetherit colorsthewoodfibersor merelycoversthesurface
with a layerofpigments,stainingcanchangethe lookof a workpiecemoreradicallythananyotherstepin thefinishingprocess.
55
TOOLSANDACCESSORIES
of stains,
I longwith an assortment
A pigmentsand dyes,there are a
numberof implementsandaccessories
that everyfinisherneeds.A samplingof
the mostusefulitemsis featuredbelow.
Changingthecolorofwood involves
as much art as science,
but in some
precisemeasuringis helpful.
instances
For example,if you areattemptingto
matchan earlierstainingjob, it helps
to know the exactproportionsin which
the original ingredientswere mixed
together.
Usegraduated
cylinders
and
cupsto measure
out liquidsaccurately,
and a scalefor determining
precise
weightsof powders,
crystals
andother
drycomponents.
Brushes,
sponges,
ragsandpadapplicators
ofvaryingsizes
arethemostcommon tools for applyingstainsand
bleaches.
Brushes
arecategorized
bythe
natureof theirbristles.
Thebrushyou
choosefor a particularprojectwill
depend
on thesubstances
youneedto
ANII{VEI{TORY
OFSTAINING
IMPTEMENTS
For applyinqstaino
and bleachea.Synthetic bruahea
made from nylon or polyeeter are more
durablethan naturaFbrbtb brushea
9ponge
For applyin4 bleachea
and chemical
staina
f-----"1
apply.Solvent-based
stainsshouldbe
spread
on with natural-fiber
brushes;
usesynthetic
brushes
to applywaterproducts.
based
An oil-based
product,
suchasa pigmented
wipingstain,can
beapplied
witheithertypeof brush.
All oftheproducts
presented
in this
chapteraretoxicto varyingdegrees.
'v\hethermixingor applyinga stainor
bleach,
wearsafetygoggles,
neoprene
rubberglovesand a dual-cartridge
respirator.
Pad applicator
For applyin4atains evenly on wideeurfacee; type
ahownfeatureo rectan4ular pad with thouaanda
of ehorEfilaments and a
foam backinq
Foam brush
For applyinq ataina
without bruah marka;
type ohownaynthetic
and diapoaable
\ L=;---'
Weighing
acale
For preciae
meagurement
of powdere
and cryatala
in ataina and
bleachee
\-==;'
Graduated aylindere
For preciae meaourement of liquid inqrediente in atains and
bleachea
56
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Glaee jars
Clearjara uaedfor mixing
ataine and bleachea;
brownjare uaed for
atorinq aolutionsaince
they blockout aome
of the li4ht
High-volume, low-preaaure (HVLP) apray unit

For aprayinq on etaine; featurea a turbine whichblowa
a oteady etream of air throu7h a epray qun, forcin7
the atain through the 7un'a nozzleas a fine vapor
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BLEACHING
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arehishlvreactive
chemiT) leaches
I) calsthat brea'kdown the natural
colorantsin wood.For years,woodworkershaveusedbleachto lishten
the coloroftheir stock.Theeffeitcan
bestartling.Mahoganytumsa toneof pale
rosewhen bleached;walnut becomes
creamyin color.
Bleachinghas other applications,
however,that go beyondsimplywashing out color.The process
canbe the
firststepin preparinga piecefor a specific stain,suchasa blond finishfor
it is alsousedto readya dark
mahogany;
is
oakfor liming.In addition,bleaching
an effectiveway to suppress
the color
variationsbetweenthe sanwoodand
hearftvood
ofa species
like poplarand
makethem more uniform.It alsorids
woodof waterandruststains.
Therearethreecommontypesof
woodbleach.Oxalicacid.soldin licuid
"deck
is yourbest
form as
brightener,"
choicefor removingstainsfrom wood.
Sodiumhypochloritewill do an excellent job of removingan anilinedye
Thisproductis
stainfrom a workpiece.
available
asliquid laundrybleach.But
the most effectiveall-purposewood
lighteneris two-partA/B woodbleach.
Usingthis varietyof bleachinvolves
resultcombininglyeandperoxide;the
ing effectis strongerthanthat of either
inqredienton its own.
Naturalcherrv
Woodbleachcanaffectyourtoolsas
drasticallyasthe wood.Usea synthetic brushor spongeto applybleach;a
natural-bristle
brushwill eventually
disintegratein thesolution.Mix andstore
bleachin glasscontainers;the
chemicals
mayreactwith metal.Bleaching
leaves
residues
on woodthatcanbecomehazardousairborneirritantswhenthesurfaceis sanded.
Thethreemaintvoesof
bleachcanall be washed
awaybf rinsing thewoodwith water.
Bleachcanbe dangerous
ifhandled
improperly,sofollowthemanufacturNevermix bleachwith
er'sinstructions.
anotherchemical,and alwayswork
with a freshbatch.
Nat.uralwalnut
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.,j,iii::;
,
',1''r''
Dleachedwalnut
Bleachedcherry
57
CHANGING THE COLOR
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BLEACHING
WO()D
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Applying
thebleach
C l e a tnh ew o r k p i e oc fea n yd i r to ro i l ,
thenreadythetwo-part
bleachbypouringa quantity
of eachsolution
intoseparateglassbowls.
Donotmixthetwo
p a r t st o g e t h et rh;e yw i l lb ea p p l i eidn
separate
steps.Spread
a generous
but
evencoatof PartA onthewoodsurface
witha paintbrush
ora rag.Lettheproductdo itsworkforabout5 minutes,
then
applyPadB thesameway.Lettheworkpiece
sitforat least4 hours,
thenrinse
thesurface
withwaterortheneutralizer
supplied
withthebleach.
Allowtheworkpiece
to dryovernight
before
applying
a
stainorfinish.Two-part
bleach
is usuallystrong
enough
sothatoneapplication
issufficient;however,
to lighten
the
woodfurther,repeat
the process.
ljlllll1
llltillllltfur][llltll11
tltlutllltt]i}l]tll]llt]llllitilll
3HO7Tt?
Lighteningwood wit"h6rain filler
Io liqhLenwoodwilhout bleachinq
it,,usean oil-baeed
qrain
fillermixedwiNhsome
whitepigmenN.
FireIapply
a washcoaLto the workpiece(page53),Lhen
?re?area balch of
filler (paqe51),
a d d i n qe n o u q h
-f
w h i t ej a p a n o r
o t h e ro i l - b a s e d
/f
o i a m e n l s l o o b l a i n T , h es h a d e
you wanl,.You
can applyIhe mixtureao you wouldany
grainfiller.IheVroceoo
willaccenluateLhegrainof
o?en-?ore
epecieo
likeoak,aeh,mahogany
and elm.
5B
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THE VARIETIESOF WOOD STAINS

Q tainingwasoncekeyto thecabinetsubtleartof forgery.
fumed
l) maker's
with naturaldyes,chemicalmordants
andsecret
recipes,
cabinetmakers
could
imitatethelookof prized,exoticwoods,
or givenewlybuilt chairs,chests
and
cabinets
thepatinathatantiques
acquire
withthepassage
of time.
Today,
camouflaging
andenhancing
wood with stainsare still important
aspects
ofwoodworking.
Whetherastain
penetrates
anddyesthefibersofthewood,
or merelycoversthesurface
with a thin
layerofpigments,
nootherstepin thefinishingprocess
bringsaboutsucha radicalchange.
Stainingcanhighlightgrain
patterns,
maskhomelysurfaces,
addcolor or imparta uniformhueto different
woodswithina singlepieceof furniture.
All stainsconsistof a coloringagent
mixedin aliquid.Thetwobasictypesof
coloringagents
aredyesandpigments.
Dyestainsworkmuchlikethecoloring
agents
usedoncloth.Dissolved
in water,
oil or alcohol,
theypenetrate
thesurface
andbondto thewoodfibers.Pigment
stains
powcontainfinelygroundcolored
derssuspended
in aliquidsuchaslinseed
oil.Theyworkmorelikeverythinpaints.
Whenapplied
to wood,theliquiddries,
bindingthepigmentto thesurface.
Dyesforstaining
woodaremostcommonlysoldasanilinepowders,
which
mustbemixedwith a liquidbeforeuse
(page68).Theirintensecolorscanbe
combined
in varyingproportions
to provideavirtualrainbowof huesandtones.
Pigment
stainsareavailable
in thesame
yetcomein readywiderangeof colors,
to-useliquid,gelor glazeform.Pigments
canalsobepurchased
in concentrated
formasearthpigments
orjapancolors;
theconcentrate
is addedto a ready-tousestainfor enhanced
effects.
Bothdyes
andpigments
canbemixedwith lacquer,varnish,
waxor shellac
to provide
coloredfinishes.
Whenchoosing
a stain,remember
thatmostdyestainsarebrilliantand
transparent,
butgenerally
notaslightfast,
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59
or impervious
to fading,aspigment
stains.
Dyestainsareexcellent
for highlightinggrain.Pigment
stainsareopaque
andtendto cloudthegrain.Somenewer liquid stainscontainbothdyesand
pigments,
providingtheusefulpropertiesof bothqpesof coloringagents
with
addedease
of application.
Themostdesirable
liquidbasefor a
staindepends
ontheeffectyouareseeking.Thedeeperthevehiclepenetrates
the wood,the darkerandricherthe
resulting
color.Because
waterpenetrates
deepest,
water-soluble
stainsaregenerallythebestchoicefor hardwoods.
One
drawback
of water,however,
is that it
raises
thegrain,necessitating
further
sanding
of thesurface.
Availablein easy-to-apply
liquid
form, thegelstainshownin usebelow
pigmentsthat will imparta
contains
dark brown mahoganytone.
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DYESTAINS
andanif-\ erivedfromplants,insects
I-/ mals,thewooddyesusedin the
18th Centuryrangedfrom concoctionswith exoticnamessuchasdragon'sblood,verdigris,
madderrootand
cochinealto moreearthytints extractedfrom tea,urine,vinegarandwalnut
husks.A hundredyearslater,thefirst
anilinedyewasextracted
from coaltar.
Today,suchdyesaretheindustrystandard,usuallymixedwith oneof three
solvents:
watet oil or alcohol.Dyesnot
yet combinedwith a solventarealso

available
in eitherpowderor liquidform.
Premixed
stainsaremoreconvenient
to
use,but mixingthemyourselfgivesyou
moreflexibilitywhenyouneedto producea particulareffect.A fourthtype
of dyeproduct,knownasnon-grainraising(NGR)stain,is onlyavailable
in
liquidform.Thedyesin NGRstainsare
dissolved
in ananhydrous,
or waterless,
solutionof organichydrocarbons,
such
aspetroleum.Whichevertypeof dye
Mahogany
60
t
stainyouapply,thefactorthatwill determinetheeventual
colorof thewoodis
theamountof dyein thesolution,not
theamountof solutionapplied.
Water*oluble
sainsareagooddroice
for emphasizing
thegrainofhardwoods.
Althougha water-based
stainwill raise
preferto
thegrain,manywoodworkers
takecareofthat stepbeforeapplying
astan (page50.),
therebysavinga sandingstepthatmightaffectthefinalcolor
of thewood.
Mahogany
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CHANGINGTHE COLOR
Alcohol-soluble
dyes,alsocalled
"spirit
stains,"
do not raisethegrainas
muchaswater-based
stainsandthey
producesomewhat
brighterhues.
Oil-soluble
dyesaretransparent
and
alsonon-grain-raising.
Thedryingtimes
of thesestainswill vary,depending
on
thesolvent
used.Mineralsoirit-based
generally
stains
havea slowdryingtime,
whilestainscontaining
tolueneor xylene
dryconsiderably
faster.
Thetrade-offis
thattolueneandxylenearemoretoxic
thanmineralspirits.Anotherpotential
problemwith oil-based
stainsis their
tendenryto bleedthrougha protective
finish.Althoughthisshouldonlyoccur
if thestainis stillwetwhenthetopcoat
isapplied,
it isa goodpractice
nonethelessto useafinishwithadifferentsolvent
thanyourstain.
Forbestresults,
NGRstainsshould
besprayed
onwood.Ifyou useabrush,
youwill needto adda retarder
to the
solution
to extend
itsdryingtime.
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61
Choosingtheright stainfor a project

caninvolveexperimentation.
Frompages
60 to 63 is a seriesof photosthat illustratethe effectsoffive differentdyestains
on someof themostpopularhardwood
species.
The sampleson the far left are
unstained,followedby piecescut from
the sameboard,eachone coloredby
a differentdyestain.For further inforl
mation on the characteristics
and uses
of stains,refer to the chart provided
on page70.
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CHANGINGTHE COLOR
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Liqht yellowmaple
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:i'
Cherry
Natural
Cherry
Goldenfruitwood
62
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CHANGING THE COLOR
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Oak
Colonialdark red
Oak
Hone5fione
amber
Oak
Ebonyblack
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PIGMENTSTAINS
thatcanbereduced
I ny substance
a pigment
l1' to a powdercanbecome
thatwill impartcolorto wood.Minerals,
ores,metallicoxidesandmanyother
naturallyoccurringearthcompounds
canall begroundinto veryfinepartiin a solcles.Oncetheyaresuspended
ventsuchasoil, varnish,pollmrethane
powders
or water,these
become
spreadBecause
ablepigmentstains.
theparticles
ratherthandissolved
aresuspended,
in thesolution,pigmentstainsdryto a
thin, paint-like coatingon the surface

of the wood.
Whereasdyestainscolorwoodfibers
and tend to accentuatethe grain, pigment stainsare opaqueand hide the
wood patterns.As a result,pigment
stainsareoftenusedfor glazing,graining and otherfinishingtechniquesthat
for the lackof distinct grain
compensate
Datternsin certainvarietiesof wood.
Thesearedescribedin detailin Decorative Finishes(page110).
Today,pigmentsareproducedsynthetically,
with bindersanddriersadded
to helpthemadhere
to thewoodasthe
dries.
Pigment
stainscomein
solvent
gel
liquid
and
forms.
Themost
different
popularandbest-known
arepigmentfinThese
ready-to-use
edwipingstains.
ground
products
a
finely
ishing
contain
pigmentsuspended
in linseed
oil,which
doubles
assolventandbindingagent.
Wpingstainsareslow-drying,
allowing
plentyof timeto spread
themonor wipe
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Walnut
Cherry
wipinqatain
Walnut
Antique white
wipingetain
64
Mahoqanyliqht
wipinqetain
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CHANGING THE COLOR
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off any excess.Either sprayedon or

appliedwith a ragor a brush,theyare
particularlyusefulwhen the wood surfaceis madeuo of heartwoodandcontrastingsapwood.
Otherpopularpigmentstainsinclude
japancolors,glazingstainsandgelstains.
lapancolorsoffer a morevibrant range
of huesthanwipingstains,but theyneed
to be thinnedbeforeuse.Theycanbe
usedto tint otherstainswhenyou are
trying to matchan existingsurface.
The main sellingpoint of glazing

stainsis that theyareheavierandthicker than wiping stains-and thus useful
for concealing
grain.Gelstains,meanwhile,are easyto applyand they set
quickly,reducingdrips on verticalsurfaces.Referto the chart on page70 for
more informationon theseand other
pigmentstains.
Pigmentsarealsoavailable
in powderedor concentrated
form.Earthpigments,like siennas,
umbersandochres,
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Maple
Goldenoak
wipinqoLain
Mahoqanydark
wipinqetain
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65
areminedfrom theearthandorocessed
in deoxygenated
conditions
athighheat
to bringout theirbrightcolors.Different
pigmentstainscanbemixedtogetheror
with powderedor concentrated
varieties
to produceuniquecolorsandtones,providedthesolvents
arecompatiblel
an oilbasedstaincannotbe mixed with a
water-based
stain,for example.
Pages
64to 67 illustratethe effectsof
variouspigmentstainson fivedifferent
typesofhardwoods.
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Eirah
FlakewhtLe
japan color
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Van Dykebrown
glaztnqot;ain
Kaw umber
qlazingstain
Durnt umber
4laztnqotatn
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CHANGING THE COLOR
Eirah
Chromeyellow
japan color
Eirah
Fermanentblue
japan color
Eirch
Euiletinred
JaPancotor
Oak
van Dykebrown
gel eLain
Eurnt eienna
7el etain
STAININGWOOD
awater-based
stain.Otherwise,
oodworkersarequite naturally applying
requirwhena carefully thestainwill lift thewoodfibers,
disappointed
thestain.
thatmayremove
appliedandapparentlyuniform coating ingsanding
uneven
of stainproduces
resultson a pieceof furdifniture.Unfortunately,
ferentpartsof thesame
boardcannotbeexpected
to absorbliquid evenly.
endgrain
Unlessexposed
for example,
it
issealed,
-':-'
will usuallytakein more
,. "::.''t'': ..
t
,
. .,.
ofastainthanfacesor
1
.edges,
nrakingtheends
appeardarker.Asshown
end
on page69,sealing
out
A teststriptakestheguesswork
grainis simplya matterof brushingon
of staining.Thissampleillustrates
theappropriate
sealerbeforeyou stain.
thefficx on wtstained
oakof one,
There are other preparationsyou
Whilea grain
twoandthreecoatsof stain(ntoving
shouldmakeat thisstage.
fillercanbe appliedeitherbeforeor
fi'omlefttoright).Thebottomhalf
to showhow
ofthestripis topcoated
after staining,you need to raisethe
thestainlooksundera clearfinish.
grain of the wood (page 50) before
W
W
A STAIN
PREPARING
^)f
68
Many stainscan be bought premixed and readyto use.However,

you may
if you enjoyexperimenting,
alsopreferto custom
mix your colors.As
shownin the photoat
left,a teststrip canhelp
you producethe right
of ingrecombination
dientsand determine
the numberof applicationsyou will need
to make.
Frompaintbrushes
and ragsto padapplicatorsandsprayguns,
in applyingstains
therearealternatives
aswell.\{hichevermethodyou choose,
andrubbergloves.
wearsafetygoggles
It is a goodpracticealsoto don a dualcartridgerespiratorto filter out toxic
f u m e sp r o d u c e da s a s t a i ne v a p o rales(page19).
n
u
Mixing
theingredients
withdyesor pigments
Whenworking
powder
stick
in
form,usea wooden
withthe
to mixsomeof the powder
solvent
in a glasscontainappropriate
(left).
Applythestainto a sample
er
stripof thewoodthatyouwillbecoloring,
Allowthestripto dry.Todarken
t h ec o l o or f t h es t a i na, d da s m a l l
To
of powder
to thesolution.
amount
lighten
thestain,mixin a littlemore
Make
another
teststrip,adjustsolvent.
ingthecolorof thestainuntilyouare
satisf
iedwiththe results.
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CHANGINGTHE COLOR
THEW()RKPIECE
READYING
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S e a l i ne
g n dg r a i n
U s ea r a go r p a i n t b r u stho a p p l ya
s e a l e tr o t h e e n d g r a i no f y o u rw o r k p i e c eM
. a k ec e r t a i nt h a tt h e p r o d u c t
y o uu s ef o rt h i st a s ki s c o m p a t i b lwer t h
t h e s t a i na n df i n i s hy o uw i l l b e u s i n g
S p r e a do n s h e l l a cf o r w a t e r -o r o i l b a s e ds t a i n so r f i n i s h e sf;o r a l c o h o l b a s e dp r o d u c t s ,e a le n dg r a i nw i t ha n
o i l - b a s ewdo o dc o n d i t i o n eAr v. o i ds l o p p i n gt h es e a l eor n t ot h e f a c eo r e d g eo f
t h e w o r k p i e c et h; i s c o ul d a f f e c t h e
evennessof the stai n.
lliir]iillj lt iljijliiiilllili,ii,itlj:ruu ruitjir* tlli ; i l i l $

1Ho?TtP
?reparing a nat'ural
walnut, stain
To make,,broue d,e noix,',z
i, ''n(
. * -un'
;"
-,-.^,s"'t+r-\
-.;[3*'-
naluralwalnuN
dyeeNainVopular
in the 1BOOz,
collecLeeveralqreen
/
h u a k sf r o mf a l l e nw a l n u l a , l e l l i n q
i .
L h e md r ya n d t u r n b l a c k . ) o a k | h e i ' ' huskefor a fewdayein a larqenon- i -_ ' filled wilh waler,
stick steel pot

