It’s very irritating to apply a stain to a project only to find there’s glue on the surface that prevents penetration. Areas with glue show up lighter. There are two easy methods of checking for glue so you can remove it: wet the wood with water; or wet the wood with...
A pervasive myth in the woodworking community is that you should finish both sides of wood, especially tabletops, to reduce the likelihood of warping. This myth has been carried to the extremes of finishing insides of chests-of-drawers, cabinets and drawers....
It’s widely believed among finishers, especially refinishers, that once you add a fish-eye eliminator to a finish and spray it, your spray gun is forever contaminated. You can’t ever get the fish-eye eliminator, which is silicone, completely removed, and little bits...
Labeling on cans of polyurethane and lacquer can sometimes be confusing. It may not be obvious whether the finish is solvent-based or water-based. One way to distinguish which is which is to read the label for the thinning and clean-up solvent. Solvent-based products...
You aren’t limited to the sheens of finishes available from most suppliers and stores—usually just gloss and satin, sometimes semi-gloss. You can make any sheen you want from just one can of satin finish. First, let the flatting agent (the stuff you have to stir into...
The easy way to repair sand- and rub-throughs on sharp edges is with a marker of a similar color to that of the stain used. These markers are widely available. If you sand through an edge between coats of finish, simply color in the sand-throughs and apply another...
When coloring in lighter rub-throughs, glue splotches or wood-putty patches, it’s usually best to paint in the grain first, then add the color to each side of the grain. If you go the other way, coloring in the entire area before painting in the grain, you’ll often...
The most efficient methods of applying stain are by wiping or spraying. Brushing is very slow, often too slow with water-based stains that dry rapidly. When you have wetted a given surface with the stain, quickly wipe off the excess. With water-based stains, try...
It takes quite a bit of effort to sand through veneer when sanding by hand. But machine tools can go through fairly quickly. The critical thing when you sand through is to stop! If the sand-through area is small enough, you may be able to fix it by painting in some of...
Paint and varnish removers sold in plastic containers contain the solvent n-methyl pyrrolidone (NMP) as the active ingredient. This solvent is relatively expensive, so manufacturers often mix in other solvents to reduce the cost. But it’s the NMP that does the...