''
for several ' " : - :ThensimmerNhemixNure
hourson a eLove,
addinqoneIable- ! i . I ,
eVoonof lyefor everyqallonof the
i. ,,.
. ,
mixture.SotrIlelhe solulionin clear
g l a s s l a r e a n d l e a v el h e m i n b r i q h t
\=
e u n l i o , hul n l i l l h e m i x f , u r ed a r k e n ef u r N h e rS
. L r a i n L h ed y e L h r o u q ha n o l d c l o t h
a n d r e - b o t t l e i t , d i e c a r d i n qL h e h r s k e , A p p l i e d ,
w i l h a b r u s h , " b r o u ed e n o t x "V r o d u c e ea r a n q e
o f r i c h b r o w nl o n e s o n w o o d .
69
.\
{r,r$
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CHANGING THE COLOR
A GALLERY
OFSTAINS
TYPE
AVAILABLE
FORM
ANDUSES
CHARACTERISTICS
PREPARATION
AND
APPLICATION
Water-based
starn
Powdered
uble
; water-sol
grain.Addto water,
Raise
strain.
Applywithbrush,ragorspraygun.
S p i r ist t a i n
Powdered
uble
; alcohol-sol
Penetrating;
notverylightfast;
transparent;
brilliant;
tendsto raisegrain;goodforhardwoods;
compatible
withanyfinish
Penetrating;
notlightfast;
driesquickly,
buttendsto leavelapandstreakmarks
0ilstain
Powdered;
oil-soluble
Penetrating;
transparent;
doesnot
grain;slow-drying;
obscure
bleeds;
needs
goodforsoftwoods
sealercoatof shellac;
N G Rs t a i n
L i q u i dd;i s s o l v e
i nd
methanol
andpetroleum
distillate
solution
Doesnotraisegrain;transparent
and
goodforveneers
lightfast;
Thinto desired
consistency.
Applywithspraygun.lf applying
witha brushor rag,useretarder.
Penetrating
oil
stain
L i q u i dd; i s s o l v e
i nd
mineral
spirits
Penetrates
open-grained
wood;moderately
lightfast;
transparent;
easyto apply;colors
canbemixed;
doesnotraiseor obscure
grain;bleeds;
needswashcoat;goodfor
softwoods
Applywithbrushor rag.Wipe
off excess
afterdesired
coloris
achieved.
DYESTAINS
Varnish
stain
L i q u i dd;i s s o l v e
i nd
varnlsn
Mixwithalcohol
andstrain.Brush
orwipeon.Bestforsmallareas.
Dissolve
in mineral
or spiritpetroleumdistillate
andsirain.Apply
withnylon-bristle
brushandwipe
off excess,
Highlytransparent;
lightfast;
non-penetrating;Applywitha ragandwipeoff, or
addsfiller,colorandglossin oneoperation; usea spraygun.
goodfor lowergrades
of lumber
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PIGMENT
STAINS
W i p i n sgt a i n
L i q u i ds;u s p e n d iendo i l
andmineral
spirits
gun.
Lightfast;
willnotbleed;non-penetrating; Applywithbrush,
ragorspray
opaque;
tendsto hidegrain
Wipeoff excess
afterdesired
color
is achieved.
Earthpigment
Powder;
soluble
in any
l i q ui d
Easy
hides
to use;lightfast;
opaque;
grain;goodforwoodwithindistinct
grain
ortintingprotective
finish
M i xw i t ho i lo rv a r n i s A
h .p p l y
withbrush,
ragor spraygun.
lanan
Liquid;concenirated
in
varn
ish
Excellent
fortintingvarnish,
stain,lacquer
Applywithsynthetic
brush.
Gelsiain
L i q u i ds;u s p e n d iend
petroleum-based
gel
Easy
to use;hidesgrain
Applywithrag;wipeoff excess
afterdesired
coloris achieved.
Glazing
stain
L i q u i ds;u s p e n diend
varnish
Water-based
stain
L i q u i ds;u s p e n dienda n
acrylicandwaterbase
Excellent
forfiguring,
shading,
or conecting Applywithbrushor rag;allow
sapstreaks;
hidesgrain;wears
off;needs
a
to set.Wipeoffwithgrainif
hardfinishcoat
desired.
grain.Applywithbrush,
Non-penetrating;
lightfast;
brilliant;
colors
Raise
canbe mixedtogether;
non-toxic
and
ragor spraygun.
non-f
lammable
nnlnr
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CHANGING THE COLOR
APPLYING
A STAIN
WooD
STAIN
Yr''
---\'
./r-Y
lll1
rlllilltl|llillll| llltill filltllllll]llllllltlll filtiltilIlfilj
?HO?TI?
Controlling the flow of et ain
AlLhouqhfloodinqon stain ie NherecommendedpracNice
whenworkingon a horizonlal sur'face,
doin4the samewhenNhewood
is verNical
willresultin drippinq,
and make
a meooof your projecLOneanswerie
lo rig up a cleanmetalcan lo regulate
t h e f l o wo f l i q u i df r o m y o u r b r u s h .
TunchNwoholeeon oppooite
7i:;,":
:,i::3r::f;în:"[;:
M
2?'
[t:,"ni|il",xy
;:::(,*:w
drawthe bristlee'acroee
Nhe
| -$::;
e,que,ezinq
anyexceoe
y1ire,
liquidbackintrolhe
can.
.
\tr
\.!$...
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,-=--\
7I
Brushing
onstain
Dipa cleanpaintbrush
intothestain,
coating
abouthalfthebristle
lengh.
Tominimize
lapmarks,
floodthesurfacewithstainandbrushalongthe
w o o dg r a i ni n l i g h te, v e ns t r o k e s
(above).
Once
thesurface
is completely
covered,
wipeit witha clean,
dry,lintfreeclothto evenoutthe colorand
s o a ku p e x c e slsi q u i dF
. o ru n i f o r m
coverage
withan alcohol-based
stain,
wipethesurface
assoonas possible
afterbrushing
it on.
t
CHANGING THE COLOR
Wiping
onthestain
F o l da c l e a nd, r y ,l i n t - f r ecel o t hi n t oa
padandsoakit withstain,squeezing
out
theexcess
untilthepaddoesnotdrip.
Wipethestainonthesurface,
working
parallel
to thegrain(/eft).Ruboffthe
witha cleancloth.
excess
WooP
STAIN
Using
a padapplicator
F i l lt h ew e l lo f a p a da p p l i c a t o r
trayhalffullof stainandpullthe
padovertheroller,
loading
it with
t h el i q u i d D
. r a wt h ea p p l i c a t o r
a l o n gt h ew o r k p i e cf oel l o w i n g
thegrain(below),
wetting
thesurfaceliberally.
Usea cleancloth
to wipeawaytheexcess.
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CHANGING THE COLOR
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WooD
-=/'/
STAIN
/-,/'--
J--
'/' -
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--\=*7
lllllllrlll ullllullrllrJlI]IlljllljlllllllllltllltIlll1
ljlli]lllll
9HO7Tt?
Gettin7 stain into tight, epote
Keepa selectrion
of smallbrushes
on handlo straincorner6,moldinqo,
carvingoand lrim that a clotrhor
a laraerbrushcannol reach.For
brushestrhalare smallerthan
lhoee foundin mosl hardwareslores, try an art
:. \
'...
\
ouVVly
ohop.
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73
Dipping
a small
workpiece
To colora workpiece
that is too
s m a lflo rb r u s h i nogrw i p i n gd,i pi t
rightintoa container
filledwiththe
stain(abovd.Holdthe pieceover
thecanto lettheexcess
liquidrun
off,Thenholdthepiecebythecorn e r sa n dw i p ei t w i t ha c l e a nc l o t h .
CHANGING THE COLOR
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Spraying
a stain
gunfollowing
Prepare
thespray
the
manufacturer's
instructions.
Tostain
a pieceof f urniture
liketheoneshown
a b o v eh, o l dt h eg u na b o u 6t t o 1 O
inches
fromthesurface
withthenozzle
perpendicular
to thewood.
Starting
at
thetopof thepiece,
squeeze
thetrigger
to applythestain,moving
thegunfrom
sideto sidein overlapping
sweeps
until
youreach
thebottom.
Formoreinformation
o n a d l u s t i nagn du s i n gs p r a y
e q u i p m e nr te, f e tro p a g e9 3 . B e f o r e
s p r a y i nags t a i nc, o n t a cyto u rl o c a l
a u t h o r i t i teose n s u rteh a ty o u rs p r a y
areasatisfies
localsafety
regulations
(page102).
lllllllllll lll llllllfilil lji lll lil i]lJllllllllilIlIIlilllilllllil

1HO?TI?
Supportsfor drying
AfEer st aininqa workpiece,
let it dry evenlyand

blemish-free
on a beI
nf
ahnn-ma)P
nnrla
Cttl
Gttn-
lnttr
2-inrh-
equarewoodblocksand
drivea smallnailIhrouqh
the middleof eachone.
Arranqetrheblockson a
levelsurtacewith the nail
t i V e p o i n t i n qu Vs o l h a l
they willeupporL
the workniPaP
ea: ila
rnrncra
t
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PICKLINGAWOODSURFACE
ickling,or liming,refersto anyone
of a number of antiquingtechniquesintendedto impartan agedand
weathered
look to lisht-coloredwood.
Traditionally,
woodriorkershavepickled furniturewith suchchemicals
as
nitric acid,lyeandlime.Asshownbelow,
however,you canachievecomparable
resultsby applyinga coatof whitepaint,
pigmentedwhiteshellac
or whiteglazeto
the workpiece.The trick is to wipe off
A pickledfinishcangivea newly
mlde chairthetime-worn
appearance
of a vintageantique.
thebulkof thestain,leavingtraces
in
moldingsandcorners.
Oncethepickledstainisdry it should
be sealedwith a light topcoat.Youcan
pickleeitherbareor stainedwood suriaces,but ifyou haveuseda water-based
dyeon the wood,you will alsoneedto
sealit prior to applyinga latexpaintor
glaze.Picklingcanbe attempted
with
anyspecies,
worksbest
but the process
with oakor oine.
APPLYING
A PICKLED
FINISH
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'l Applying
thewhitestain
I Usea ragto spread
whitepaintorstainonthesurfaces.
W h i l et h ep a i n ti s s t i l lw e t ,w i p eo f f t h e b u l ko f i t w i t ha
burlaprag,leaving
a whitishglazeonflatsurfaces
andstreaks
(above).
white
in
of
crevices
andcarvings
Letthestaindry.
l f t h ee f f e c its t o op r o n o u n c eadb,r a dteh es u r f a cw
eith
220-grit
sandpaper
untilyouobtainthelookyouwant.
11 "Aging"thesurface
Z to givethewoodan antique
appearance,
usea ragto
ruba mixture
of rottenstone
andpastewaxoverthesurface
(abovd.
Wipeofftheexcess
witha burlaprag,takingcareto
leave
someresidue
in thecrevices
andcarvinqs.
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CHEMICALSTAINS
p eforethe adventofsyntheticdyes,
I) staininewoodwasan art form ihat
rivaled aljhemy. With natural dyes
derivedfrom plantsand insects,and
chemicalmordantsextractedfrom tin,
iron,aluminumandchrome,
staining
requiredknowledgeofbotanyandchemistrv aswell asexoerience
with wood.
Appliedby thimselves,
naturaldyes
producepleasantshadesof red and
brown on manyspecies
of wood.Tea,
for example,is usedoccasionally
on
antiquereproductions
to producea
warm goldenhue.But in combination
with chemicalmordants,naturaldyes
canbringout a rainbowofsuperb,brilliantcolors.Thephotosbelowandoppositeillustratetheeffectsofa fewselected
dyesand mordantson four popular
The species
is indicatedin
hardwoods.
bold tlpe with the dyeor mordantlisteddirectlybelowFormoreinformation
on a full rangeof mordantsandnatural dyes,referto the charton page78.
The term mordantcomesfrom the

"to
Frenchverbmordre,meaning bite."
Mordantsdo two thingsfor naturaldyes:
Theychangethecolorofa dyethrough
a chemicalreactionwith eitherthedyeor
the wood.They alsohelp a dyepenetratewoodandbind with thefibers.
Somenaturaldyesareavailable
as
powderedextracts,
but othersmustbe
extracted
from naturaloroductsin the
shop.Mordantscomein crystal,powder or liquid form.Whenpreparinga
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. ":::..
; :.: - - . " "
..::...
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,,',t*,:.:
':li
t
';'tt::;t"
n/a-.::..,. -,.
...:.,,,
.
' -"lL:!i:
;,1|j,1:.''
.#i:,,'"'
I
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,f*di:t::':,
';::-:
-.,.:,f'
*r*ot'''
r'
',*i
Ash
LOqWOOA
^*.-!
=l
,-,'r*d'
,:- :'
ToLaaatum dichromate
and tannic acid
Logwood and
copper aulfate
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-)
.,. 1
Fotaeeium perma nqa nate
Cherry
Drazilwood
andalum
paLaooium
dichromaLe
76
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CHANGINGTHE COLOR
chemical
stain,mix a 15percentsolution of thedryingredients
anddistilled
water.It is betterto maketheconcentrationtoo weakthantoo strong;it is
easierto darkenthewoodthanto lightenit. Allow eachcoatto dry completely beforeapplyingthenext;colorcanbe
misleading
whenthestainis wet.
Somenaturaldyescancauseallergic
reactions,
butmostarerelativelybenign.
Manychemicalmordants,however,
are
caustic
andsometimes
toxic.Prepare
and
applytheseproductscarefully,
wearing
safetygoggles,
neoprene
glovesanda
rubberapron.A dual-cartridge
respirator is a mustfor a mixtureproducing
toxicfumes.Do not spread
a chemical
stainonbleached
woodor youriskcreatingpoisonous
chlorinegas.Toavoid
splashes
whendilutinga mordant,add
thechemicalto
thewater,
alittleatatime.
Thereareno hardandfastrulesfor
applyrngchemicalstains.Typically,
the
dyesolutionisspread
onthewood,then
themordantis addedwhilethe dyeis

stillwet.Thesolutionsshouldbemixed
separately
and appliedwhen cool.
Experimentation
is the key to good
results;
keeparecordofyourrecipes
and
thecolorstheyproduce.
Chemicalstainingis becominga
dyingart.Manyproductscanbefound
onlyatphotography
andchemical
supply houses.
But if youareafterstriking
and uniqueeffects,they canbe well
worththetroubleof seeking
themout.
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Oak
Fotaaaium
Permanqanate
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Mahogany
Lo7woodand
potaaoium dichromate
Mahogany
9umac and
copper aulfate
77
Mahogany
Loqwoodand alum
CHANGING THE COLOR
DYES
ANDNATURAL
MORDANTS
CHEMICAI
MORDANT
FORM
ANDCHARACTERISTICS
PRODUCED
COIORS
Alum
salts;non-toxic
Whitemineral
Ammonia
highly
toxic
28%liquidsolution;
sulfate
Copper
( b l u ev i t r i o l )
highly
toxic
Bluecopper
crystals;
Fenous
sulfate
highly
toxic;
lroncrystals;
reacts
withtanninin wood
Purplish
anddarkcrimson
tones
(Forfuming)Darkvioletbrowns
withlogwood
dye;lightyellow
dye
withbrazilwood
browns
(Forpreserving
wood)Darkgrayandolivetoneswith
logwood
dye
ebony-like
blackwithlogwood
Steelgrayto bluishtones;
oyeor alum
fnnnnorasl
Hydrated
lime
(quicklime)
toxic
Calcium
oxidecrystals;
limedfinishon hardwoods
suchascherry
Antique
withvinegar
mustbe neutralized
andwalnut;
Potassium
carbonate
mildlytoxic
Potash
crystals;
withalumandfustic
A range
of greens
toxic;
chromecrystals;
extremely
Potassium
dichromate Orange
reacts
to hightanninconient
crystals;
mildlytoxic
Violetpotash
Potassium
permanganare
Whitelyepowder;
toxic
hydroxide
Sodium
wellwithanilinedyes
Deepredsto richbrowns;
combines
(Forebonizing)
a
Turnswoodwithhightannincontent
purplish
brown
withvinegar
Darkens
chenyandoak;mustbeneutralized
Stannous
chloride
moderately
toxic
Whitetin crystals;
combines
dye;pinkwithalizarin;
Lightredwithbrazilwood
wellwithmanydyes
T a n n iac c i d
fromhemlock
Yellowpowder
extracted
andoak;mildlytoxic
Boosts
tannincontentin wood
DYE
I{ATURAL
FORM
ANDORIGIN
Alizarin
dyeor theactivecoloring
A synthetic
agentof madderroot
PRODUCED
COLIIRS
"Turkish
yellow
andbrown,
red";crimson,
orange,
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onthemordant
depending
(ForFrench
polishing)
of reds
Graytoneswithalum;a range
withlinseed
oil
tin or alum;oakbrown
andgoldswithchrome,
0ranges
withlye
depending
onthemordant
reds,browns,
andpurples,
Vibrant
Alkanetroot
An ancientorganic
dyefrom
the borage
family
Annato
tree
American
Seedsfroma Central
Brazilwood
of
species
A popular
dyefromseveral
trees
redwood
SouthAmerican
Coch
ineal
Driedtropical
insects
Manyshades
of redmixedwithalum
Cutch
of
An extractof the heartwood
tree
theAsianacacia
lightfast
shades
of brown,frombeigeto chocolate
Various
Dragon's
blood
A resinfromthefruitof the rattanpalm
reds
Bright,lightfast
Fustic
of
Anextractfromthe heartwood
tree
mulbeny
theAmerican
lndigo
fromIndian
A dyeextracted
indigoplants
to greenish-yellows
on itsown;yellows
Orange-yellow
w i t ha l u m
hydroxide
withsodium
Deepblue;yellow-white
Logwood
American
AnextractfromCentral
hardwoods
campeche
Madderroot
Extracted
fromthe rootsof
plant
madder
theEurasian
grays,
depending
blacks,
bluesandpurples,
Lightfast
browns,
onthemordant
depending
onthemordant
andyellows,
Reds,
blues,browns
78
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CHANGINGTHE COLOR
APPLYING
A CHEMICAL
STAIN
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M i x i n gt h ei n g r e d i e n t s
I n p r e p a r i nagn a t u r adl y es o l u t i o on r a
c h e m i c am
l o r d a n ty,o uw i l lg e n e r a l lbye
f o l l o w i ntgh e d i r e c t i o nssu p p l i e w
d ith
t h e c o l o r i n ag g e n t B
. u ti t i s i m p o r t a n t
' ]l, iiiii:i,u, tili'lJlu ]]uiiulll ,liidi ilii'.ilirillijililll
to hc vprv nrp.isp in nnmhininothpcp
5HO7Tt?
i n g r e d i e n t sM. e a s u r o
eu t t h e d r y i n g r e d i e n t sw i t ha s c a l ea n ds e tt h e ma s i d e
i n a d i s h .l f y o u rr e c i p e
c a l l sf o r b o i l i n g
A chemicalstain for ebonizing

Tomakeyourownsf,ainfor lurninga woodblack,oubmerqea ef,eelwoolpad and a few ruoty nailsin a larqe
n
v rr
h
r r. \ / n | a
2n trc^ ^ r,^+|r^ r^
r rnut L uv rveui Lo U
_yvu uor I UJC d nCLLIC LU
h e a tu p t h e l r q u i dF. i l l am e a s u r i n g
c u p w i t h t h e v o l u m eo f w a t e ry o un e e d ,
r rL^
i. h. ,p, n. , n n r r r i t i n i n : o l z c . : ^ - . nAur u
L|u
T--'
b,--) ldr
d r y i n g r e d i e n t so t h e w a t e rs l o w l y
( a h n v e )s t i r r i n pt h c s n l u t i o nw i t h a
w o o ds t i c ku n t i lt h e p o w d e dr i s s o l v e s .
A p p l yt h e r n i x t u r teo y o u rw o r k p i e c e
w i t h a s y n t h e t i sc p o n g ef,o l l o w i n g
the
p r o c e d u rfeo r w i p i n go n a s t a i nw i t h a
cloth (page 72).
q l a o oj a r f i l l e dw i b hc i d e r v i n e g a r .
LeI lhe mixttre sif,, uncovered,
u n t i l i N t u r n e c l o u d ya n d
q r a y :L h i e e h o u l dL a k e
a b o u l a w e e k .T h e nE L r a i n
l h e s o l u t i o nN h r o u g ha
i.,
, -\foryll:
r^.offee filt.er
al
ain
annnne
Tn -nnnlv
Y Y ' J 1.16.
"
i).,&
j
aarteral
coals of iNon the wood,

l e t r t i n qe a c h a p p l i c a t i o n
dry before ?rtttnq on
Lhe nexN.Af|er the
l a e l c o a L ,b r u s h o r
s o m e l i q u i da, m m o n i a
or flood Lhe sufiace
w i t h w a L e rt o n e u f , r a l i z e t h e a c i d ,i n t h e v i n e q a r . T h e ns a n d N h ew o o d .
":,.!*fi.lrya:,1u
:.-:...-:....
FUMING
{.,..-.r
niais itstendenq,to reactlviththe
to a pieceof
tirnninin lvood.Exposed
liquidrvill
furniture,thisrvater-soluble
bok
darkenthervood,gir,ingit theclassic
of anantique.In oakandcherry,aumoof huesrangniarvillbringoLrta vatrietv
ing from light hone,vto dark brorvtr.
of exposure,
on thean-u'rturt
Depending
t h e c h e n r i c .rrvl i l lt t r r r r : o t t t cs p c c i e s
ahrostblack.
You cirn firme wood rvith regular

Ammoniacanbe appliedby either
household
aulrollia, but aqueous
sufthe
liqLrid
or
by
or brushing
sponging
pirr,
avai
Iablefr"omchenrical sr"r
vapor
inside
ar.r.l.r-u'u-r
lr,ood
in
ammonia
ftisingthe
lvorks
in
28
perceut
scllution,
ply
hor-rses
ir
This
option,
secoud
a shop-builttent.
Bothproductsare
calledfuming,hasdefiniteadr,antages. rulrchr.norequickl1,.
harmftrlto
theeyes,
skinirnd
caustic
and
e\.eltcolorsexposed
surf,lces
Theprocess
concentrtrted
amtlorespilatory
s,vstem;
And
ly rvithoutlap marksor streaks.
If
fhtal
if
inhaled.
nia
cau
e\ren
be
the
ivood
ftrmes
althoughthefhmespenetrate
rveirr
rubrvood
possible,
fi.rme
outdoors;
liquid
more deeplythan brushed-on
safety
goggles
arnda dual-carbergloves,
ammonia,fuming doesnot raisethe
rvood.
tridge
respirator.
the
grain,sinceno liquidcontacts
Nat,ural maho1any
NaLural walnuL
,l r.! - ,l .r rr ' rL lr 'r ^L \.rhl ( 'l ,r (. r' \.rr\ r. " j S t i C SO l -i . l 1 1 l 1 O -
NaLural oak
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Fumed maho1any
Fumed walnut
Fumedoak
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CHANGING THE COLOR
EXPOSING
FURNITURE
TOAMM()NIA
FUMES
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Using
a fuming
tent
Builda woodframethatis a littlelarger
thanyourworkpiece.
Usetriangular
bracketsto reinforce
thecorners
anda bar
clampto holdthecorners
square
asyou
(above).
nailtheframetogether
Remove
anymetalhardware
fromyourworkpiece
beforp
e l a c i n igt i n t h ef r a m eo; t h e r w i s et,h ea m m o n w
i ai l lt a r n i sthh em e t al.Tocomplete
thetent,drapea black
plastic
tarpovertheframe.Useduct
tapeto sealanyopenings
in thetarpand
gather
it tightlyaround
theframe,leaving
o n ef l a po p e nF. i l ls e v e r ad li s h ew
s ith
ammonia
andsetthecontainers
inthetent
(right).Sealthef lapandletthefumes
workfor about24 hours,
checking
on
periodically
theworkpiece
andtopping
upthedishes
withfreshammonia.
Remove
thepiecewhenit hasthecoloryouwant,
k e e p i ni gn m i n dt h a ti t w i l ld a r k ean l i t tle moreafterit is exposed
to theair.
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PROTECTT\tr
FINSHES
nlike a cabinetmakingprojectin
whichwoodis cut awayuntil you
microscope,
woodloolslikeabundleof
straws-woodabsorbs
finishat differaresatisfied
with theshape
thatremains,
entrates.Applyinga uniformcoating
afinishisbuilt up layerbylayer.Simply
of a finishoftenresults
in whatappears
put, finishingis theprocess
of spreadto beunevencoverage.
Thereasonis
ing a fluid overwoodto dry in thin
that endgrainabsorbs
morefinish,
sheets.
Andwhileit is a slowerandless
leavingits surface
lookingbare,while
dramaticstage
of aproject,ttreendresult
the adjacentfacesand edgesappear
is equallyimportantin producinga
adequately
covered.
Thesolutionis to
beautifulpieceof furniture.
floodon a coatof finishandallowdifPerhaps
themostimpressive
aspect
ferentamountsto betakenin by the
of a finishis theamountof protection
endandflatgrainareas.
Thewoodwill
it will provide.Mostcommercial
finish- A varnishtopcoatbringsout theluster thenbe properlycovered
whenyou
esarenothickerthanthepageof aboo(
of an oak table.Finishinga pieceby
wipeoffthe excess.
yettheymustguardthewoodonwhich handdemandscare.Loadingthebrush
Overtime,finishers
musthavegrown
theyrestfromdirt, moistureandeven
with toomuchfinish,particularly
impatientwith thethin coatsthatwipmild abrasion.
whencoatingverticalsurfaces,
can
ing produces,
andbrushes
wereintroTheearliest
clearfinishes
wereprobresultin driDsand runs.
ducedto theprocess.
you
Brushes
enable
ablyappliedin thesimplest
way-wiped
to getintothemostinaccessible
of carvon with whatever
wasat hand.A true oil finishconsists
of
ingsandcrevices,
to applyfinishquicklyin thickercoatsand,
nothingmorethannaturaldryingoilsfloodedontothewood. notincidentally,
to keepyourhandsclean.Today,
with thevarTheexcess
is thenwipedoff,leavinga thin film to dry.One iousbristletypesandbrushconfigurations
available,
thereis
or twocoatssealthesurface
andsubsequent
layers
canbebuilt a brushfor virtuallyeveryvarietyof finishingproduct.
up to almostanythickness
or sheen.Eventoday,theterm
Application
timeswerefurtherreduced
startingin the1920s
"hand-rubbed
finish"conjures
upanimageoflusterandqual- withthedevelopment
of thespraygun.Spraying
isby farthe
ity.Shellac,
anaturallyoccurringresin,canbehandledin much quickest
wayto applya finish,blanketing
thewoodin a cloud
thesamewayasoil. Oneor twocoatssealthewood,butyou of finelyatomized
fluid.Buttechnology
comes
with itsdrawcankeepaddingcoatsto develop
thedeep,glosysurhceknown backs.
Spraygunscanbewasteful,
for asubstantial
portionof
asFrenchpolish(page106).
thatcloudgenerally
misses
itsmark.Oneof thegoalsof finMosttopcoats
canbeapplied
by hand,andwipingranks ishingequipment
designers
is to createa newgeneration
of
asoneofthebestandeasiest
waysto ensure
thin, evencov- spraygunsthatpreserve
theirtraditionalspeedofoperation
erage
of a woodsurface.
Because
of its structure-under
a whilecurbingwastefulness.
Sprayingmakesquickworkoffinishingintricateturnings.Quick-dryingfinishes
like lacquerandshellacareidealfor thistechnique.
TOOLSAND ACCESSORIE,S
, \ s i v i t h r l l t h e o t h e rs t a g eos f a
l1 finishingproject,the.rpplication
stagervill be helpedalongby a few
Ifyou havethe
accessories.
specialized
patienceand energyto applya little
elbowgrease,
thereareir wideassortfor
mentof cloths,padsandbrushes
a surface.
Clothsandpadscan
cor,ering
in theshopfrom
be madeandprepared
or linen;you canalsofashold sheets
ion your own foam brv,sh(pnge92).
sizes
Brushes
comein differentstyles,
and priceranges.
Shouldyou opt for
thebristleoverthefoamvariety,a highqualitybrLrshis a good,long-term
investment.
It will outlasta cheaper
it will
brush,but, rnoreimportantly,
alsoproducea betterfinish.
Therearretwo principaltypesof
spraysystems
on the market.Until
fealecently,
theonlysystemavailable
hookedup to a
tured a col.npressor
sprayguu.Today,the morecompact
(HVLP)syshigh-r,olurne,
low-pressure
With
temisbecorringmoreprevalent.
the
lessoverspray
andhencelesswaste,
to operate
HVLP is moreeconomical
andeasier
on theenr,ironment.
you need
With both spraysystems,
to cor-rttrin
thefumesandexhaustthem
safeiy.The commercialspraybootl-r
shorvnat right is a goodalternative,
providedtheworkpiece
issmallenough
to fit insidethebooth.
Commeraial spray booth

For eprayin4 amall work'
piecee. Made of aheeL
meral. Featurea filtero
Lhat collect overopray
and an exploeton-proof
fan and chimneyLhat
exhauaL fumee ouLeide
Lhe workehop
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B4
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
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High-volume, Iow-p reeaure

epray 6y6tem
Featureean electric turbine
that eupplieea qreat deal of
air at. low preggureto spray
7un;ailowehiqhpercentaqeof
ftniehto contacL workpiece
Vieaoeity cup
Helpoin mixinqfintehLo
proper coneteLencyfor
eprayinq.Cup ie drpped
rnto fintehand filled with
liquid;Lhetime iL takee
cup Lo empty throu1h
holein bottom ehould
correepondt.o elapoed
Ltmeapeciftedby manufacturer
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Foam brush
An rnexpenaive
optton for applyinq
finteheawithouLleavinqatreaka or
otray briatleo on aurface; ideal for
contoured eurfaceaand tiqht. 6pot6
Conventional epray eyetem

Compreeoorouppileeatream of pree'
aurtzedair throu4hhoeeto oprayqun.
Atrre7ulatorcontrols volumeand preaaure of ar; requlator includeefilter that
rernovegmora|.ure
and other tmpurittee
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Y-\
----===i--Z---r.-
-=<-,
-Nat.uralor oynthet.ic
brretleafor applyinga ftniah:
spreadaa thicker, more even
c'oat than foam bruah
?pray gun and cup

Cupaerveeaa ftnish reservoir; euction feeda finish
Lhroughmetal tube to qun,
wherecompressedair atom'
izeathe liquidinto a mtet
whentn4qer io pulled
8s
CHOOSINGA PROTECTIVE
FINISH
finishyouchoose
for
T h. protective
I a projecthasa lot to do with your
personal
tasteandtheeffectyouwishto
Theprincipalfeatureofa prodachieve.
uctliketungoil,for example,
isitscapacity to penetrate
wood,givingthesurface
awarmglowandaccentuating
thegrain
andits pattern.A varnishor polyurethanetopcoatprovides
a higherdegree
of protectionby dryingto a plasticJike
film;however,
itwill alsomaskthesurfacedetailsto somedegree.
Manyprotective
finishes,
including
varnish,polyurethane
andlacquer,are
nowavailable
in two formulations:
sol- preparingandapplyinga water-based
vent-andwater-based.
Yearsago,sol- finishmaydifferfrom
themethods
used
productsmonopolized
vent-based
the for is solvent-based
counterpart.
Always
marketplace,
but recentenvironmental referto themanufacturer's
instructions
concerns
havespurredthedevelopment for mixingandapplyinga topcoat.
of water-based
finishes.
Solvent-based Whichever
finishyouselect,applyfinishesaregenerally
flammable;
water- ing it entailsmorethansloppingon a
basedproductsarenot. Anothersell- fewcoasoftheproductandlettingthem
ingpointof water-based
finishes
isthat dry.Thewoodsurface
hasto beproptheydo not release
toxicsolvents
into erlyprepared:
Ifyouwantto fill thegrain
the atmosphere
exceptwhentheyare (page50)of an open-pore
species
like
sprayed,
andthuscomplywithincreas- oalgyouwill needto dosobeforeapplyinglystringentair qualitystandards
in
ingthefinish.Beforeapplyngalacquer
states
likeCalifornia.
Theprocedures
for
topcoatto anopen-pore
woodsurface,
a sealercoatmaybe in order.Finally,
youwill needto bleachor stainthepiece
aheadof timeif changing
its color(page
54)ispartofyourgameplan.
Beforepreparingyour tools and
openingup your containerof finish,
makesurethat anyfiller,washcoator
stainis completely
dry.Asa finalpreparation,gooverthewoodsurfaces
with
a tackclothto besuretheyarefreeof
particles
sanding
anddust.'
Theprocedures
for applyinga topcoatdependon the productyou are
usingandthe applicationmethodyou
haveselected.
Pages
87to 90detailthe
stepsfor applyingawiderangeof productsbyhando5whereappropriate,
with
thehelpof sprayequipment.
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Easyto apply,a coatof polymerized

tungoil is wipedonto thesurfaceof this
cherrytoy chest,protectingthe wood
andgiving it a warm luster.
86
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
DRYING
OILS
Drying
oils,suchaslinseed,
tungandwalnut
oil,area group
of natural
finishesthat
cureto forma relatively
hardfilmona
woodsurface.
Tungoil,
alsoknown
asChina
woodoil,isoneof
the mostpopular
dryingoil f inishes.
Extracted
fromthe nut
of thetungtree,theoil is available
in pure,modified
andpolymerized
form.
puretungoil is a good
Because
it contains
noadditives,
choice
forfinishing
children's
toysandeating
utensils
suchas
lf youareplanning
saladbowls.
to useit, checkthelabelto
pure.Themain
makesurethatthecontents
are100percent
benefit
of modif
iedtungoilsisthattheycontain
chemical
a d d i t i v et hsa ta l l o wt h e mt o d r ym o r eq u i c k l yP. o l y m e r i z e d
tungoil undergoes
a special
heattreatment;
it driesfasterstill
andproduces
a glossier
sheen.
Drying
oilsarereactive
f inishes,
meaning
thattheydryand
harden
whenexoosed
to air-evenin a sealed
container.
Whenyoustorea drying
oil,usea containerthat
is assmall
a sp o s s i btl oe r e d u cteh ev o l u moef a i rt o w h i c ht h eo i l i s
A coupleof othersuggestions
exposed.
arediscussed
in the
ShooTiobelow.
APPLICATION
SEOUENCE
1.Wipetheoilonthesurface
witha cloth;it shouldbe
applied
straight
fromthecontainer.
2. Lettheoil soakintothewood(typically
for 15 minutes),thenusea cleanclothto wipeofftheexcess.
3. Letthesurface
dry,usually
overnight.
4. Sandthesurface
with400-gritpaperandremove
particles.
sanding
5. Repeat
steps1 to 4 as manytimesas necessaryto achieve
thefinishyouwant.Depending
on
yielda semithewood,
fivecoatsof oil willtypically
glosssheen.
6. Letthesurface
cureforat leasta weekbefore
rubbingoutthefinish(page126).
lllllllllll llfllllltll]fillfillillilrittjllilltllllfitli]llilltllltilll
9HO7Tt?
?reventing reaat ive finisheo
from drying out,
Io expooea reactivelinieh
I o a e l i I I l ea i r a s V o o o i ble,pour iL introa collapeible VlaeLicconlainerlike
Nhoeeueedfor pholographicchemicale(far
ri7ht),Collapoe
the folds
of NheconLainer
to expel
a l l N h ea i r , I h e nc a Vi t
Li4htly (near riqht). lf you
are keeoinaa reactive finieh in
a 7 l a o oc o n L a i n e r d, r o p e n o u q h
small sLonesor marbleeinlo Nhe

liquidIo raiseillo lhe levelof the
brim,trhen
ocrewonlhe caV,Whichever
oloraqe
methodyou choooe,fix a labello NheconNainer
identifvina lh e co nlenNs.
87
PROTECTIVEFINISHES
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VARNISH
protective
Varnish
is a highlydurable
coatingforwood,moreresistant
to heatand
alcohol
damage
thanproducts
likeshellac
youarebrushing
andlacquer.
Whether
it
onor usingspray
equipment,
it isalsorelatively
easyto apply.lf youarebrushing,
tryto workwitha whitewallora window
in backof theworkpiece.
Thereflected
lightwillhelpyouseeif youareskipping
anareaor if youarepicking
updust.
Varnishes
wereoncemadewithnatural
resins
andoilslikelinseed
oil.These
materials
havesincebeensupplanted
bysynthetic
resins,
buttheoldsystem
of classifying
varnish
based
ontheorooortion
of oil-toresinstillprevails.
Accordingly,
varnishes
aredesignated
aseithershoft,medium
or
longoil.Long-oil
varnish
isslowdrying,
producing
a softandelastic
coating.
Short-oil
varnishis hard,andglossygoodforwithstanding
abrasion.
Mediumo i lv a r n i sohr o v i d easf i n i s ht h a tf a l l s
between
thetwoin glossanddurability.
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(BRUSHING)
APPLICATI()N
SEOUENCE
1. Dilute
thevarnish
andspread
a thincoatonthesurface
witha highquality
bristle
brush;
workfirstagainst
thegrain,
thenwithit.
2. Letthesurface
dry,typically
for 12 to 24 hours.
3. Sandthesurface
witha self-lubricating
240-or 280-griIsandpaper.
4. Repeat
1
steps to 3, usinga stronger
dilution
of varnish
andsanding
the
(280-to 320-grit).
witha f inergritsandpaper
surface
5. Brush
onan undiluted
coatof varnish.
6. Letthesurface
dryandsandwith400-gritsandpaper.
7. Repeat
steps5 and6 twoorthreetimes.
8. Letthesurface
curefor 24to72 hours
before
rubbing
outthefinish.
(SPRAYING)
APPLICATI(1N
SESUENCE
(page96)
1. Dilutethevarnish
to theproper
viscosity
2. Setthespraygunat lowpressure
to minimize
overspray
andpooling.
3. Spraya thincoatonthesurface.
4. Letthesurface
dry,thensandwith320-gritsandpaper.
5. Repeat
steps3 and4 twoorthreetimes.
6. Letthesurface
curefor 24 Io 72 hoursbefore
rubbine
outthefinish.
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POTYURETHANE
Polyurethane
is a transparent,
varnish-like
finishthatis
durable,
abrasion-resistant
andeasy
to apply.
Formulated
withsynthetic
resin,it driesmorequickly
thanvarnish,
making
it an idealchoice
whenyouhavelimited
timefor
polyurethane
thef inishing
work.Likevarnish,
canbe
brushed
orsprayed
onfurniture.
Polyurethanes
in a variety
areavailable
of lusters,
rangingfromflatto glossy.
Because
theydo notrelease
toxic
polyintotheatmosphere
solvents
whiledrying,
water-based
urethanes
aresaferfortheenvironment
thantheirsolventbased
counterparts.
lf youplanto spraya water-based
polyurethane,
besureyourspray
equipment
isscrupulously
product.
clean;
oilwillcontaminate
thewater-based
(BRUSHING)
APPLICATI()N
SEOUENCE
l. Applya thinandevencoatwitha paintbrushor pad
applicator,
always
brushing
withthegrain.
2. Letthesurface
dryforabout2 hours.
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3. Sandthesurface
witha 320-to 400-gritsandpaper.
4. Repeat
steps1 to 3, abrading
thesurface
witha finer
gritsandpaper.
5. Applya finalcoat,giving
thesurface
18 to 24 hours
to drybefore
rubbing
outthefinish.
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(SPRAY]NG)
APPTICATION
SEOUENCE
1. Spray
theworkpiece
asyouwouldforvarnish,
allowing
30 to 60 minutes
forthecoatto dry.
2. Sandthesurface
witha 320-to 400-gritsandpaper.
3. Applytwomorecoats,usingprogressively
finergrit
sandpaper
to abrade
thesurface
aftereachapplication.
4. Waitat least18 to 24 hoursbefore
rubbing
out
t h ef i n i s h .
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
SHELLAC
Shellac
is a natural
f inishproduced
from
thesecretions
of thelacinsect,
whichis
indigenous
to Indochina
andIndia.
The
bugsfeedontreesapandexpela resin
thatformsa protective
shellaround
their
bodies.
Eventually
thismaterial
builds
up
andisdeposited
ontreetwigsandbranches;it isthenharvested
andprocessed.
In itscommercial
forms,
shellac
is
available
bothasa liouidandin f lakes.
Liquid
shellac
is ready
foruse,butthe
f lakesmustbemixedf irstwithdenaturedalcohol.
In someregard,
however,
theflakesarethemoreconvenient
form
of theproduct
sinceyoucanprepare
only
asmuchof thesolution
asyouneedfor
project.
a particular
Bothtypesof shellacareavailable
in a variety
of shades,
ranging
fromdarkbrownandorange
to
blondandwhite.
Shellac
isalsoclassif
iedaccording
to its "poundcut,"whichrefers
to the
amount
of resininthesolvent.
A 1-poundcutshellac,
forinstance,
hasonepound
of resinforeachgallonof solvent.
grades,
Shellac
comesin different
depending
onwhere
andwhentheproductwasharvested.
Coarse
shellac
has
bitsof twigsandbugs;
thesuper-refined
pureliquid.
variety
isvirtually
provides
While
shellac
a durable
finishthatprotects
woodfromhumidity
andabrasion,
it doesnotstandupwell
to water,
alcohol
or heat.Likeothersolvent-release
finishes,
shellac
formsa
milkycloudona surface-called
blushing-if it issprayed
in highhumidity
or
withexcessive
moisture
in thesolvent.
Keepthesolvent
in a sealed
container.
(BRUSHING)
APPLICATION
SEOUENCE
1. Eitherbuyor prepare
a 1-or 2-pound-cut
withwhichto applytwo
shellac
(page53i.Brushthefinishonquickly
orthreewashcoatsto thesurface
andevenly
withasfewstrokes
aspossible,
working
withthegrainonly.
Avoidoverlapping
thebrushstrokes.
2. Letthesurface
dry,typically
forat least2 hours.
3. Sandthesurface
witha self-lubricating
360-or400-grit
sandpaper.
Remove
particles.
sanding
4. Brushonanother
coat,usinga 3-pound-cut
shellac,
thensand.
5. Applythreeor morecoatswitha 5-pound-cut
shellac,
sanding
before
each
application.
6. Allow24 to 72 hours
of drying
timebefore
rubbing
outthef inish.
(SPRAYII{G)
APPTICATION
SESUENCE
1. Prepare
a solution
withtheproper
consistency
forspraying
following
the
manufacturer's
instructions;
a 1-or 2-pound-cut
shellac
istypical.
lf yoyoumayhaveto diluteit.
areusingliquidshellac,
gunfora lightcoatto keepdripsandrunsto a minimum.
2. Adjust
thespray
3. Sprayontwoor threewashcoats.
4. Letthesurface
dryforabout30 minutes,
thensandit wiiha selfparticles.
lubricating
360-or 400-gritsandpaper.
Remove
sanding
5. Sprayonthreeorfouradditional
coatsusinga moreconcentrated
solution
andsanding
between
applications.
6. Letthefinishdryfor48 to 72 hoursbefore
rubbing
out.
A viscositycupis usedto testtheconsistency

of afinishfor spraying.Properdilution of
thefinishwill ensurethatit coatsa workpiece
uniformlyandwith a minimumof dripping.
89
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
LACOUER
Lacquer
hasbeenusedasa protective
finishforwoodfurniture
in theFarEast
years,
for
more
2000
than
butit didnot
1. Dilute
sealer
according
instructions
and
thesanding
in
West
become
oooular the
untilthe
applyit to theworkpiece.
Letdryandsandwith320-gritpaper.
17thCentury.
Thefirstlacquers
used
witha retarding
2. Dilutethe lacquer
solvent
asspecified
bythemanufacturer.
d
u
r
i
n
g
C
h
i
n
a
'
C
s
h
o
u
d
y
n
a
s
t
w
y
e
re
(Theretarder
quickly.)
keeps
fromhardening
thelacquer
too
derived
fromnaturalresins;
today's
withthefinishusinga soft,long-bristled
brush.Work
3. Coattheworkpiece
products
areformulated
synthetically.
al a 45 angleto thesurface
andbrushwiththegrain.Donotoverlap
Lacquer
canbe brushed
ontoa surbrushstrokes.
face,butbesureto usea brushwith
4. Letthelacquer
dry(typically
2 hours),
thensandwitha self-lubrrcating
bristles
setin rubber,
otherwise
thesolparticles.
360-to 400-gritsandpaper.
Remove
sanding
ventin thefinishmaycause
thetoolto
5. Repeat
steps2 to 4, usinga slightly
moreconcentrated
lacquer
solution.
shed.Therapiddrying
timeof lacquer
alsomakesit well-suited
forspraying.
6. Applyat leasttwoorthreeadditional
coats.Avoidbrushing
undiluted
youshouldaddat leasta smallamount
A lacquer
topcoat
hardens
to a clear
lacquer
onthesurface;
of reiarder
to thelacouer.
a n dd u r a b lfei n i s hl.t i s a g o o dc h o i c e
forfurniture
thatmaybeexposed
to
7. Letthefinishdryforat least24 hoursbefore
rubbing
it out.
wateror highheat.
(SPRAYING)
APPLICATI(lN
SEOUENCE
Unlikepolyurethanes
andvarnishes,
1. Dilute
thesanding
sealer
according
instructions
and
whichformseparate
layers
witheach
paper.
applyit to theworkpiece.
Letdryandsandwith32O-grit
n e wc o a t i n ge,a c ha p p l i c a t i o n
f lacquerdissolves
the previous
coatsto
2. Prepare
withthesolvent
a dilutedlacquer
solution
recommended
bythe
c r e a taes i n g l fei l m .F i n i s h eur s u a l l y
manufacturer
andsprayit ontothesurface.
Makesurethelacquer
hasthe
proper
forspraying;
usea viscosity
cup (page90.
consistency
tryto limitthemselves
to fourcoats
Butthesearegenerally
of lacquer.
in
3. Letthefinishdryforaboutan hour.
addition
to oneortwocoatsof sanding
4. Sandwitha self-lubricating
320-gritpaper.
s e a l eT
r .h et h i c k ear l a c q u ef irn i s hi s
(Thisstepis optional.)
5. Repeat
steps2 and3, sanding
thesurface
lightly.
builtup,thegreater
theriskof crack6. Spray
onat least3 morecoats,
diluting
eachapplication
withonlya small
i n g .H o w e v eorb, t a i n i nagm i r r o r - l i k e
amount
of retarder
andsanding
thesurface
witha 360-gritpaper.
lacouer
finishonsoecies
likerosewood
oroakmaysometimes
involve
asmany
7. Letthef inishdrycompletely
rubbing
before
out.
Finishers
in ancient
as10 aoolications.
Chinawereknown
to applymorethan
p i e c eo f f u r n i 3 0 0 c o a t so n a s i n g l e
ture.To prevent
cracking,
theywould
carefully
abrade
thesurface
aftereach
n e wa p p l i c a t i ohna dd r i e da n dt h e y
kepteachcoatasthinaspossible.
Lacquer
isavailable
in a range
of
sheens
fromf latto glossy.
Therearedifferenttintsto choose
fromaswell,and
a clearformulation
thatheightens
the
grainandcolorwithout
altering
thehue.
(BRUSHING)
APPTICATION
SEOUENCE
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FINISHINGBYHAND
r"fi- hereareessentially
threemethods
WIPING()RPADDING
ONA FINISH
3- of applyingprotective
finishesby
hand:wipingthe finishingmaterialon
with a clothor sponge,
paddingit on or
usinga brush.Themethodyouchoose
shoulddependon thetypeoffinishyou
areapplying.
Wiping,for example,
isthe
bestwayto applya dryingoil. Varnish,
polyuretl-rane,
shellacand lacquerare
betterappliedwith a brush.
Sornefinishingproducts,called
paddingfinishes,
aremadeto bepadded
onto a surface;
theyprovidesomething
approaching
the lusterof Frenchpolishedor laccuered
woodwith considerablylesseffort.However,
because
these
finishes
do not readilybuild up into a
thick coating,theystill requirea fair
amountof time and work to apply.As
a result,they are most often usedto
touchup damaged
finishes.
As finishes
for newlybuilt ftrrniture,theyarebest
suitedto ornamental
details,
turnings
or smalluieceslike the tableshown
below Toreducethe amountof time
Usinga clothor sponge
requiredto build up a paddingfinish, W e ta c l e a nc l o t ho r a s p o n g w
e i t ht h e f i n i s ha n dw i p ea t h i n c o a to f t h e l i q u i d
firstapplya sealer
coatofvarnish,
shel- ontothe surface(above).Makesureyou coverthe woodsurfaces
completely.
Let
lacor laccuer.
t h ef i n i s hs o a ki n t ot h ew o o df o r s e v e r aml i n u t e st ,h e nu s ea n o t h ecr l e a nc l o t ht o
w i p ea w a yt h e e x c e s sC. h e c kt h e m a n u f a c t u r e ri 'nss t r u c t i o nf so r d r y i n gt i m e s ,
t h e na p p l ys u b s e q u e n
co
t a t st h e s a m ew a y .
\\
,r
Workingwitha pad
U s ea p i e c eo f l i n e na n d s o m ew o o lt o
m a k ea f i n i s h i n p
g a da s y o uw o u l df o r
Frenchpolishing(page106). Poura liIt l e o f t h ef i n i s ho n t h e p a d .t h e nt a p i t
a g a i n stth e p a l mo f y o u rh a n dt o g e t
t h e p a du n i f o r m ldya m p .W i p et h e p a d
a l o n gt h e s u r f a c e
f o l l o w i ntgh e d i r e c t i o n
of the grain (left).Overlapyourstrokes
u n t i ly o u h a v ec o v e r e tdh e e n t i r ew o r k -
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^ ^-^^+h
n
ipep a
u 'n
, vd t h o c r r r 'f u: ueuo h
r r ô ^
) d )llluutll,
V,vuu
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g l o s ssyh e e nC. o n s utlht em a n u f a c t u r er'sinstructions

fordrying
times,
then
a p p l sy u b s e q u ecnota t sP. a d d i nf g
inishes
usually
require
several
applications.
91
PROTECTIVEFINISHES
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Brushing
ona finish
S e tt h ew o r k p i e cs e
l i g h t layb o v yeo u r
worksurface
soyoucancoverthewood
r i g h t o t h eb o t t o m
w i t h o ustl o p p i n g
f i n i s ho nt h et a b l e F
. o ra s h o p - m a d e
onwoodblocks
stand,propthecorners
withsmallnailsdriven
them.lf
through
youareusinga bristlebrush,
dipabout
o n e - t h i rodf t h eb r i s t l e
l e n g t hi n t h e
f i n i s ha n db r u s a
h l o n tgh eg r a i nl e a v i n g
behind
t h i n ,e v e nc o a t sR
. e s i st th e
to spread
thef inishthickly
temptation
o rt h el i q u i dw i l lr u n ,s a go r p o o lT. o
onthe
avoid
airbubbles
andlapmarks
surface,
useasfewbrushstrokes
as poss i b l eU
. s et w e e z etros r e m o vset r a y
it hasa
bristles
fromthef inishbefore
c h a n cteo d r y .A f o a mb r u s hw i l lc u t
downontheproblem
of lapmarks.
lllll]llllltlllJilljllllllllllllllllllllllllllllrlllilltlll llrlllllllll
1HO?TI?
Afoam brush
Youcan makeyour
o w nd i e V o e a b l e
foam brushesto
suit anyjob at,
hand.Ueeecrap
woodfor Nhehandle
and a Vieceof polyure'
Ihane foam for lhe aoolicalor.
foam at
Youcan buy polyurethane
f a b r i ca n d u p h o l o t e r oy h o p oC
. utthe
foamto Nheeizeyou need,lhentold if,overone
e n do f L h eh a n d l ea n d s l a o l ei Ni n o l a c e U
. ee
eciseorsto NrimLhefoam to the riahl orofile
for your workpiece.
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SETTINGUP YOURSPRAYEQTJIPMENT
ith a bit of practice,sprayingis
a highly efficient method of
applyingprofessional-looking
finishes.
(HVLP)
High-volume,low-pressure
systems
offerthebesttransferefficiency-that is, they land a high percentageofthe sprayon the workpieceand
wastelessasoverspray.
Sincethey use
low-pressure
air to createa mist of finish, HVLP systemsalso createless
"bounce
back"than conventional
systems.Bouncebackoftenoccurswhen
sprayingis donein an enclosedspace:
The oversprayreboundstowardthe
spraygun ind'settleson othersurfaces.
The keyto successful
sprayingis to
keepyour equipmentproperlyadjusted.With both HVLP and conventional
systemsthe adjustmentsaremadewith
theactualsolutionyouwill beusing,so
you will needto start the processby
preparinga batchof finish (page96).
t
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Spray gun and aup

Finiahflowa from cup to
qun whereair turno liquid into a miet, directin4 it at the workpiece;
cup unacrewafrom 7un
Air hose
Connectaepray qun to
turbine;atoree in turbine
whennot in uae
Turbine
Featureaa 7-amp motor
that poweraa fan diecharqin4[ow-preaeure air
throu4hthe air hoae;Lurbineia liqhtwei7htand
compact compared to
the compreaaoraused
on conventionalayatemo
ANATOMY
OFA CONVENTIONAL
SPRAY
SYSTEM
Air preaeure gauge
Tocompreeaor
z--'-
Air re1ulator
)eta volume
of air pumped
to gun
Hoee
Hiqh-preaaureair from
comPre69or,otroraqe
tank and air re4ulator
paeeeethrou4h hoee
to epray qun
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AI{ATOMY
OFAI{HVIPSPRAY
SYSTEM
Fluid cup and lid

aaaembly
Fluidcup holdafinish:
uouallyone quart or
leao;acrewe on to
epray qun in front of
trigqer. Compreaeedair
atreaming throu4h gun
createa a vacuumthat
eiphonofiniahfromcup
upto 1un.Lidaeaembly
clampeto cup
ffi
fl
ti
llt,l
IJ
5pray gun
Atomizea finieh into a opray; featuree fluid adjuetment acrewfor
oetting flow volume and apreader
adjuotment valvefor regulatinq
epray patrtern
ffi
93
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
ANHVLP
SYSTEM
ADJUSTING
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thespraypattern
1 Adjusting
it
I Fillthecuowithfinishandscrew
gun.
model
shown,
Forthe
to thespray
onat theturbine,
then
turnthesystem
eithera veradjusttheaircapto produce
pattern.
or circular
spray
tical,horizontal
vertical
setAsa ruleof thumb,usethe
tingto spraytopsandotherhorizontal
settingto
andthe horizontal
surfaces,
patvertical
surfaces.
Thecircular
spray
ternis widerthantheothertwoandcan
Testall
be usedon anytypeof surface.
turnthreepatterns
onscrapwoodbefore
to theworkpiece.
ingyourattention
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r) Adjusting
theflow
L to setthevolume
of finishto be
sprayed
fromthegun,turntheflow
knob.Holding
thegunnozadjustment
froma testsurface,
zleabout8 inches
pullthetrigger
The
to startthespray.
finishshouldcover
thesurface
evenly
without
dripping
or pooling.
lf thecoatingistoothin,increase
theflowbyturnif the
ingtheknobcounterclockwise;
decrease
thef low
f inishdripsor pools,
byturningthe knobin theopposite
Tochange
direction.
thesizeof thespray
pattern,
eitherincrease
ordecrease
the
distance
between
thegunandthesurface.Thismaythrowofftheflowadjustment,however.
Moving
theguncloser
mayrequire
a decrease
to thesurface
asyoudrawthe
in theflow;similarly,
gunawayyoumayhaveto increase
thef low.
94
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
ADIUSTING
A CONVENTIONAT
SPRAY
SYSTEM
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'l Setting
theairpressure
I Attach
theairIinefromthecompressor
to theairinleton
theregulator.
Theninstall
thehose,
connecting
oneendto the
a i ro u t l eot nt h er e g u l a t a
on
r dt h eo t h e tro t h ea i r i n l e to n
thegun.Toadjust
theairpressure
onthemodelshown,
take
thefluidcupoffthespraygunandturnonthecompressor,
allowing
thetankto pressurize.
Opentheoutletvalveonthe
pressure
gauge
to the levelspecified
bythe manufacturer
(above),
typically
about50 psi,
PROTECTIVEFINISHES
I
r) Adjusting
andflow
thespraypattern
L r , l t h ef l u i dc u pw i t hf i n i s ha n d
gun.Adjust
thespray
attachit to thespray
pattern
andtheflowof thefinishin the
s a m ew a yt h a ty o uw o u l df o ra n H V L P
(page94).Turnthefluidadjustsystem
to increase
mentscrewcounterclockwise
t h ef l o wa n dc l o c k w i st oe d e c r e a si te.
valveto set
adjustment
Usethespreader
thesizeof thespraypattern(right),turna largto produce
ingit counterclockwise
direction
er pattern
andin theopposite
to narrow
thescopeof thespray.
9 p readeradjueLmentvalve
Flutd
adjuetment
6CTEW
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A FINISH
PREPARING
SOLVENT
ofa finish
Adjusting
theconsistency
A f i n i s hm a yn e e dt o b et h i n n e tdo t h e
proper
it canbesprayed.
consistency
before
of a f inishTodetermine
theconsistency
i n gp r o d u cdt ,i pa v i s c o s ict yu pi n t ot h e
fluid,thenliftit outandtimehowlongit
takesforthecupto empty(left).lf the
specif
iedbythe
timeexceeds
theinterval
t
h
e
f
i
n
i
s
hw i t ht h e
m a n u f a c t u rdei lru, t e
Test
solution
as
appropriate
solvent. the
make
manytimesasnecessary,
but
sure
consistency.
thatyougetit to theproper
fillingthefluidcup,strain
thefinBefore
impuriishthrough
a paintfilterto remove
clogthespray
tiesthatmightotherwise
system
ormarthefinish.
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96
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WORKINGWITH SPRAYEQUIPMENT
andthatof your
D othyourownsafery
D neighbors
shouldbe a majorconcernassociated
with sprayinga finish.
Do not fail to put on the appropriate
gearfor thetask:safetygoggles,
rubber
gloves,a rubberapronand a dual-cartridgerespirator.
If you cansmellthe
finishingproductthroughyourrespirator, it is not doinga goodenoughjob.
Adjustthedeviceto fit properlyon your
face,changethefiltersor replacetherespirator.Referto the chapteron safety
(pnge12)formoreinformationon protectingyourself.
Whetheryouareusingwater-or solvent-based
products,you mustsetup
your sprayareaand exhaustthe fumes
yougenerate
in a mannerthatcomplies
The ideal distancebetweerta spray

gun nozzleand the stu'faceto be
sprayedis about B inches.Youcnrr
LLse
your outstretched
fingers to
quicklygnugethe distance.
withfederal,
stateandmunicipalrequirements.Pages
102and103showa typical
sprayroom with someof the elements
that may be necessary.
However,it is
essential
to checkyour localregulationsbeforeoutfittingyoursprayroom.
\Ahileyouareactuallyspraying,
hold
your arm straightout in front ofvour
body.Whenever
possible,
keepthe gun
asnearlyperpendicular
to thewoodsurfaceasyoucan.Asillustrated
in thediagrambelow,a surfaceis covered
with a
seriesof back-and-forth
strokesthat
overlapeachotherandtheedgesofthe
wood.Beforeactuallysprayingthe finishon a pieceofftrrniture,practicea little on somecardboard
or scraowood
untilyouhaverefinedyourtechnique.
S PR AY IA
NF
GI N IS H
Applying
a full andevencoat
T h ed i a g r a m
a t l e f ti l l u s t r a t eass p r a y i n g
s e q u e n cfeo r a p p l y i ncgl e a rf i n i s h e sT. h e
k e yi s t o s t a r ta t o n ec o r n e a
r n d m a k ea
s e r i eo
s f s t r a i g h ot ,v e r l a p p i npga s s etsh a t
w e n dt h e i rw a yt o t h e o p p o s i t e
corner.
T h r sf i r s ts e r i e s h o u l dr u n a c r o s st h e
g r a i no f t h e w o o d .T h e nm a k ea n o t h e r
seriesof passes,
thistimeworkingparallel
to the grain.As youwork,release
the triggereachtimeyoupassoff theedgeof the
w o o dT
. o e n s u r ea n e v e nc o a t ,h o l dt h e
g u n p e r p e n d i c u tl a
o rt h e s u r f a c ea n d
k e e pi t m o v i n ga t a l l t i m e s .
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A SPRAY
ROOM
DOTLY
Towheela workpiece
in andoutof
yoursprayroom,andto moveit
around
without
having
to sethands
o n t h ed r y i n g
w o o du, s et h es h o p builtdollyshown
at rightandbelow,
T h ed i m e n s i o innst h ei l l u s t r a t i o n
willyielda dollythatis large
enough
projects.
for mostfurniture
C u ta p i e c eo f % - i n c hp l y w o o d
forthebase,
thenscrew
thecorner
blocks
in place.
Screw
a caster
onto
eachcorner
block.
Tosetupthe
d o l l yf o rt h e p i e c et o b es p r a y e d ,
d r i v en a i l st h r o u g thh e c e n t e r s
of fourwoodblocks.
Position
the
blocks
onthebasewiththenailtios
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pointing
up sotheywillsupport
the
corners
of theworkpiece.
T o u s et h ed o l l ys, e tt h ep i e c e
onthenails.Toavoidtouching
the
workpiece
afterspraying
it, useyour
footto movethedolly.Youcanalso
attacha towropeto the baseand
useit to pullthedollyalong.
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
Spraying
theflatsurfaces
Tofinisha pieceof furniture,
startwiththeoutside
surfaces, edgeclosest
to youandworktoward
theopposite
edge(abofirstspraying
thetopandthenthesides.In preparation
for
ve,left).Forthe sides,setthe air capto the horizontal
yourworksurface,
thejob,setthe pieceslightly
prop- spraypattern
position
above
andworkwiththegunperpendicular
p i n gi t u p o nw o o db l o c kw
s i t hn a i l sd r i v e tnh r o u gthh e ma s to thesurface(above,
right).To ensureevencoverage,
hold
yourarmoutstraight
shownoverleaf.
Forthetop,besureto adjusttheaircapto
to maintain
a uniform
distance
between
(page94) andusea spray thegunandthewood.Always
the verticalspraypatternpositron
workin straight
lines;circular
patternthatworksfirstacross
patterns
thegrainandthenwith it.
spraying
willleave
theedges
witha thinner
coating
Holding
thegunat a slightangleto thesurface,
startat the
thanthecenter.
Spraying
theinside
surfaces
T oc o v etrh e i n s i d e
o f a p i e c eo f f u r n i t u r e ,s t a r tw i t ht h e l e a sct o n s p i c u o u s
s u r f a c eF.o rt h ec a b i n est h o w nf ,i r s t
s p r a yt h e u n d e r s i doef t h et o p ,b e g i n n i n ga t t h e b a c ka n dm o v i n tgo w a r d
t h e o p e n i n ag t t h e f r o n t .B ec a r e f u l
notto aimthesprayat yourself.
Spray
t h ec o r n e r st h, es i d e st.h e b a c ka n d
f i n a l l yt h e b o t t o m
o f t h ec a b i n e t ,
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
A TURNTABTE
FOR
SPRAYING
Tosprayallthesurfaces
of a pieceof
f u r n i t u rw
e i t h o uht a v i ntgo m o v e
yourequipment,
usetheshop-made
turntable
shownat right.Thedevice
consists
of twopieces
of plywood
w i t ha " L a z yS u s a nb" e a r i nfga s Thesetupallows
tenedin between.
at
a pieceof furniture
to berotated
anyspeed
asit is beingsprayed.
To maketheturntable,
cuttwo
piecesof 3/q-inch
plywood
slightly
larger
thanthewidthof thepiece
Setthe
of furniture
to befinished.
baseon a worksurfaceandcenter
thebearing
ontopof it. Onthebase,
marktheaccess
holeandthefour
screwholesin theinnerringof the
holethrough
bearing.
Boretheaccess
thebaseanddrillfourpilotholes,
thenaitachthe bearing
to the base
withscrews.
Tofastentheturntable
piece,
setthe baseontopof it with
between
the bearing
sandwiched
of wood.Aligning
the
thetwopieces
edgesof the pieces,
slowlyrotate
holein it
thebaseuntiltheaccess
linesupwithoneof thefourscrew
holesin theouterringof thebearing.
Screw
thebearing
to theturntable
pieceandrepeat
the process
at the
otherthreeholes.
T o u s et h et u r n t a b l e
cu
, tf o u r
s m a lw
l o o db l o c k as n dd r i v en a i l s
through
them.Settheworkpiece
on
t h et i p so f t h en a i l st,h e ns l o w l y
rotatetheturntable
withonehand
w h i l eo p e r a t i nt hges p r a g
y u nw i t h
the other(right,bottom).
Deartn4 acceaa hole
Turntableptece
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
surfaces
Spraying
contoured
surfaces,
Whenspraying,
treatcontoured
andlegs,asif they
suchaschairspindles
werefour-sided
objects.
Holding
thegun
at a slightangle
to thewood,
spray
each
s i d ei n t u r n .
THESPRAY
EOUIPMENT
CLEANING
Fluid nozzle
9uction
tube
aeaembly
\)+\t
\\
))
{
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gunandfluidcup
Cleaning
thespray
in good
To keepyoursprayequipment
w o r k i nogr d e rc, l e a nt h eg u na n df l u i d
cupaftereachuse.Forthe HVLPsystem
s h o w nu,n s c r etw
h ec u pf r o mt h eg u n
andpouranyf inishleftin thecupintoa
containe
f or rs t o r a goer d i s p o s aTl .h e n
poura smallamount
of theappropriate
intothecupandreattach
it to the
solvent
gun.Spray
thesolvent
intoanemptycan.
Repeat
asmanytimesasnecessary
until
thesolvent
comes
outclean.Wioethe
o u t s i doef t h ec u pa n dg u n ,t h e np u l l
thesuction
fromthegun.
tubeassembly
R e m o vt eh ea i rc a pb y u n s c r e w i int g
s
retaining
ringfromthegun;soakthetwo
pieces
briefly
in solvent.
Clean
thef luid
nozzle,
suction
tubeassembly
andaircap
witha softbrushdampened
withsolvent
(/efil.Reassemble
thegunandscrewthe
f l u i dc u ot o i t .
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ANATOMY OF A SPRAYROOM
Air filtere
KemovehazardouoparLiclee
from air: madeof non-combuattbtemaLertal.At leaat.
four 20" x 20" filLeraarrayed
edge-Lo-edge
requtredto provideadequaLepratecLian;
needto be cleanedand
replacedre4ularly
Tube-axialfan
ExhauaLaatr from room Lo the
outdoora;rnountedon exteriar
wall. Featurea explaoion-proof
motor and epark-reeieLantpropeller;availablefrom induatrial
ouppliero.Moveolarqe volumee
of air efficientlyuoinga mtnimal
a h^t
rn t
nf
pl prr
t
Automatic
aprinkler eystem
Water eprinklere
acttvated by emoke
or heaLfrom a ftre
Fire
ertinguiaher
thould be
mountedin
a convenienL
locationy
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-,-
l
=L--=
- r =- - - : t : = = :
L:::,-L:J
:
=-lr:.:
'ffi
\
| : =i:-
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A/
,,-Bia
-=..:
.,.-:--:l:
-a-l-fl
- i
1::1::'1F
..j=I
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Airflow meter
Aleo knownaa manometer.Vtaual
readout indtcateeair velocityLhrou7h
Lhe fan; whenvelocttydrope belowa
cerLatnlevel,ftltera ahouldbe replaced
Workpieae
thould be poeitioned
betweenepray 1un and
fan; no large objecLe
ahouldtmpedeairflow
betweenworkpiece
and fan
Light owitch
-proof,
MuoLbe exploaton
incapable
or
of produc'
inq eparkoLhat could
i4nil;evaporo
l!!l
Waete can
For temporary otora7e of combuetible
wa6te;madeof eteel
with tight-fitttn4 ltd
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PROTECTIVEFINISHES
Light fixture
Featureetncandeacentbulbin a
eealed4laee 7lobethat prevenLe
vaporein room from ignittn7
Wall
Can be made of concrete, aheet metal or
fire-rated drywallcovered wtth aheet metal
tr
tl-.:=..'
r_!_::___
.t-':':l
with
of thehazards
associated
T) ecause
D s p r a y i n fgi n i s h e st h, ep r a c t i c e
is
strictlycontrolledby law.Youcannot,
for example,
setup a furniturespraying
facilityin your garagewithout adequatelyguardingagainstfire and environmentalcontamination.
generates
Spraying
toxicand flammablevapors,solventsand particles,
makingthe air in the immediatearea
harmfulto breatheandpotentiallyexplosive.Toxicvaporsmustbe filteredout
beforetheair canbeexhausted;
andthe
sDravareamustbecontained
in theevent
products
oi fir.. Althoughwater-based
poselessof a fire hazardthan solventmakingthema saferalterbasedfinishes,
nativefor thefinisher,
bothtypesproduce
harmfulvaporswhensprayed.
If you want to sprayfurniture,you
havetwo ootions:Youcanusea commercial booth (pageB4) or you can
build a sprayroom.Thelatteralternative is a complexundertaking,however.Accordingto one of the regulatory
agencies,
the NationalFireProtection
(NFPA),a sprayroommust
Association
be fully enclosed
and featurea powerooeratedventilationsvstem.
SPRAY
ROOM
SAFETY
TIPS
Air regulator
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Theillustrationat leftshowssomeof
theelements
thatmightbe incorporated in a typicalsprayroom.A powerful
electricfan pulls air from the room
througha paneloffilters,whichremove
toxicsubstances
beforetheair isexhausted.Thewallsareconstructed
in sucha
wayasto preventthespreadoffire.The
electrical
systemis explosion-proof:
the
switches,
outletsand fixtureswillnot
createa sparkor producea voltagelevel that couldcausean exolosion.
Beioredesigning
a spiayroom,there
importantpreliminarysteps.
areseveral
First,consultyour local,stateand federalinspection
authorities
to makecertainyourdesigncomplieswith thefire,
electrical,
buildingand environmental
codesin effectin your community.For
example,
your sprayroom will haveto
meetNFPAandOccupational
Safetyand
HealthAdministration(OSHA)safety
guidelines.
Alsocheckwith your home
insurance
carrier.Youmaydiscover
that
operatinga sprayroomvoidsyourinsurancepolicy.Ifyou stillseefit to proceed,
consulta ventilationengineer
who can
giveyou expertguidanceon properly
situatinganddesigning
your system.
Air compreaeor
?reaat
trizea
air
fnr
. Consult
thef iredeoartment
aswell
aspertinent
local,
stateandfederal
authorities
before
choosing
a sitefor
yourairexhaust
outlet.
Depending
on
theareain whichyoulive,levels
of certaincontaminants
mayberestricted
by
specific
regulations.
In general,
locate
passersby,
an outletto avoidexposing
children
andpetsto theexhaust.
. Keepthewalls,floorandothersurfacesof yoursprayroomscrupulously
cleanto prevent
toxicorf lammable
substances
fromaccumu
lating.
. Always
gear
wearprotective
safety
whenspraying:
longpants,a longgoggles,
sleeved
shirt,safety
rubber
g l o v e sa,r u b b earp r o n
a n da d u a l carlrid,ao rpsniratnr
anra
eyetem.Located ouLaide
a
' nrr 'A-\ t r ' r A A m ' a i e h 'n -a e- - 'r t- r1t n t n q
throuqh wallconnectatt Lo
air requlaLorinaideraom
o C h e cw
k i t hy o u rl o c aal u t h o r i t i e s
aboutnoiseregulations;
theventilation . Replace
airf iltersregularly,
asindicatin yoursprayroommaycreate
meter.
system
ed bytheairflow
noiselevels
thataredeemed
excessive
o Dispose
forresidential
areas.
of usedairfiltersaccording
to localfireregulations.
. Donotwearclothing
gear
orsafety
products
spraying
outside
ofthespray . Storefinishing
usedduring
safely
room;storetheseitemsin a metallocker. (page136).
103
IDENTIFYINGAND AVOIDINGSPRAYPROBLEMS
oodspraying
technique
alonedoes
I
first-rateresults.
\J not guarantee
Otherfactors,includingthecharacteristicsof thesprayroom,theequipment
or
eventheweathercanalsoinfluencethe
qualityofthefinish.
A clean,dust-free
workareaisessential.Oneansweris to vacuumregularly. If yousprayfrequently,
you should
consider
settingasidepartofyourworkshopfor drying.To preventanydust
fromsettlingon a newlyfinishedworkpiece,provideyourselfwith several
makeshiftdustcovers.
Thesecanbe
nothingmorethanpiecesof plywood
sittingatoptall supports.
WhenyoufinFisheye
ishspraying
apieceof furniture,placeit
undera dustcoverto catchanydustthat
mightotherwise
fall on theworkpiece.
Humidityandwarmtemperatures
leaving
canwreakhavocon finishes,
with a milkylookor causing
lacshellac
querto dry poorly.Keepingtheroom
at the right temperature-roughly
72o-isnot quiteasdifficultascontrollinghumidity.It isbestto doyoursprayingon a dry day.
Evenwith optimumconditions
and
propertechnique,
will arisefrom
snags
timeto time.If thereis a problemwith
thesprayingsystem,
consultyourownproer'smanual.Mostmanufacturers
videdetailedtroubleshooting
guidesfor
their equipment.Thefollowingchart
detailssomeofthemostcommonsprayingproblems,
theircauses
andwaysto
preventthemfromoccurring.
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Run
DEFECT
DESCRIPTION
ANDCAUSE
Crazing
Finecrackscausedby solvent
or material
incompatibility.
Checking
Subtle,grid-like
cracksin the finishcausedby a rapid
shift in temperature.
lf the workpiece
is exposed
to
warmtemperatures
andthensuddenly
broughtintoa
coldroom,thef inishwill contract
at a differentrate
thanthewood.
Keepthe finishedworkpiece
in a temperaturecontrol
ledenvironment.
Blushing
Milky-white
cloudsin thefinishusually
occurring
whena finishis sprayed
on a humidday.
Sprayon drydays;keepthe temperature

constant.
A retarder
addedto the finishingmaterial
on humid
dayswill allowthefinishto drymoreslowlyandcounteractthe problem
of thetop layerdryingtooquickly.
Orangepeel
peel"texture,
A rough,"orange
the resultof holding
the sprayguntoo closeor too far fromthe surface,
usingtoo littlethinneror settingthewrongpressure
for the material
beingapplied.
Run
A largedripthat runsdowna vertical

surface
after
too muchfinishhasbeensprayed
in onespot.
Sag
Similarto a run,butcoversalargerarea.
0verspray
Materialthat driesbeforeit reaches

the workpiece
becauseit is beingsprayed
fromtoo far away.
Holdthegunat the properdistance

fromthework
surface-about8 inches-andadjustthe air pressure
forthefinishthatyouarespraying;
checkthe material
viscosity.
Movethegunevenlyandmorequickly.Reduce
the
material
feedadjustment
andensurethatthefinishis
thinnedto the properconsistency.
Holdthegunat the correctangleandkeepit moving
at an evenpace.Reduce
the material
feedadjustment
andcheckthatthefinishisthinned
to sprayconsistency.
Holdtheguncloserto thesurface
or reducethe
air pressure.
Fisheye
Small,circular,
occasionally
iridescent
shapes
causedbycontamination
fromsilicone
or waxfrom
bladesor tools.
Wipetheworkpiece
with naphtha
anddilutedammoniabeforefinishing.
Avoidtouching
the workpiece
if
youhavecomeintocontactwithsiliconeor wax.
Pinholes
Smallholescausedby spraying
at too higha velocity
or by spraying
too closeto the worksurface.
Adda moisture
retarder
to the finishingmaterial;
it
will slowdownthe dryingtime,allowing
thefinishto
flowoverthe holes.Reduce
the air pressure
andmake
sureyouareusingthe properspraying
technique.
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Pinholes
PREVENTION
Makesureyourthinnerandfinishingmaterials
are
compatible,
according
to the manufacturer's
soecif
ications.
105
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isatrmef, renchpolishing
I' honored
methodof finpadding
ishingthatinvolves
on shellac
with a cloth.The
resultis a lustrous.
almost
finishtypthree-dimensional
icalof fineantiquefurniture.
Thelookdoesnotcomeeasily, however.
Frenchpolishingtakestimeto masterand
a lot of elbowgrease.
Forcommercial
woodworking
shops,
thelaborandtime
requirements
generally
ruleoutthistype
of finishfor mostjobs;it is mucheasierto relyonlacquers
andmodernspray
equipment.
Still,for anamateur
woodworker,Frenchpolishingcan be a
rewarding
way-somepuristswould
arguetheverybestway-to finishaspecialproject.Althoughthefinishdoes
notstandupto water,alcoholor heat,it
isrelatively
easyto repaironcethepiece
is completed.
Thematerials
requiredfor French
polishingarewoolandlinenrags(pieces
of old sweaters
and shirtsor a well-
After thetopof thistablewas

Frenchpolished,thelegswere
givena similarlookby brushing on threecoatsof shellac
and thenwipingon afourth
coatwith a pad.
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washedbedsheet
will work fine),shellac
flakes,denaturedalcohol,mineraloil,
pumice and polishing compound.
((6s1"-1ls
Shellacis measuredby the
numberof poundsof shellacflakesdissolvedin eachgallonofalcohol.So,a
5-poundcut refersto 5 poundsofshelIacdissolvedin a gallonof alcohol.For
Frenchpolishing,we a 2Vz-to a 3lzpoundcut,althoughyou will, of course,
be dealingin quantitiessmallerthan
a gallon.
Theprocess
consists
ofseveralsteos
that aredoneto the followingscheduie:
On the first day,a coatof oil is applied
to thewood andthe excess
is wipedoff.
(|NTHESHELLAC
PADDING
Thentheporesarefilledwith pumice.
On the secondday,additionalcoats
of shellac
arepaddedon to buildup
thebodyof thefinish.Onthethirdday,
the oil film is removedwith a clean
cloth.Thisis thetimeto examine
the
surface
undera lightandbuildup the
bodywhereyou noticedull spotsor
open8ram.
Ifyou cannotaffordthetimerequired
for aFrench
polish,therearesubstitutes
calledpaddinglacquers
thatprovidea
similarlookwithoutthesamelevelof
effort.Padding
lacquers
arefrequently
usedto reDairoldfinishes,
but canalso
beappliedto newwood.
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a pad
1 Making
I Takea pieceof woolroughly
3 inches
square
andfoldthecorners
toward
the
center,
stretching
thewoolwitheach
fold.Thensqueeze
thewoolpadintoan
ovalandadda fewdroosof 2Vz-to 3t/zpound-cut
shellac.
Disperse
theshellac
throughout
thewoolbycrumpling
thepad
in yourhand,thenplaceit in themiddle
of a single
thickness
of coarse
linen.Add
several
dropsof alcoholIo the pad(right).
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106
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FINISHES
r') Preparing
thepad
polishing
L torFrench
Gather
thelinenaround
theballof wool
andtwistthelinenuntilthepadis held
firmlyin place(above,
ieff).Thentap
thepadagainst
thepalmof yourhand
to spread
outtheshellac
andalcohol
andforma flat surface(above,
right).
lf thepadistoowet,squeeze
outthe
excess
liquid.(When
notin use,thepad
should
bestored
moistin anairtight
container
to prevent
it fromstiffening.)
ff'ffi'"llr{l-lll'ffi
9HO7Tt?
Making a pumiaediapeneer
jome finieherou6ea oalt
shakerto oprinkle
on pumioe
for Frenchpoliehing(page1OB,
otep 3),Ycjucan also fashion
a moretraditionaldisoenser.
?oura smallamount,of pumice
into a pieceof linen.FolAthe
linenoverand lie the too wilh
a emallpieceof etrrinqio form
a ball.To useLhediopeneer,
ehakethe baq,oprinklinq
a
smallamount,of oumice
NhrouqhLhecloLhand onNo
the wood.
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FINISHES
PROTECTIVE,
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thepores
Q Filling
r-,, Applya sealer
coatof shellac
witha brushandallowit to
dry.(Thisprocedure
canbedonebefore
making
thepad.)
Then
pumice
ontheworkpiece
andshake
a smallamount
on
sprinkle
yourfingers
andthumb
thepad.Gripthepadtightlybetween
andworkthe pumiceintothewoodwithanyof thestrokes
most
shownin thediagram
below;
choose
theonethatproves
Keepthepadmoving
whileit is onthesurface
to
comfortable.
prevent
thealcohol
onthepadfromIeaving
a markonthewood
(above).
Payparticularattentionto the edgesso as notto leave
t h e mu n t o u c h e A
d .t f i r s t t, h e p u m i c ew i l ls o u n ds c r a t c haysy o u
r u b .T h em o r et h e p o r e sf i l l , t h e l e s ss c r a t c htyh e p u m i c ew i l l
s o u n dC
. o n t i n uteo p a d ,o c c a s i o n a sl lpy r i n k l i nogn f r e s hp u m i c e
s r ec o m p l e t efliyl l e da n d
a n da d d i n gm o r ea l c o h oul ,n t i lt h e p o r e a
hasa mattelook.Depending
thesurface
on the sizeof the workp i e c et,h i sp r o c e d u rmea yr e q u i r e
s r m o r eA
. f t e rf i l l 30 minuteo
ingthe pores,setthe workpiece
asidefor a day.
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PATTERNS
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Building
upthefilm
Prepare
a newpadanddaba dropof oil ontoit witha fin(above,
gerto provide
lubrication
for padding
thesurface
left).
you
Polish
withthesamestrokes usedto fillthe pores.
Use
lightpressure
witha wetpad.Asthe paddriesandthefriction
increases,
applymorepressure.
Recharge
thepadwithshellac
process
andalcohol,
asneeded.
Repeat
the
untilthelookof the
(above,
youandthepolishing
finishpleases
streaks
disappear
righil.SeIasidetheworkpiece
f or a day. Aftertheshellac
has
driedyouwillnotice
a milkyclouding
of thesurface,
asin the
upperhalfof theworkpiece
in the pholo(below).
Thisis the
oil usedto lubricate
thepad;having
risento thesurface
it
mustnowberemoved.
Moisten
a padwithalcohol
andrub
(orpolishwitha fine glazing
thesurface
withlongstrokes
compound)
untiltheoildisappears.
Thiswillreveal
thefinai
polishasshownin thelowerhalfof worklookof the French
piecein theohoto.
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DECORATT\C
FINSHES
ecorativepainting tracesits
historybacktoabout3000BC,
ingresults
areusually
obtainable
with
alittlepatience.
Theglaze
isbrushed,
whenartisans
h Egfpt,hrdiaandthe
ragged,
combed,
sponged,
or even
Orientleamed
to transform
ordinary
qpattered
overanopaque
base
coatIn
materials
andobiects
intoomamental
alldecorative
finishes
except
stencilones
ttroughmarblinggrainingstening,thecolorof thebasecoatisviscilingandotherpractices.
Alongwith
iblettroughtheglazewhich
imparu
moreftaditional
prizes
of thetrading
to thefinishadeep,subtleglow.It is
route,thetechniques
of decorative
generally
a goodideato mix more
paintingwerecarriedto theWest,
Stencilinghas
developed
a
crude
interior
glaze
youthinkyouwill need,
than
from
wheretheyhavecycled
in andoutof
decorating
technique
into a minor art form.
because
it is nextto impossible
to
fashion
dor,vn
throughthecenturies. Thetop rail of thisBostonrocker,stenciledwith
matchsucha finishexactly.
Thereal
Stenciling,
in particular,
foundfavor bronzepowder,is typicalof 19thCenturydesigns. challenge
painting
of decorative
amongtheearlycolonistsof North
is in the patterningof the glaze.
America.Colonialfurnituremakers
usedstencils
to embellish Stenciling
istheleastcomplex
technique-youcanjust stiptheirinexpensive
chairs;
householders
of modestmeans
sten- plethecoloronoverthebasecoatwith a brushor a sponge,
ciledtheirroughfloorsandplasterwallsto mimicthebeau- workingthrougha paperor acetate
template.Marbling
ty of thewallpaper
andrugstheycouldnotafford.Duringthe andgrainingaremoredifficultto execute,
because
both
Victorianera,artisans
bothin theUnitedStates
andabroad colorandpatternmustbefairlyrealisticfor thefinishto
tookinspiration
fromthefuts andCraftsMovement,
elevat- beattractive.
In marbling,thismeansyoumustfirst creing thefaux(or false)finishes-marbling
andgraining-to atea believable
cloudofbackground
colors,thenshoot
therealmofhighstyle.In thehandofanexpert,
apotofglaze it throughwith natural-looking
veins.Because
the patanda feathercouldtransform
blandtabletops
andsmallbox- ternsof heartwood
and sapwood
arelessfree-flowing
esinto richmarblelook-alikes;
a deftlywielded
grainingbrush thantheveinsin marble,grainingrequiresevenmore
couldgiveanitemof plainpinefurnituretheluxuriouslook skill thanit takesto disguise
woodasmarble.In both
of walnutburl.
cases,
finishingwill gomoresmoothlyif you continualWhilethetechniques
andmaterials
of stenciling
changed ly referto a sampleof thematerialyouaretryingto simlittle overtime,themethodology
of marblingandgraining ulate. With any decorativefinish, alwaystest the
grewevermorerefined.Close-mouthed
professionals
kept appearance
ofthe glazeoverthebasecoatbeforebegintheir tradesecrets
closeto thevest,evencarryingthepar- ning work;with marblingand graining,practicepatticularsof theirartistrywiththemto thegrave.Novices
may terningon largepiecesofillustrationboarduntil youare
notbeableto duplicate
thefinishes
of themasters,
butpleas- confidentof yourtechnique.
In contrastto theviolentnaturalforcesthat createrealmarble,thisbirdfeatherrequiresa defttouchto transformtinted

oil paint and a ghzecoatinginto a marblefinish on wood.
lll
TOOLSAND ACCESSORIES
Grainingcombs
For deeigningwoodgrain
patternz on a workpiece;feature metal or rubber teeth
Marine eponge
For removingexcego
4lazeand eoftening
7rain and marbled
patterna; featurea
a naturally rou4h
aurface
9wivel
knife
A precieion
artiet'a knife
with a awivelingtip for
cuttinq contoura of atencila
1tenciling bruoh
For applyrnqpaint or
bronzepowderethrou1h
atencil openin7o;haa atiff
ho4'o-hair briatlee that
helpprevent paint from
bleedinqunder atencil
Bloak cuahion grainer

For creatinq wood7rain
patterng on a workpiece.
Fulledand rocked alonq
the eurface of a qlazed
workpieceat any anqle;
featurea a rubber face
Badger softener
A epecialty bruah
uaed for aoftening
qrain and marbledpat'
terns, and amoothinqout
d ecorative finiahea;made
of fine badger hair
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Camel'shair aword
atriper bruah
Afine, aoft bruahuaed
to apply individualveina
or qrain linea in freehand
graininqand marblinq
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Hog'a-hair
briatle bruah
For applyinqthe
bage coat and
removingetainin4
qlaze whenproducinq
woodqrain patterna; ite
flaqqed briotle tipa promote
maxtmumcoveraae
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qlaze in marbled
finiahea;workabeat when
eli7htly woraefor wear
Orainin7 rollera
For producing wood
qrain patterne on a
workpiece;pulledacroee
a qlazed surface
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STENCILING
u..rsincethe
F
l8yptiansin ancient
IJ tlmesbegandecoratrng
mummy
with stencils,
patcases
suchdecorative
ternshavebeena ubiquitous
featureof
furnituredesign.
Theyhaveappeared
oneverything
fromshields
to chairsand
toychests.
Assimoleasa fine-veined
leafor as
complexis a multicolored,
repeating
motifof fruitsandflowers,
a stencilcan
beappliedto a pieceof furnitureeither
before
or afterthelastcoatof finish.The
stencilis typicallyreduced
or enlarged
from a masterDatternandcut from
Designsaregenerallystenciled
with eitherpaint (above,left)or bronzepowders
(above,right). Theapplicationtechniques
aredffirent, asaretherangeof fficx.
Bronzepowders,
look.
for example,cancreatea burnished,three-dimensional
MAKING
THESTENCIT
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eitherstencilboardor acetate.
Because
acetate
canbecleaned
with mineralspirits and reused,it is moredurablethan
paper.The translucentmaterialcanbe
boughtat mostdraftingsupplystores.
Stencildesignscanbe sprayedon or
appliedwith a specialshort-bristledstencilingbrush.WhileearlyAmerican
settlers stenciledwith milk paint, any
thick-bodiedpaint,suchasquick-dryingjapancolorsor anoil-based
or acrylic
paint,will fit the bill equallywell.Bronze
powderscanbe combinedin the same
stencilto yield a varietyof metalliccolors within a singledesign,creatingthe
illusionof light and shadow-a techniquemadefamousby the Hitchcock
chairsof themid-1800s.
/"J
qtrEff
S' ,
4'--:/-,
Z----//-7
(!tt
'--''
v/
113
a pattern
1 Enlarging
I Onewayto produce
a larger
version
of a pattern
forstenciling
is to usea photocopier
withanenlargement
feature;
another
wayis to transfer
theshapeusing
a grid.Drawa gridof squares
overthepattern,usinga ruledstraightedge
to make
allthesquares
exactly
thesamesize.(The
youmakethesquares,
smaller
theeasier
it
willbeto reproduce
thepattern.)
Then,on a
blanksheetof graphpaperoracetate,
make
grid,increasing
a larger
thesizeof the
youwishto
squares
bythesameamount
enlarge
thepattern.
Forexample,
if you
needa stencildesign
thatistwicethesize
of the pattern,makethesecond
setof
squares
twiceaslargeasthefirst.Toproducethestencil
design,
drawineachsquare
gridthepartof thepattern
of theenlarged
thatis in thecorresponding
square
of the
grid(left).Tomakea stencil
smaller
smallpattern,
erthantheoriginal
follow
thesame
gridsmaller
steps,butmakethesecond
thanthefirstone.
DECORATIVEFINISHES
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r) Cutting
outthepattern
yourdesignto a piece
L f ransfer
Withthe
of stencilboardoracetate.
paper;
s t e n c ibl o a r du, s ec a r b o n
foranacetate
stencil,
simplyplace
thesheetoveryourdesign
andtrace
r e s i gwn i l li n c l u d e
i t i n i n k .l f y o u d
morethanonecolor,makea separatestencilfor eachcolor.Usea
swivelknifeto cut outthe pattern,
pullingtheknifetoward
youbbove).
Keepyourfreehandoutof the
blade's
oath.
rlljllll
lllriltulrfiljllllilltllltllltflllllllllllllllflrllllJlllllll1
?HO?TI?
Trojecting a ?attern
AnotherwayNoreproduce
a stencilin a differenLeizeinvolvee
a
wal| First Iake a phoboqraVh
of lhe
Nhe
deoiqn
onXo
Vrojeclinq
patlern ueingelidetilm.Ioavoiddistnrtion,ehoot,fromdirecNly
in
uoea slideprojecfronLof Nhepat1ern.)nce Nhefilm is develoVed
Ior Nodieplaylhe patlern on a wall.The
t--dislance betweenLhe projeclorand Lhe
1 .r ,
Aeterminethe sizeof the imaqe,
imaqe
wallwilldef,ermine
||I .
d?.S:b
"S4"
ToNransferLhepattern,projectthe
' g$g^-.@"
imageonto a pibceof etencil board
i o*{&3/6
or aceXateand lrace overit,.
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DECORATIVEFINISHES
PAINTSTENCILING
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llltfitlll11
lllliltltllllllllltfilttlllilltIIJtlllllllfllJ
ilIjilIlrlll
1HO?TI?
A curefor bleeding
To prevenN
wet,paint,from bleedingundera slencil,
Nemporarily
bondIhe etencilIo your workViece.
7pray Nheundereideof NheeNencil
wilh
placeiN
an aeroeoladheeive,Nhen
in Voeilionon Nhework'
piece,preooinqout
any air pocketo.
A p p l yt h e V a i n i
a5 soona5 ?o5sibleso thal you
can peeloff the
stencil beforeil
adhereepermanenNly,
'l Taping
downthestencil
precisely,
I Tohelpalignthestencil
drawa reference
linecentered
along
eachsideof boththeworkpiece
and
t h es t e n c iTl .h e ns e c u r teh es t e n c i l
to theworkpiece
withmasking
tape,
making
surethereference
linesmatch
(abovd.
up properly
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Applying
thepaint
T r a n s f etrh e s t e n c idl e s i g nt o y o u rw o r k p i e cbey s p r a y i n g
or brushing
on paint.lf youarespraying,
maskthesurfaces
thestencil
withpaper
andsettheworkpiece
edge
surrounding
paintcanabout6 to
Holding
anaerosol
upona worksurface.
10 inches
fromtheworkpiece,
directthespray
at thestencil
woodiscoated
lightly
withpaintbbove,lefil.
untiltheexposed
T o p r e v e npta i n ft r o mb l e e d i nugn d etrh es t e n c i lk,e e pt h e
n o z z l lee v ew
l i t ht h es t e n c i l a nsdp r aiyn a s t r a i g h
l i tn eT. o
u s ea s t e n c i l i n g
b r u s h s, e tt h e w o r k p i e cfel a t o n a w o r ks u r f a c ea n dd i po n l yt h et i p so f t h e b r i s t l eisn t h e p a r n tT. h i sw i l l
r e s u l it n a l i g h tc o a ta n dt h u sr e d u c eb l e e d i n gH. o l d i n g
the
b r u s hp e r p e n d i c u lt ao rt h e s u r f a c ej a
, b t h e b r i s t l e su p a n d
downon the stenciluntil the woodis covered(above,
right),
r e l o a d i ntgh e b r u s ha s n e c e s s a rlyf .y o ua r eu s i n gm o r et h a n
onestencilto applyseveral
colors,let eachcoatdry before
s p r a y i nogr b r u s h i nogn t h e n e x t .
Removing
thestencil
T o a v o i da n y b l e e d i n gr,e m o v et h e
s t e n cw
i l h i l et h ep a i n itsw e t .P e etlh e
m a s k i ntga p ef r o mt w oa d j o i n i ncgo r ners,thengentlyliftthestencil
offthe
pulling
workpiece,
upthetwosides
even
ly (left).Avoidsliding
thestencilalong
thesurface
or youmaysmearsomeof
paint.Oncetheparntisdry,remove
any
adhesive
residue
withnaphtha
before
topcoating
theworkpiece.
/.aI,.
SLs
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116
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DECORATIVEFINISHES
POWDER
STENCILING
BRONZE
thestencil
1 Positioning
I Drawthestencil
onacetate
and
Place
thebronze
cutoutthepattern.
powder
in a bowlorona palette
and
by
setit aside.Prepare
theworkpiece
varapplying
a thincoatof slow-drying
n i s ht o t h es u r f a cyeo uw i l lb es t e n c i l i n gL
. e tt h ev a r n i sdhr yu n t i il t i s
firmbutstilltacky.Place
theacetate
i n p o s i t i oonnt h ew o r k p i egc leo s s y
s i d ed o w ns ot h a ti t a d h e r et so t h e
surface(left).
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Rubbing
onthepowdel
W i t ht h ev a r n i ssht i l lt a c k yw, r a pa
p i e c eo f c h a m o iosr a c l e a ns, o f tc l o t h
yourindex
finger
anddipit intothe
around
p
o
w
d
e
r
.
R
u
b
t
h
e p o w d eorn t o
bronze
in the
thesurface
exposed
bythecutouts
you
wish
to
highstencil.
Rubtheareas
r
u
b
m
o
r
e
l
i
g
htly
l i g h rt e l a t i v ehl ya r d ;
you
Applyaddion areas wantto shade.
tionalpowder
asnecessary
untilthesurfaceis colored
to yoursatisfaction,
but
q
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k
l
y
work
t o k e e pt h ev a r n i sfhr o m
y o ua r ef i n d r y i n gc o m p l e t ebl ye f o r e
peel
ished.
Then
offthestencil.
To highquality,
lightthethree-dimensional
apply
layers
separated
several
of bronzepowder,
youarefinWhen
bythinlayers
ofvarnish.
protect
with
ished
stenciling,
thesurface
twofinalcoatsof varnish
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GRAINING
in whichthe
f rainingis a process
\f appearance
of onetypeof woodis
re-created
puronanotherfor decorative
poses.
Onspecies
withmutedgrain,the
technique
canbeusedto imitatethetextureandwarmthof more
exoticspecies.
Butgraining canalsocamouflage
visualdefects-likeawood
patchusedto repairadamagedsurface.
Wth practice,
exoerimentation
andcareyou
frrlstudyof thespecies
wishto emulate,you can
producea diverse
rangeof
styles,
fromtheclosegrain
of beechto thefree-flowingpatternof pine.
Grainingwasespecially popularin the 1800s
amongwestward-moving
Americanpioneers.
Withhardwood
in
scarce
supply,woodworkers
harvested
softwoods
andgrainedthemto resem-
blemorehighlyfiguredwoofulikecher- A colorglazeis thenappliedandthe

ry,oakandmahogany.
grainpatternis tracedinto theglaze
Graininginvolves
several
First, with specialgrainingtoolssuchas
stages.
the surfaceis paintedwith a flat base combs,
raymarkers,
mottlersandrollers.
coatandthe baseis allowedto dry. Finally,a protective
topcoatis added.
Grainingglazescan
beprepared
in theshop,
butcommercial,
ready-touseglazingstainsarejust
aseffective;
theycanbe
tintedwith japancolors
to producevirtuallyany
youwish.Theglazes
shade
you makeyourselfwill
usuallyconsist
of onepart
boiledlinseed
oil andtwo
partsvarnish;
theyaretintedwithartists'colors.
You
needaheavy-bodied
consistency,
but not soheavy
thatthedryingtimeisslow
A deftlywieldedartist'sbrushanda grain- or thegrainpatterns
will tendto flow
ingrollercombinedto etchavivid pattem backtogether.
Youcanbuyspecial
addiofheartgrainonapieceofparticleboard. tivesto speed
up thedryingtime.
GRAINING
A SURFACE
BYHAND
andapplying
theglaze
1 Preparing
I Tinta container
offlatoil-based
oaint
withartists'colorssothatit matches
the
hueof thewoodyouwishto imitate.
Spread
a layerof the paintonyourworkpieceasa basecoatandallowit to dry.
glazeonthepaintThenapplya graining
edsurface
witha foambrushor padapplicator.To beginthe process
of creating
a
grainpatternon thewood,wrapa soft
clothtightlyaroundthreeof yourfingers,
thendrawtheclothalongthesurface
severaltimes,drawing
thin,wavy,parallel
lines (right).
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DECORATIVEFINISHES
e
I
r) Refining
thegrainlines
L fo makethegrainlinesfromstep
I a littlemoredelicate,
dipanartist's
hairsword
brush
ora camel's
striper
in
theglaze,
anddrawit slowly
along
the
surface
withintheoriginal
lines(left).
Forbestresults,
holdthebrushat an
angleto thesurface.
lf youwishto simulatea knotonyourworkpiece,
rubin
linesfora roughovalordiamond
shape
a r o u nw
d h e r yeo uw i l lb ea d d i ntgh e
knot.Experiment
withthebrushuntil
you
hasthegrainpattern
thesurface
areseeking.
ArLieL'ebrueh
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Drawing
in knots
Q
r.,l Wrapa clotharound
onef ingerand
dipthefingertip
in theglaze.
Thengently
touchthesurface
to makeIheknol(righil.
Tosmooth
outthe oatterns
andblend
themintothebackground,
brush
thesurfacebackandforthwitha soft,drybrush
following
thedirection
ofthegrain.
A badger softener
is idealforthisstageof the
process.
0ncethesurface
is dry,applya
topcoat,
thenpolishit withrottenstone
andpastewax.
r19
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DECORATIVEFINISHES
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W()RKING
WITHGRAINING
TOOTS
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othergrainpatterns
1 Simulating
I Spread
a basecoatof tintedpaintandthena glazing
stain
following
the procedures
described
on page118.Tosimulate
grainmarkings
the random
characteristic
of oak,runa ray
marker
alongthesurface
lines,parallel
of theboardin straight
left).Toreproduce
to theedges(above,
thebroadgrainpattern
graining
typicalof mahogany,
drawa metalor rubber
comb
alongthesurface,
creating
a series
of slightly
wavybutparallel lines(above,
right).
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in thegrain
L Wnletheglazeisstillwet,gently
draw
a soft,drypaintbrush,suchasa badger
softener,
backandforthoverthesurface,
following
the directionof lhe grain(right).
Thiswillfanoutthegrainlinesandgive
thesurface
a moreuniform
andnatural
appearance.
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DECORATIVEFINISHES
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A BLOCK
CUSHION
GRAINER
jigandsilicone
Witha molding
rubber,
youcanmakea blockcushion
grainer
Forthejig,cuta cirto suityourneeds.
woodthat
cularblockof 1%-inchthick
willfit onthesandrng
diskofyourelectricdrill.Screw
theblockto thedisk,then
install
thediskin thedrillchuck.
Attach
a commercial
drillstandto a %-inchplywoodbase,
theninstall
thedrill.Clamp
thebaseto a worksurface
andsecure
a
shortscrapof 2-by-4justin frontof the
blockto serveasa toolrest.Cutnotches
in the2-by-4forclamps.
Toshape
thewoodblock,lockthedrill
in the0n position
andholdthetip of a
smallskewchiselagainst
therotating
groove
surface,
etching
a %-inch-deep
intothewood.Restthechiselblade
on
Ihe2-by-4to keepit steady.
Cutonthe
left-hand
sideof theblockto prevent
the
chiselfrombeingkickedup.Carve
a
grooves
in theblock
series
of concentric
(above,right),
varying
theirwidthsandthe
intervals
between
themto suitthegrain
pattern
youwishto desrgn.
Closely
spaced
grooves
will produce
a hardwood
look;
grooves
thatarespread
fartherapartare
betterforsimulating
softwoods.
Tomaketheactualgrainer,
remove
the
blockfromthesanding
diskandcoatits
grooved
facewithpastewax.Thenapply
layerof silicone
a 7a-inch-thick
rubber
overthewax.Lettherubber
curefor
about24hours,
thenpeelit offtheblock
(below,
righil.frimtherubberimprint
pieceof 2-by-2
andglueit to a rounded
witha plywood
handle.
Remove
anyresidwaxwithnaphtha.
ualpaste
Thetoolis usedthesamewayastradi(page120),butremember
tionalgrainers
to pushit along
thesurface
witha forward
rockrng
motion.
Drill/
t21
Jig baoe
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MARBLING
considerf n thepast,whenstructural
I ationsruledout theuseof realmarble,fauxmarbre,or falsemarble,finishes
werecommonlyusedasa substitute
on
everything
fiom wallsandfloorsto mantelsandfurniture.
Realmarbleis a bv-productof intense
naturalforcesthatoccurwhenlimestone
is meltedundergreatheatandpressure.
Mineralsrunningthroughthe molten
rock cool and crystallize.

The resultis
layerupon layerof veinscoloredwhite,
blackand otherhues,whichtogether
form a latticethat is somehowboth
opaqueandtranslucent.
Of themanytechniques
for replicating theappearance
oimarbleon wood,
mostinvolveworkingwith two or three
coloredpaintson a wet,glazedsurface.
Toolsfor manipulating
thepaintsrange
from ragsto newspapers

to sponges,
Fine
brushesor a featherarethebestimolementsfor simulating
thedepthandpatternofthe veins.
As a rule of thumb,the colorson a
marbledsurfaceshouldbe limitedto a
maximumof three,includingthe base
color.Thechoiceof colorsisbestrestricted to the naturalcolorsfound in marble.The constituentoartsof marble
actuallyflow during the formationof
the stone,and it is vital to capturethis
appearance
offluidity.Toproducea realisticdesign,work with goodreference
photographs
or keepa sampleof thereal
thingon hand.
Whiteandgreenntarbledwood
simulates
theJluidappearance
and mistydepthof realmarble.
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MARBLING
WITHA BRUSH
Applying
theglaze
1
I Forthebasecoatof a whitemarble
f inish,brusha coatof white,semigloss
t n y o u rw o r k p i e ca esa
o i l - b a s epda i n o
b a s ec o a ta n da l l o wi t t o d r y .T oe l i m i nateanybrushmarks,
lightly
sandthe
surface
witha 320-grit
Tint
sandpaper.
a container
of whiteglazewitha small
amount
of oneof theartists'
colors
that
y o uw i l lb eu s i n gi n t h ef i n i s hT. h e nu s e
pieceof newspaper
a clothora creased
to
coatthepainted
surface
wilhglaze(righil.
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DE,CORATIVE
FINISHES
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r) Sketching
in themarble
veins
L Wntlethesurface
is stillwet.squeeze
someof theartists'
colorusedin stepI
o n t oa p a l e t t eD. i pa na r t i s t s ' b r u isnht o
thecolorandusewavystrokes
to paint
imitatjon-marble
veinsin theglaze(above).
Theveins
should
aooear
to wander
randomlyaboutthesurface,
forking
rightandleft.
R o l l i ntgh eb r u s hb e t w e eyno u fr i n g e r s
whileyoupaintcanalsoproduce
a realisyouhavepainted
tic effect.
Once
in allthe
glazeandsoften
veins,remove
theexcess
t h ev e i n b
s yp u l l i nags o f tc l o t hd i a g o n a l l y
(ighil.Repealthe
process
across
thesurface
to paintin moremarble
veinsin a second
color.lf youwishto layer
onadditional
veins,
reverse
theorderof thecolors,
or mixthem
together
to provide
contrast
anddepthto
thesurface.
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DECORATIVEFINISHES
r
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theoattern
n<. Smoothins
r - , 1 W h i l et h e s u r f a c ei s s t i l lw e t ,g e n t l y
d r a wa s o f t ,d r y p a i n tb r u s h s, u c ha s a
badgersoftener,backand forthacross
the veins(right).Conlinueuntil the surf a c el o o k sm i s t ya n dt r a n s l u c e nO
t .n c e
t h e s u r f a c ei s d r y ,l e t i t s i t f o r a b o u I 2 4
h o u r sa n da p p l ya c o a to f s e m i g l o sosr
e r n i s hP. o l i s h
va
h i g h - g l o spso l y u r e t h a n
t h e w o r k p i e cw
e i t h a s o f tc l o t h .
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FEATHERING
A MARBLED
SURFACE
broad
veins
1l Sketchins
-
I F o ra g r e e nm a r b l ef i n i s h s. p r e a d
a b a s ec o a to f g r e e np a i n ta n d t h e na
g l a z et i n t e da l i g h t ecr o l o ro n y o u rw o r k p i e c ef o l l o w i n gt h e p r o c e d u roen p a g e
122
t\'in: hird fp:thpr inin thp olazp

i r i r v
! i ' v
b i v 4 v
a n dd r a wi t d i a g o n a l al yc r o s tsh e s u r f a c e
t o p r o d u c eb r o a dm a r b l e - l i kvee i n s( / e f f ) .
S m o o t ha n d s o f t e nt h e p a t t e r nb y b r u s h i n gt h e v e i n sl i g h t l yw i t ha m a r i n es p o n g e ,
a b a d g e sr o f t e n eor r a s o f tc l o t h .W h i l e
t h e s u r f a c ei s s t i l l w e t , p r e p a r ea n o t h e r
b a t c ho f g l a z ea n dt i n t i t l i g h t e rt h a nt h e
f i r s tc o a t i n gA. p p l ya n df e a t h e trh i s g l a z e
t h e s a m ew a yy o ud i d t h e f i r s to n e ,b u t
t h i st i m e ,m a k et h e v e i n sc r o s so v e rt h e
o n e sa l r e a d iyn p l a c e .
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DECORATIVEFINISHES
r) opening
upthepattern
I lo produce
a mottled
effectonthe
paint
surface,
dipa clean,
stiff-bristled
brushintoa container
of mineral
spirits.
Holding
thebrusha fewinches
above
the
workpiece,
runa gloved
f ingeralong
the
bristles,
moistening
theveinswitha f ine
spray(right).
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thepattern
Q Completing
r-,, Dioa birdfeather
in whiteartists'
colorandallowtheexcess
to driooff
to prevent
anyblobbing.
Thenusethe
feather
tipto sketch
in a series
of thin
whiteveinswithinthebroadveins
already
onthesurface.
Whenallthe
fineveinshavebeenpainted,
smooth,
v a r n i sahn dp o l i s thh es u r f a caes
described
in step3 on pageI24.
t25
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FINSHNGTOTICHES
Ithoughwoodworking
catThedifference
between
arubbed
alogsaboundwithawidevarisatinfinishandonethatisbuffedto
ety of rubbingcompounds
and
a glossdepends
on thegrit of the
fancyelectric
polishers,
puristsstill
abrasive
youchoose.
Rubbingcomrelyonthecenturies-old
process
of
pounds,
for
example,
containpar"rubbing
out" a finishwith traditiclesthat leaveminutescratches
tionalabrasives.
Rubbingafinishto
on a surface.
Coarser-grit
coma satinsheenwith pumice,a powpoundsproducea fairlylargepatdered form of volcanicrock,
ternthatmakes
thesurface
appear
impartsa softlook suggestive
of
dull,or satin.Finer-gritcompounds
brushed
brassandleaves
thewood Thevarnishtopcoaton this lgth-Centuryfarmleavemarksthatareharderto see,
smoothand silky to the touch.
house-style
tablewasrubbedout with extra
creatinga glossierlook.Virtually
Takingtheprocess
yetanotherstep
paste
steel
wool
and
buffed
with
wax.
anything
thatabrades
canbeused
fine
furtherwith an evenfinerpowder
for rubbingout.In additionto rubcalledrottenstone
removes
theabrasions
caused
bythepumice bingcompounds,
finishers
relyon sandpaper,
steelwooland
to addanextrameasure
of shine-evento glossytopcoatsof
nylonabrasive
pads.In eachcase,
thesizeofthe scratchpatvarnishor lacquer.
terndictatesthelevelof sheen.
Thenotionof rubbingouta meticulously
appliedtopcoat
If rubbingout hasan inherentproblem,it is the risk of
with abrasive
compounds
mayhave
anincongruous
ringto it.
rubbingthroughthefinish.Sincetheprocess
involves
grindBut the final coatof finishon a pieceof furnitureseldom ingsmallamountsof thethinlylayered
topcoat,thereisalways
leaves
thesurfaceclearandperfectlysmooth.It is not unusu- thepossibilityof cuttingright throughthe coatingto the
al for thetopcoatto bespeckled
with randomdustanddirt
wood.Youneedto beespecially
carefulneartheedges.
With
particles
thatsettleon thefinishbeforeit dries.In addition, somevarnishes,
rubbing
through
even
the
very
top
layer
will
"signature"
some
of thetool usedto applythefinishmaybe create
a blemish.
Theresulting
outlineof thecutarea,called
visible.Evenwhenbrushes
areadroitlyhandled,theyoften a "halo"or "witnesslinel' is a faintbut visiblereminderof
leavebehindfaintbristlemarks,anda sprayed
surface
may justhowthin eachlayerof a finishreallyis.
showatexturesimilarto thatof anorange
peel.Thefirststep
Whilemostof therubbingout process
is a removalof
in therubbingprocess
therefore
isto levelthesurface
asper- material,thelaststepputsa tiny amountback.Waxinga
fectlyaspossible.
Thesmoother
it is,thebetterthelookand surfaceaddsan ultra-thinlayerof protectionatopthe
feelof thetopcoat.Oncethesurface
islevel,it canbebuffed rubbedtopcoat,impartinga little moresheenanddurato almostanysheen.
bility to thefinish.
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Fittedwith a lamb'swoolbuffingbonnet,a random-orbit

sanderserves
asan electricpolisher,rubbingout thefinish
and thenbuffingthetopcoatto a high-gloss
sheen.
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TOOLSAND ACCE,SSORIE,S
Lubriaant
Keepepumtcefrom removinq fintehwhenaLeelwoolor
Kubbingoil
)peeda up rubbingouL proceee;uoed with eandpaper or pumiceetone to achtevea hiqh-qloaeftntoh
abraetve pado are ueed Lo

rub ouL fintoh;potaearum'
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oleate type re1enLleenouqh

to be ueedas cleaner
Pumiceetone
Medtumcoaree (2F)
and fine (4F) qradee
oprinkledon aurface
and ueed with felt
block;made from
qround up lava
Paste wax
Duffed on eurface
afLer rubbin7ouL
1;oproducea waterregietantand lonl'
Iaoting lueLerfiniah;
blendedwaxegare
often made wtLh
carnauba,a hard,
naLuralwax,mtxed
wtth parafftnor
beeewax
Felt.block
Felt-coveredhardwood blockfar
epreadtng
,rubbin4
on nn'
co,mP,ouna
tSnea 6urface
Kubbingaompound
An abraeivepaate epeciallyformulat.'
ed for rubbtn4out lacquer,varntehand
ehellacfiniahea;applrcdwtth a raq or
electric polteher
Rottenatone
A fine abraeivepowdereprinkledon
aurfaceaff,erpumtceto achtevea hi7hqloeeoheen;uaedwith felt block
Lamb'a wool
buffing bonnet
lnetalledon elec'
trtc poltoher
Electric polieher
Ueedwtth bufftn4
bonnetand rubbing
compoundto worK
on larqeaurfaces
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Steel wool
)uper fine or OOOO
qrade ueedfor rubbin4ouLa ftnioh
Rubbingpada
9uper fine pad
ueedaloneor wtth
lubrtcant,suchaa
rubbin7otl;made
from durable poly'
eater frber
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PREPARING
TO RUBOUT THE FINISH
avinggracedyourworkpiece
with
ff
I I a finalcoatof finishandwaitedfor
it to dry,you maybeimpatientto move
on to the nextstep.However,beforea
topcoatcanbe rubbedout, it mustfirst
dry andset,soasto be hardenoughto
beworkedoverwith veryfine abrasives.
Beforerubbingout yourworkpiece,you
mustwaitfor thetoDcoatto cure-that
is, you must allow it ampletime to
becomeashard asit will set.Without
time to cure,you arelikelyio scratchthe
finishduringthe rubbingout phase.
No two finishestakethesameamount
of time to cure.The durationof the
processdependson severalfactors,
includingthetypeof finishingproduct
you use,thenumberof coatsyouapply,
and the amountof time that elaoses

between
subsequent
coats.Forexample,
shellac
andthewater-based
finishes
can
usuallybe rubbedout after24 hours.
For lacquer,the wait is more like 48
hours,whilevarnishtakesthreeor four
days.Oil finishescanrequireweeksto
cure.The greaterthe numberof coats
on a surface,
thelongerthecuringtime.
But remember
that a finishcuresmore
rapidlyif more time is left for drying
behveencoats.Alwaysreadthe instructionsbeforeapphng a finish;a suggested
curingtime will usuallybe indicated.
The typeof sheenyou end up with
afterrubbingout a finishhingeson the
abrasives
you use.For a satingloss,use
400-gritpaper,thenbuffthesurface.
Use
TESTING
A FINISHT()SEEIF IT IS CURED
Checking
thefinish
Perform
thefollowrng
simpleteststo
determine
whether
a topcoat
hascured.
T r yt o d i ga f i n g e r n ai ni lt ot h ef r n i s ho n
partof theworkpiece
an inconspicuous
(lefil.Youshouldnotbeableto leave
an
indentation.
lf youdo,thefinishneeds
a d d i t i o ncaul r i n tgi m e S
. m e lils a n o t h e r
goodindication.
lf youcandetectthe
o d o ro f t h es o l v e notn t h ew o r k p i e c e ,
t h et o p c o ai ts n o tr e a d fyo r r u b b i n g
o u t .O n c et h ef i n i s hp a s s ebso t ho f
thesetests,sanda hidden
arealightly.
lf thepaper
clogs,
allowmoretimefor
glidesoverthesurcuring.lf thepaper
face,turning
someof thefinishto powder,
thetopcoat
is fullycured.
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0000steelwoolinconjunction
with 400grit paperfor a semigloss.
An evenfiner
grit sandpaper,
suchas600,combined
with rubbingcompoundwill resultin a
high gloss.Thesameeffectcanalsobe
achievedwith a 600-gritpaper and
pumiceor rottenstone.
Startby abradingthe topcoatto a
mattesheen.If you choosea wet/dry
sandpaper,
select
a grit thatis finerthan
the oneusedto preparethe surfacefor
thefinalcoatof finish.Thenextsteoisto
(page
removedustandsandingparricles
42),Ihenrepeattheabradingprocess
severaltimeswith successively
finer-grit
papers.For a dull- or flat-lookingsurface,stopat 400-gritpaper.Moveup to a
highergrit for a glossier
finish.
129
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RUBBINGOUTAFINISH
herearetwo competingschoolsof
J. thoughton thebestwayto rub out
a finish.The traditionalapproachis to
painstakinglywork pumiceand rottenstoneoverthetopcoated
surfaces
usinga
felt block. A lesshideboundmethod
involvestheuseof oneor moremodern
abrasives,
suchasrubbingcompounds,
steelwool or sandpaper,
and may even
makeuseof an electricpolisher.Both
methodshavetheir advantages.
Working
with pumiceand rottenstoneis laborious,but wins thewoodworkingpurist's
stampof approval.The modernway is
easierand cutsdown on elbowgrease,
but somearguethat it involveslesscraft.
Both methodsaredemonstrated
on the
pagesthat follow
Whicheverrouteyou take,keepin
mind that thefinerthe abrasive
you use,
glossier
you
produce.
the
the sheen will
The photo aboveshowsonesheenyou
can achieveusingeitherrubbing out
technique.
Any lustercanbe enhanced
by buffing the finish with wax. But do
not rely solelyon the wax to heighten
the gloss;it will not turn a satinfinish
into a semigloss,
for example.Instead,
the wax will only intensify what is
alreadythere.Althoughall the surfaces
of a workpiecewill haveto be rubbed
out, pay particularattentionto tops,
sincetheyarethe mostvisiblefeatures
of mostfurniture.
If you chooseto go the traditional
route,you will needto usea lubricant
with thepumiceandrottenstone.
Water
and oils,like paraffinand mineraloil,
arethemostcommonlyusedlubricants.
Working with waterofferstwo advantages:It cutspumicemorerapidlythan
oil, speedingup the process,and it also
doesnot leaveany oily residue.Avoid
however;
it will
usingwateronshellac,
turn thefinishwhite.Paraffinoil. the
is a
traditionalrubbingoutlubricant,
betterchoicefor shellac
topcoats.
Rubbingout withfine steelwool

and 400-gritsandpaperaddeda
semigloss
sheento thewoodsample
at right. Tocreatea glossierlook,
evenfiner abrasives
wouldbeused.
()FFINISHING
A GUIDE
T(lTHELAST
STAGE
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fora flatsurface
Strokes
suitable
Fortabletops
andotherflatsurfaces,
keepevery
strokeparallel
to thewood
grain,asshownin thediagram
at right.Startneara corner
andmovein a
pressure
straight
linealongtheedge,rubbing
withmoderate
thesurface
f r o mo n ee n dt o t h eo t h e rA. l t e r n a tdei r e c t i o nwsi t he a c hs u b s e q u e n t
strokeuntilyoureachtheotheredge.Keeptheabrasive
moving;
thefricfromrubbing
tionresulting
a single
spottoolongmayleave
thefinishslightly
Avoidmaking
burned.
arc-like
strokes,
whichareaptto makeanyscratches
onthesurface
morevisible.
130
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FINISHINGTOUCHES
W()RKING
WITHCONT()URED
SURFACES
Rubbing
outa contoured
surface
Forrounded
surfaces
thatareawkward
pad,usea
to workwitha rigidabrasive
padthatwillfollow
shop-made
rubbing
thecurves
of yourworkpiece.
lf youare
working
withpumice,
sprinkle
it onthe
surface
witha short,stiff-bristled
brush.
Thenwrapa sheetof sandpaper
around
a thicksponge
smallenough
to comfortablygripin yourhand.Clasp
thepaper
you
around
thesponge
as
ruboutthefinishon the surface(right).Withsome
youcanalsousesteel
typesof finishes,
nad
woolor a commercial
rubhins
RUBBING
OUTA FINISH
WITHROTTENSTONE
thelubricant
1 Applying
I Dipthetipsof yourfingers
in a bowl
ofthelubricant
andsprinkle
several
drops
on thesurface
to be rubbedout(lefil.
gloves
Wearrubber
if youareusingoil
a sa l u b r i c a n t .
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131
FINISHINGTOUCHES
r) Abrading
thesurface
L Snat<e
a littleoumice
ontothesurface,thenbeginlightly
abrading
thesurthe
facewitha felt block(/eft).Follow
p a t t e rsnh o w n
o n p a g e1 3 0 .l f y o ud o
n o th a v ea f e l tb l o c kw
, r a pa p i e c eo f
Continue
burlao
around
a scrao
of wood.
r u b b i ntgh es u r f a cuen t i la m i x t u roef
forms.Use
therottenstone
andlubricant
a softclothto wioeoff a smallareaof
t h es u r f a cpee r i o d i c at lol yi n s p e ct ht e
finish.
Youwantto make
certain
thatyou
arenotrubbing
through
thetopcoat.
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andlubricant
thepumice
Q Removing
r-,1Wioeoff theabrasive
andlubricant
witha cleanclolh(right).
Check
thesurh a v ea
f a c es h e e nt ;h ef i n i s hs h o u l d
s a t i nl u s t e rY. o uc a ne i t h esr t o pt h e
p r o c e sast t h i sp o i n to r r e p e aitt t o
sheen.
obtaina slossier
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FINISHINGTOUCHES
()PTI()NS
MORERECENT
F()RRUBBING
OUT
U s i n ga n e l e c t r i p
c olisher
F i t a b u f f i n gb o n n eot n t h e m a c h i n e ' s
p o l i s h i n dg i s ka n d s p r e a da w o o dr u b b i n gc o m p o u n o
d n t h e b o n n e tS
. t a r tt h e
p o l i s h enr e a rt h e c e n t e ro f t h e s u r f a c e
a n dw o r ko u t t o w a r dt h e e d g e sm
, oving
(left).Electric
the bonnetcontinuously
p o l i s h e rws o r kq u i c k l y s, o s t o pt h e t o o l
oftenandwipeoff a smallareaof the surf a c ew i t h a c l o t ht o c h e c kt h e c o n d i t i o n
o f t h e t o p c o a tO
. n c et h e s u r f a c et a k e s
o n a s a t i nl o o k ,y o uc a ne i t h e rs t o pt h e
p r o c e sos r c o n t i n u e
w i t h a f i n e r - g r irtu b b i n gc o m p o u nfdo r a g l o s s i elru s t e r .
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l]ltljlljjlrlltlllrllilll|1
lllrllllililllrr]l1
llr]Irllttll11
llllilll
1HO?TI?
Keepinga bufling
bonnel grit-free
TarLicles
of dust or qril
on a buffinqbonnef,
can
ruina Nopcoaf,
durinqLhe
rubbinqoul proceee.To
maKeeureyour ,onnet
6tayo clean,neverseLil
downon poLenLially
duety
surfaces. InsNe
ad, resl
i l o n a c l e a np l a o N ibc a q .
Sef,weenfiniohinqjobo, otore
t h e b o n n e t ,i n a s e a l a b l e
nlaalir
han
),
.e='i=E=HrF#
.-..
F'\
\'-
=AE--.-
"*.
".1^
"-
.'c*_1
. -"znF-P
-^_-
Fl
'-,,
'\.'\
\;: --'--'
"
.J'
,Z'
FINISHINGTOUCHES
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Using
rubbing
compounds
Scoop
upa littlerubbing
compound
with
a cleanclothandrubit alongthewood
(righilasyouwouldpumice.
surface
Once
y o uh a v ea b r a d etdh ee n t i r es u r f a c e ,
wioethecomoound
with
offthesurface
repeat
another
cloth.Fora glossier
sheen,
witha f iner-grit
the process
compound.
glossthanis possible
Toobtaina softer
w i t hr u b b i ncgo m p o u nsdo, m e
finishers
r u bo u tt h ef i n i s hw i t ha l u b r i c a a
nn
td
s u p efri n es t e ew
l o o ol r a c o m m e r c i a l
r u b b i npga d .
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CLEANING
ANDREPAIR
TIPSF()RFINISHES
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FINISH
CLEANING
TIPS
REPAIR
TIPS
Lacquer
Wipeusingcleancloth
dampened
withlightdetergent,
potassium
oleate
or naphtha;
avoidusingthinners
Repair
cracks
withlacquer
slick(page
45)orshop-made
lacquer
puttybyletting
a smallamount
of lacquer
dryto a honey-like
consistency.
Forwhitespots,
carefully
digoutthedamage
witha puttyknifeandapply
lacquer
thinner
untilthewhiteportion
turnsclear;
thenapplylacquer
stickor putty,letdryandsandlightly.
Wipeusingcleancloth
dampened
withnaphtha;
Avoidusingwater;
it willturn
shellac
white
Wipeusinglightdetergent,
potassium
oleateor naphtha;
avoidusingmethylhydrate
Usenaphtha
on polymerized
oilfinishes;
usesoapand
wateron pureoil surfaces
Lightly
sandawayscratches.
Repair
discolored
areas
bypadding
thesurface
withshellac
asin
(page106).
polishing
French
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Repair
smallcracks
withlacquer
orgouges
stick(page
45).
Shellac
Varnish
Oils
Sandawayscratches,
thenrecoat
withoil.Recoat
discolored
or dullareas.
134
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FINISHINGTOUCHES
WAXING
FORA PROTECTIVE
SHEEN
Applying
thewax
1
I A c o a t i no
g f w a xw i l l p r o t e cat
rubbed-out
topcoat
fromdamage,
but
s e l e cat p r o d u cwt i t ha c o n s i s t e n c y
thatisslightly
thicker
thana liquidor
creamwax.Scoop
a bit of thewaxonto
a cleancloth,thenspread
a thin,even
coatonthesurface,
rubbing
thewaxinto
onesmallareaat a Iime(right).lf youtry
to workontoo largea surface
areaaI a
time,thesolvent
in thewaxmayevapoyoucanrubit overthesurface,
ratebefore
prematurecausing
thewaxto harden
l y . L e tt h ew a xd r ya c c o r d i nt o
gt h e
m a n u f a c t u r einr 'sst r u c t r o nt ys p, i c al yl
abou1
t 5 minutes.
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r) Buffing
thewax
L A u Ow i t ha c l e a nc l o t hu n t i lt h e
waxed
surface
shines.
Forcontours
or
surfaces
withdetails,
asshownat left,
buffthewaxwitha stiff-bristled
brush,
givingthewoodshort,briskstrokes.
AND STORAGE
CLE.A].dING
,\ finishingprojectis not quitefinA isheduntilyoucleanandputaway
anddisyourbrushes,
storethesolvents,
poseof anyoilyrags.Whilefoambrushesareusuallydiscarded
aftera single
use,bristlebrushesandpadapplicators
canbe cleanedand reused.With the
propercare,a high-qualitybrushcan
providemanyyearsof service.
Butgoodcleanup
habitswilldo more
than protectyour investment;
theyare
alsokeyelements
of shopsafetyandenvironmentalresponsibility.
Tokeepfinishingproducts
outof thereachof children,
storecontainers
in a lockedmetalcabinet.Avoidthrowingout wet,oily rags
with thetrash;thisincreases
theriskthat
theywill catchfire.Fortemporarystorage,
darnpenthe ragsand placethem in a

rnetalcontainer.
Thiswill isolate
sealed
thern from anv sparksor flamesand
quicklystarveanyspontaneous
fire of
needed
oxygen.
Thesafest
wayto dispose
of oily ragsis to firstspread
themout to
dry out ofdoors.
Storefinishingproductsin sealed,
properlylabeled
containers.
Avoidusing
bottlesor jarsthat normallycontain
food or liquids;a visitorto your shop
couldmistakea chemicalproductfor
something
drinkable.
Alwaysstorestainsand finishesat
roomtemperature;
proda water-based
uct will be ruinedif allowedto freeze.
Reactive
finishes
suchastungoilor varnish,which eventuallyhardenwhen
exposed
to air,shouldbestoredin airless
containers.
Ratherthankeepinga small
volumeof a reactive
finishin a largecontainer.transfertheoroductto a smaller
one,exposing
theliquidto lessair.A better solutionisto buyfinishingproducts
in smallercuantities
or to storethemin
(page87).
collapsible
plasticcontainers
Do not flushany finishingproduct
findownthedrain.Evena water-based
ish canposeproblemsby coagulating
in drain pipesand backingup your
plumbingsystem.
To disposeof small
quantitiesof a productlet it sit in an
uncovered
containeroutsideuntil the
solventevaporates.
Forlargervolumes,
consultthe wastedisposalservicein
your community.
CLEANING
ANDSTORAGE
TIPS
o Avoidstanding
a brushon itsbristles;
thismaybendthempermanently
and
r u i nt h eb r u s h .
o Afterbreaking
in a newbrushor
c l e a n i nagu s e do n e w
, r a pi t i n p a p e r
for storage.
o To disposeof a water-based
finish,
pouror brushit ontoscrapsof cardboard;
let it dryand discardthe cardboard.
. Breakin a newbrushbysuspending
it
upto theferrulein a solvent
thatis comp a t i b lw
e i t ht h ef i n i s hy o uw i l la p p l y .
Soakthebristles
forabout10 minutes,
thencleanthebrushwithdetergent
and
warmwater.
. Salvage
a hardened
brushbysoaking
thebristles
overnight
in a mixture
of 2
partsxylene,1 partacetone
and1 part
denatured
alcohol.
Usea brushcombto
remove
fragments
f inish
of hardened
fromthebristles.
. Insteadof discarding
a containerof
usedmineralspirits,recycleit. Let the
solventsit in a coolspotfor a weekor
two,then decantthe spiritsthat have
risento the top in a cleancontainer
and disposeof the residue.
SH()PAIDSFORBRUSHES
Aruahaomb
A metal combfor
cleanin4eolidftntEh
reaidueefrom brueh
bristlea
Bruah bucket and lid

An airtiqht 6tora0e conLatnerfor ouopending
bruehesin a eolvent;
featurea plaettc cltpe
that hold bruaheewith
the brietleaabovetha
bottom ofthe contatner
Eruah apinner
UaescenLrtfu1alforce to epin eolventfrom
brueh briatlea:one end ofthe devtceholdathe
bruah whilethe pump-likehandleat the other
end createe the epinningaction
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CLEANING AND STORAGE
A BRUSH
STORING
OVERNIGHT
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in solvent
Soaking
brushes
Thereis nopointcleaning
a brush(page
13B)n youplanto useit thefollowing
day.Instead,
suspend
thebrushin the
prodappropriate
solvent
forthef inishing
uctyouareusing:
forvarnish,
a mixture
of turpentine
andvarnish;
forshellac,
alcohol;
forlacquer,
lacquer
denatured
keeper"
t h i n n e fr o; ra s t a i na, " b r u s h
solution
of 2 partsrawlinseed
oilandI
(Foroil-based
partturpentine.
finishing
justwrapthebrushin plastic
products,
wrap.)
Whensoaking
a brush,
submerge
o n l yt h eb r i s t l e a
s ,n dn o tt h ef e r r u l e ,
making
suretheyaresuspended
above
thebottom
of thecontainer.
Keepthe
b r u s hi n a c o m m e r c ibarlu s hb u c k e t
(page136),or hangit froma nailin a
shop-made
rack(above).
lllltlllllllllllilllilltlllllliltlljlllllltJllllrlll,lrllilulJ
lt]jilii
1HO?TI?
?unahingdrip holee
lNLakesverylif,Lletime for the rim
of a can of finishto fill uo with liauid.Theresult,is ofLena' meoty
and a oVlaohwhenthe lid
dripVing
ie IappeAcloeeA,To keep
a conlainerfrom over'
flowinqits rim,puncha
serieeof holeearound
wiLha
iXecircumference
n a i l . T h iw
e i l la l l o wl i q u i d
Lheholee
Nofall Nhrouqh
backinNoIhe conNainer.
r37
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CLEANINGAND STORAGE
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CTEANING
A BRUSH
thebrush
insolvent
1 Rinsins
I Submerse
thebrush's
bristles
in the
prodappropriate
solvent
forthefinishing
uctused(page16).Swirlthebrushin the
pressing
solvent,
thebristles
against
the
sidesof thecontainer.
Workthesolvent
through
thebristles
withyourhands
until
thebrushis clean(left).foremove
allthe
residue
fromthebrush,
washthebristles
in a solution
of milddetergent
andwarm
water,
thenpulla brushcombthrough
(below).
themasmanytimesasnecessary
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CLEANINGAND STORAGE
r) Spinning
thebrush
dry
L to rida brushof solvent,
shakert by
handor usea brushspinner.
In bothcase s ,h o l dt h eb r u s h
i n s i dae 5 - g a l l ocna n
to catchthesolvent
asit sprays
fromthe
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hrictloc Tn rrcp a sninnpr

J P "
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' u l
insprt tho hrrrch
h a n d l ei n t ot h e d e v i c ea n d ,h o l d i n g
the
b r u s hi n t h ec a n ,p u m pt h e h a n d l teo s e t
( / e f f )C
. o n t i n uuen t i l t h e r e
it spinning
is
n o l o n g ear n ys o l v e nftl y i n go f f t h e b r u s h .
"
AG
BR U S H
ST O R I N
Wrapping
thebristles
A well-cleaned
indef
brush
canbestored
initely.
Wrapthebristles
a fewtimesinthick,
paper.
absorbent
Avoidusingplastic
wrap,
whichwillkeepthebristles
fromdrying
properly
andmayleave
themlimp.The
paper
should
cover
thebristles
completely,
extending
beyond
thetipsandovertheferrule.Usea rubber
bandto holdthewrapperin place,
grips
making
suretheelastic
(rrehil.
theferrulerather
thanthebristles
Hangthebrushupto dry
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GLOSSARY
A-B
Abrasive Eithera coarsepowder,or
a pieceof paperor fabric coatedwith
grit particlesusedto smoothwood
in preparationfor finishing or to
abradefinish coats;includessandpaper,abrasivepads,steelwool, pumice
and rottenstone.
Aniline dye:A lightfast,permanent
syntheticdyederivedfrom coaltars;
solublein water,alcoholor oil.
Artists' colors: Rich, coloredpigmentsmixed in linseedoil: usedto
tint paintsand stains.
Basecoat:An undercoatof glazeor
paint appliedasthe first stepin many
decorativefinishingtechniques.
Bleach:A liquid that chemicallyalters
wood; usedto lightenthe color.
Bleeding:The tendencyof a stainor
grain filler to seepthrough to the topcoat.Bestavoidedby applyinga wash
coaton the stainor filler.
Brazilwood:A natural dyestuffextracted from the SouthAmericanredwood
tree;usedin chemicalstainingofwood.
Curing: The processbywhich a finish

hardenscompletely,leavingit ready
for rubbing out. Curing time varies
accordingto the type of finish and the
numberof coats.
Cut The numberof poundsof shellac
flakesdissolvedin eaih gallonofdenatured alcohol.A 3-pound-cutshellac,
for example,contains3 poundsof
shellacfor everygallonofalcohol.
H-r-J-K-L
Heartwood:Wood from the centerof
a log; generallydarkerthan sapwood.
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D-E
Distressing:A finishingtechnique
that involvesaddingscratches,
dents
and otherblemishesto the wood or
topcoatto simulatethe well-worn
look of an antique.
fapan color: Highly refinedcolored

pigments;usedto tint stainsor
protectivefinishessuchasIacquer
or shellac.
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Driers: Chemicalsaddedto a finishingproductto speedup the

drying time.
Lacquer:A tough,clearsynthetic
finish usuallyderivedfrom nitrocellulose;driesquicklyto a flat or
glossyfinish.
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Dryingoil One of a group of organic oils that hardenwhen exposedto

the air;tung oil andboiledlinseed
oil
areexamples.
Lightfast Describesa stainor dye

that doesnot readilyfadeafterproIongedexposureto light.
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Dyestuff:A naturalcoloringagent
extractedfrom plantsor animalsand
usedasa basefor dyestains.
Bristlebrush:A paintbrushwith bristlesmadefrom the hair of animals,

suchasox,badger,boar or sable.
Bronzepowder:Metallic,powdered
pigmentusedin stencilingor for other decorativefinishes,suchasgilding.
Flat finish: A finish with no sheen:

onethat containsflatteningagents,
which reducelight reflection.
Burnisher: A rodJike tool usedto

sharpenscrapers.
Frenchpolishing: A traditional finish typicallybuilt up with many

layersofshellacto producea deep,
lustroussheen.
Crazing:The tendenryof a finish to

fractureerraticallyasit dries;results
from solventincompatibility.
Graining:A decorativefinishingtechniquein which a specificgrain pattern

is replicatedon a preparedsurface.
IfVLP: Abbreviationof high-volume,

low-pressure;
in finishing,a system
for sprayingthat useslargevolumes
of air at low pressureto turn a liquid
into a fine mist.
F-G
Fisheye:The tendencyof a finish to
when
showsmallcirculardepressions
contaminatedby siliconeor wix.
C
Catalytic finish: A two-part finish
comprisingresinsand chemicalcataIysts;the resinsreactwith the catalysts
to oxidizeand hardenthe finish.
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Long-oil varnish:Varnishcontaining
100poundsofresinfor each40 to 100
gallonsof oil, resultingin a product
that driesslowlyto a durableand elastic finish. Seeshort-oilvarnish.
M-N-O
MSDS:Abbreviationof manufacturer'ssafetydatasheet;the information describes
the flammabiliry
volatility and healthhazardsofa
finishin! product.
Marbling: A decorativefinishing techniqueusedto imitatethe appearance
of marble.
Gelstain:A blendof pigmentsand

dyesin a gelthat becomesliquid
whenstirred.
Mineral spirits: A petroleum-based

solventcommonlyusedfor thinning
variousfinishesandfor cleaningapplicationtools.
Glazs A heavy-bodied
stainusedin
decorativefinishessuchasgraining
and marbling.
Mordant A chemicalsubstance
that
changesthe color ofwood; often used
in conjunctionwith naturaldyes.
Glossyfinish: A finish with a reflective,shinysurface.
140
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NGR stain:Abbreviationof nongrain-raisingstain;NGR stainsare

madefrom anilinedyesin a waterless
solutionof methanoland oetroleum
products;theyaredesigned
to avoid
raisingthe grain of wood.
OrangepeehThe tendencyofa topcoatto takeon the textureofan

orangepeelwhen the finish is sprayed
poorly or at the wrong viscosity.
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Overspray:Dried finish particlesthat

adhereto the surface,or finish spray
that missesthe workpieceand is dispersedinto the air.
P-Q
Padding:A techniquefor wiping on
a finish with a cloth pad.
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Photochemicallyreactive:Describes
a finishingproductthat breaksdown
in its chemicalstructurewhen
exposedto light.
Pickledfinish: An antiquefinish consistingof a light-coloredglazewiped
overa basecoat.
Rottenstone:A fine abrasivemade

from pulverizedlimestoneusedto
rub out finishesto a high gloss;texture is finer than that of pumice.
Stain:A finishingproductusedto
color wood; may containdyes,pigmentsor chemicals.
Rubbingoil A light oil usedasa

lubricantwhen rubbingout finishes.
Thckcloth: A cloth dampenedwith

an oil-and-varnish
mixtureor with
water;usedto removesandingparticlesfrom wood surfaces.
Rubbingout The processofabrading

a topcoatto levelthe surfaceand add
sheento the finish.
S-T-U
Tlrnnicacid:A naturallyoccurring
acidfound in wood; changescolor
when exposedto certainchemicals.
Sandingsealer:A preliminarycoat
for a lacquerfinish.
Thinner: A solventusedto reduce

the consistenryof a finish.
Sapstreak Pocketsof pitch in wood

that tend to bleedinto a finish unless
first sealed.
Topcoat The final finishingproduct

appliedto the workpiece.
Sapwood:The live wood nearthe

outsideof a log; generallylighter in
color than the interior.Seeheartwood.
Tungoil A water-resistant
drying oil
derivedfrom the seedsof the Chinese
tung tree;availablein pure,modified
and polymerizedforms.Also known
asChinawood oil.
Satinfinish: A finish of intermediatesheen;not asdull asa flat finish,

nor asshinyor reflectiveasa highglosssheen.
Universalcolor: Concentratedpigmentsusedto tint protectivefinishes,

suchasvarnishor lacquer.
ShellacA clearfinish derivedfrom

the naturalsecretions
of the lacbeetle;
soldreadyto useor in flakes,which
arethen mixedwith denaturedalcohol.
V-W.X-Y-Z
Polymerized tung oil Tirng oil that

hasbeentreatedwith heatto accelerateits drying time.
Short-oil varnish:Varnishcontaining
100poundsofresinfor each5 to 12
gallonsof oil, resultingin a product
that driesto a hard,glossyfinish. See
long-oilvarnish.
VOC rating: Indicatesthe amount of

hazardousorganicsolventsin a finish;
providedin percent,gramsper liter or
poundsper gallon.
PolyurethaneA synthetic,durable,
oil-modified urethanevarnishthat is
resistantto abrasion;availablein lustersrangingfrom flat to glossy.
Smoothingplane:For shavingwood
surfacessmoothand level;longerthan
jack plane.
the average
Pigment Finelyground,coloredparticlesof earthor metallicoxidessuspendedin a liquid to createa stainor

a tint for protectivefinishes.
Pumice A volcanicrock that is ground

to a powderyconsistency
for useas
an abrasive.
R
Raymarker:A tool usedto produce
grain patternstypicalofoak.
Reactivefinish: A finish that hardens
when exposedto the air; tung oil, varnish and polnrrethaneareexamples.
Solvent-releasefinish: A finish that

forms a solid film afterthe solvent
hasevaporated;
shellacand lacquer
areexamples.
Solvent A liquid usedto dissolve
anothersubstance;
examplesare
turpentine,mineralspirits,toluene,
acetoneandwater.
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Varnish:A clearfinish madewith

syntheticoils that excelsat resisting
waterand alchohol.
Washcoat A coatof diluted finishing

materialfor sealingwood pores.
Water-basedfinish: A product in
which the solventis primarily water.
Wipingstain: A non-fadingstain
containingpigmentssuspendedin oil.
Wood filler: A putty productusedfor
repairingsurfacedamagein wood, or
a pasteusedfor filling opengrain.
INDEX
Pagereferencesin iralicsindicate
an illustration of subiectmatter.
Pagereferencesin bold indicate
a Build It Yourselfproject.
A
Abrasives,
35,37, 128
Abrasivecord,40
Making a sandpapercutting board
(ShopTip), 37
Rottenstone,
127,130,131-132
Shop-madeabrasivetape(ShopTip), 40
SeealsoPumice
Ammonia,80-81
Antiqueeffectfinishes,55
Pickling, T5
B
Belt sanders,23, 35
Blades.SeeCabinetscrapers;Hand
scrapers;Planes
Bleaching,57-58
BIockpIanes,22, 29
Bronzepowderstenciling,113,117
Broue de noix. 69
Brushes,fr ont endpaper, 83
A foambrush (ShopTip),92
Buffing,126,128,135
Keepinga buffing bonnet grit-free
(ShopTip), 133
Build It Yourself:
Graining
block cushiongrainers,l2l
Protectivefinishes
sprayroom dollies,98
turntablesfor spraying,100
Surfacepreparation
contouredsandingblock, 39
Burn-in kits,43,46
C
Cabinetscrapers,22, 30,34
Sharpening,
30-32
usinga file clamp(ShopTip), 3l
usinga variableburnisher
(ShopTip), 33
Using old scraperbladesto cut halfblind dovetails(ShopTip),34
Chemicals:
Ammonia.80-81
BIeach.57-58
Mordants, T6-79
Spills,l6
SeealsoSolvents:Stains
Chinawood oi1,86,87
Cleaningtechniques,136-I 39
Chemicalspills, 16
Finishedsurfaces,
134
Decorativepainting, I I I
Tools.l.l2
SeealsoGraining;Marbling;
Stenciling
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Dents:
Repair,44
Dollies,98
Dovetailioints:
Drfrng oils,87, 134
Preventingreactivefinishesfrom
dryingout (ShopTip),87
Dyes,5t 59,60-63,70
Natural dyes,69,76-79
Seea/soStains
Insurance:
Sprayrooms,103
lapancolors,65, 66-67,70
.,lgs:
Blockcushiongrainers,l2l
Supportsfor drying (ShopTip), 74
Turntablesfor spraying,100
Variableburnishers(ShopTip), 33
E-F
Ebonizing,55
A chemicalstain for ebonizing
(ShopTip), 79
File clamps,3-l
Finishes.SeeDecorativepainting;
Polishing;Protectivefinishes;Stains
Fire:
Extinguishers,
12,17
Safetyprecautions,12,17
Sprayrooms,103
Frenchpolishing,106-109
Making a pumice dispenser
(ShopTip), 107
Fuming,80-81
G
Gelstains,65,66-67,70
Glazingstains,65, 66-67, 70
Grain:
Raising,21,
50
Grainfiller, 21, 51-53
Coloring grain filler (ShopTip), 50
Lighteningwood with grain filler
(ShopTip), 58
Graining,lll, 118-120
Tools,112,l2l
H
Half-blind dovetailioints:
Using old scrapeibladesto cut halfblind dovetails(ShopTip),34
Hand scrapers,
21,22,j0, jj
Sharpening,j0-j2
usinga file clamp (ShopTip), 3l
usinga variableburnisher
(ShopTip), 33
High-volume,low-pressurespray
systems,93,94
Holes:
Filling
filling a damagedcorner
(ShopTip), 49
Patching,4T-49
HVLP spraysystems,93,94
t42
L-M-N
Lacquers,
90,134
Liming,75
Linseedoil, 9, 87
Marbling, 110,122-125
Tools,l12
McGoldrick,Pari,6-7
Metric measures:
Conversion,backendpaper
Mordants, T6-79
Moser,Thomas,8-9
Natural dyes,76-79
NGR stains,60, 6l
O-P-Q
Paddinglacquers,
I06
Palm sanders,23, 35
Pastewood filler. SeeGrain filler
Patchingcompounds,43,45-46
Filling a damagedcorner
(ShopTip), ae
Using a gluegun to apply shellac
stick(ShopTip), a6
Pickling,75
Pigmentstains,55, 59,64-67,70
SeealsoStains
Planes,
20,2I,22,24
Adjustment, 27-28
24,25-27
Sharpening,
Planing,21,28-29
Polishing:
Waxing,127,135
SeealsoBuffing; Rubbingout
Polyurethanes,
88
Porefiller. SeeGrain filler
Powertools. SeeSanders;Sprayers
Productlabels,l8
Protectiveclothing, 12
Protectivefinishes,83,86,87-90
Application techniques,83, 86
brushing,83,92
flooding, 83
padding,9l
spraying,82, 83,97- 101,I0O
sprayingproblems,104-105
wiping,83,9l
Cwing, 129
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Tools.85
a foambrush (ShopTip),92
sprayers,
84, 85,93-96,101
viscositycttps,89,96
Tlpes
{rfrng oils,87,134
lacquers,90,134
polyurethanes,
88
shellacs,
89, 10G109,134
varnishes,
83,88, 134
SeealsoBuffing; Rubbing out; Waxing
Pumice,130,131-132
Making a pumice dispenser
(ShopTip), l0Z
R
Raisingthe grain,2l, 50
Random-orbitsanders.
38
Reactivefinishes.87
Preventingreactivefinishesfrom
dryingout (ShopTip), 87
Repairs:
Finishedsurfaces.
134
Surfacepr epar ation, 43-49
gluingan edgesplinterback
(ShopTip), aa
Respirators,
12,14-15
Storingrespiratorcartridges
(ShopTip), .15
Rottenstone,
127,130,I 31-132
Rubbingcompounds,J33
Rubbingofi, 126-133
Tools,128
S
Safetyprecautions,12-13
Bleach.57
Dual-cartridgerespirators,12, 14-15
storing respiratorcartridges
(ShopTip), 15
Fire,12,17,103
Mordants,77
Protectiveclothing, I2
Spraybooths, .13,84
Sprayrooms, 102-103
Sanders,
23,35,38
Buffingbonnets,126,128,133
keepinga bufEng bonnet grit-free
(ShopTip), 133
SeealsoAbrasives
Sanding,35-36
Curvedsurfaces,3& 40
Finding flaws (ShopTifl, al
Removingdust particles,42
making a tack cloth (ShopTip), 42
Tight spots,4l
SeealsoSanders
Sandingblocks:
Contouredsandingblocks,39
Curvedsurfaces,38
Shop-madesandingblocks
(ShopTip), 36
Sandpaper.SeeAbrasives
Savoy,Prew,l0-lJ
Scrapers.SeeCabinetscrapers;
Hand scrapers
Scraping,33-34
Scratches:
Repair,134
Shellacs,
89,134
Frenchpolishing, 106-109
making a pumice dispenser
(ShopTip), l0Z
Shellacsticks,43, 45-46
usinga gluegun to apply shellac
stick(ShopTip),46
ShopTips:
Decorativefinishes,114,115
Protectivefinishes,87,92,107
Rubbingout, 133
Safety,l5
Staining,58,69, 71,73, 24,79
Surfacepreparation
grain filler, 50
repairs,
44,46,49
sanding,36,37, 40,41, 42
scraping,
31,33,34
Smokedetectors.17
Solvents:
Productlabels.18
Protectivefinishes,86, 103
Safetyprecautions,12-19,84,102-103
Toxicity, 19,86,103
Wastedisposal,12,13,16
Sprayers,
84, 85,93-96
Cleaning,10.1
Viscositycups,89,96
Spraying,97,99, 101
Dollies,98
Problems,104-105
Spraybooths,
13,84
Sprayrooms,102-103
Turntables,100
Staining,
54,55,71-74
Controlling the flow of stain
(ShopTip), 7l
End grain, 69
Gettingstaininto tight spots
(ShopTip), 73
Pickling,75
Supportsfor drying(ShopTip), 24
Tools.56
SeealsoBleaching;
Fuming
Stains:
ChemicaI,T6-79
a chemicalstainfor ebonizins
(ShopTip), 79
Dyes,5t 59,60-63,70
naturaldyes,69,76-79
r43
Pigmentstains,55, 59,64-67,70
Preparation,68
preparinga naturalwalnut stain
(ShopTip), 6e
SeealsoStaining
Stenciling,111, 1I 3-I 16
A curefor bleeding(ShopTip), l15
Bronzepowder,113,117
Patterns,backendpaper,I 13-114
projectinga pattern(ShopTip), 114
Tools,I 12
Surfacepreparation,2 I
Repairs,43-49
filling a damagedcorner
(ShopTip), 49
gluing an edgesplinter back
(ShopTip), 44
SeealsoPlaning;Sanding;Scraping
T
Tack cloths:
making a tack cloth (ShopTip), 42
Tools:
Decorative painting, 1I 2
Protectivefinishes,84-85,92
Rubbing out, 128
Spraybooths,
13,84
Sprayrooms,102-103
Staining,56
Storage,136,137,139
Surfacepr eparation,22-23
Variableburnishers,33
SeealsoAbrasives;
Brushes;Cabinet
scrapers;Hand scrapers;Planes;
Sanders;
Sandingblocks;Sprayers
Tung oil, 86,87
u-v-w-x-Y-z
U.S.measures:
Conversion,backendpaper
Vaporpressure,18
Variableburnishers,33
Varnishes,83,88,134
VOC (Volatile OrganicCompound)
rating,18
Walnut oil, 87
Walnut stains:
preparinga natural walnut stain
(ShopTip), 6e
W a s hc o a t s , 2 l , 5 l , 5 3
Wastedisnosal:
Solvenis,12,13,16
Waxing,I27, 135
Wax sticks,43
Wiping stains,64-65 70
Wood:
Color,55
Grain.5l
Wood filler,43,45
Fillinga damagedcorner(ShopTip), 49
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Theeditorswishto thank thefollowing
SAFETY
DeVilbissSprayBoothProductsCo.,Barrie,Ont;
Chris A. Minick. Stillwater,MN
AdjustableClampCo.,Chicago,IL; AmericanTool Cos.,
Lincoln,NE; Blackand Decker/EluPowerTools,Hunt Valley,MD;
Delta InternationalMachinery/PorterCable,Guelph,Ont.;
Hitachi PowerToolsU.S.A.Ltd.,Norcross,GA;
LeeValleyToolsLtd., Ottawa,Ont.; RecordToolsInc, Pickering,Ont.;
StanleyTools,Division of the StanleyWorks, New Britain, CT;
3M Canada,Dorval,Que.;VeritasToolsInc.,Ottawa,
NY
Ont./Ogdensburg,
CHANGING THE COLOR
AdjustableClamp Co.,Chicago,IL; JonathanB.Kemp,H. BehlenCo.,
Amsterdam,
N.Y.;OldeMill CabinetShoppe,York, PA;
WagnerSprayTechCorp.,Minneapolis,MN
DECORATIVE FINISHES
AdvancedEquipmentManufacturingCompany,Inc.,Chicago,IL;
LeeValleyTools Ltd., Ottawa,Ont.
PROTECTIVEFINISHES
DeVilbissRansburgIndustrialCoatingEquipment,Barrie,Ont.;
DeVilbissSprayBoothProductsCo.,Barrie,Ont.;
The HydrocoteCo. Inc.,EastBrunswick,NJ;
WagnerSprayTechCorp.,Minneapolis,MN
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FINISHINGTOUCHES
Delta InternationalMachinery/PorterCable,Guelph,Ont.;
H. BehlenCo.,AmsterdamN.Y.;3M CanadaInc.,
Dorval, Que.
CLEANINGAND STORAGE
LeeValleyTools Ltd., Ottawa,Ont.
Chris A. Minick, Stillwater,MN
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in thepreparation
Thefollowingpersonsalsoassisted
of this book:
ElizabethCameron,DonnaCurtis,LorraineDor6,
Kent J. Farrell,Kam Ghaffari,Michel Gigudre,
Maryo Proulx
SergeGuibord,BrianParsons,
PICTURECREDITS
Cover PaulMcCarthy/Au Puitsde Lumidre
6,7 RonaldMaisonneuve
8,9 GraceHuang
10,11Ian Gittler
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WORKSHO
GPU I D E
U.9, AND METRIC
CONVERSION
To find the metric meaeure
equivalentof a U.9.measuretn
the left-hand column,multiply
by the converaionfacf,or tn f,he
center column.To find the U.9.
meaaureequivalenLof a metric
meaeurein the riqht-hand column,
divideby Lheconveraionfactor.
U.S.MEASURE
CONVERSION
FACTOR
Pound
0.454
Ounce
28.350
Gram
3.785
Liter
3.785
Liter
3.785
Liter
4 Quarts
Gallon
1 2 8F l u i d o u n c e s
Quart
Pint
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Fluidounce
H a l fp i n t
2 Pints
0.946
Liter
32 Fluidounces
0.946
Liter
16Fluidounces
0.473
Liter
8 Fluidounces
0.236
Liter
29.573
STENCIT
PATTERN
Thte fruit -bowl pa|Lern wae
a commonly uaed mol)f on
19th Century furniture, To
make a etenctl from iL to
decorate your own furntfnllntt,
f.he
alena
6tartinq on pa4e 113.
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!
Kilogram
(Liquid)
Volume
1 6P i n t s
il rre
METRIC
MEASURE
Weight
N
o
o
o
o
o
0
\.rN0%
Milliliter

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I

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THE ART OF WOODWORKING

THE ART OF WOODWORKING was produced by

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136 CLEANING AND STORAGE

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