Finishes for Natural Wood

[WayneW]

I am new to pen turning and still trying to figure out what works and does not. My emphasis is on using local wood only for my blanks (birch spruce, tamarack, willow and etc.). If the wood has good grain features then I stain the wood. I also paint some rather featureless pens to resemble birch trees. I am trying to find the best clearcoat to use on the pens. The challenge is that I am in the area of Fairbanks, Alaska and many of the finishes I read about will not ship here. I do have Lowes and Home Depot here so I have been using Minwax Polycrylic so far. I have been tempted to try the polyurethane, but I don't want to go spending a lot of money on trial and error if it is not necessary. I would like to know thoughts on the water-based finishes v. oil-based as well as any recommendations for common off-the-shelf solutions. I have not tried CA yet, but I don't think I can get the accelerant up here. Any information would be greatly appreciative!


Wayne

 

[Amihai]

I had a similar problem with the accelerant here in Israel. I found that shops selling materials for airplane models, RC cars etc. had CA glue and accelerant. they sell small bottles, so I shipped the glue from abroad and bought from them only the accelerant.

 

[leehljp]

In general, water based finishes have been as good as oil based finishes. Oil based "finishes" as in polyurethane are not the same as oil finish as in wipe on oils. So when it comes to "finishes" that harden, water based "finishes" work well in general. Caveat: 1. they do take longer to cure than CA, 2. you must allow for your region. I am assuming that you have a heated work area and it is heated 24 hours a day.

Caution: CA can ruin you. If you are used to the time it takes to apply a finish and let it cure before using, then use CA in which you can use the pen within an hour, it becomes hard to go back to time consuming finishes.

 

[bugradx2]

do you have a local woodworking store? Not sure if you're truly in North Pole or not. If there is a local store, then you might see if they have a way to get a CA finish up to you. I know back in the day a lot of people didn't use accelerator with their CA finishes because of the risk of it blooming. Perhaps you can still use a CA but just allow the time for it to dry between coats. I'd bet it would dry faster than a poly.

If you've got a CA finish you're eyeing you could try reaching out to the manufacturer and see if they have a pump they'd ship you too.

There is also a dipping method people use on pens too. You could search for that on here.

 

[monophoto]

I've used both solvent and water 'polyurethanes'. In general, my experience is similar to Hank.

Floors are one of the more challenging applications for finishes. - not everyone takes their shoes off inside the house. My sense is that its a toss-up between water and solvent based polyurethane for floor finishing. I know that when our house was built, the builder opted for water based finish for red-oak floors. But when we replaced some carpeting with oak a few years ago, the guy who did that work preferred solvent based finish.

In general, I think the water-based stuff dries to the touch a bit faster than solvent polyurethane, but I also think it takes a bit longer to cure to its maximum hardness. Once fully cured, either can be buffed to a reasonably high gloss.

One very clear difference is that water-based 'polyurethanes' tend to be so very colorless that, when compared with the amber color of solvent-based polyurethane, they appear to be almost blue. I have been happy with the water-based stuff on pens made from timbers that are naturally darker in color, but for that reason I would probably opt for something else on timbers that are lighter in color.

 

[Rick_G]

My go to finish is CA. I have a BOW pen I did likely 12 - 15 years ago and the finish is as good now as when I applied it. Surprisingly no cracks. I do not use accelerator at all. I just apply the CA with a piece of paper towel and let it cure on it's own. I'm retired and don't sell the pens I make so time is not a factor for me. In the summer it takes about 15 minutes before I can apply the next coat in the winter because the shop is much cooler it may take an hour or more. I found the only time I had cracks in the finish was when I used accelerator so I quit using it. I did a key fob for my wife years ago and the dog got hold of it. Lots of teeth marks where he dented the wood but no cracks which surprised me. I use EZ bond CA because when I started that's all I could get, worked for me so I kept using it.

 

[WayneW]

Thanks for the information! I found it very helpful, especially from leehljp and monophoto. I am originally from NJ and spent 3 yrs in Watertown, NY before moving to Arkansas. Our move up here just over a year ago has been enlightening. We have found it necessary to make do with what you have available because you don't have all the options available like you do in the Lower 48. Amazon is great, but there are some things they just won't ship. Plus, there is no free shipping.

 

[Tom Hutton]

I am new to pen turning and still trying to figure out what works and does not. My emphasis is on using local wood only for my blanks (birch spruce, tamarack, willow and etc.). If the wood has good grain features then I stain the wood. I also paint some rather featureless pens to resemble birch trees. I am trying to find the best clearcoat to use on the pens. The challenge is that I am in the area of Fairbanks, Alaska and many of the finishes I read about will not ship here. I do have Lowes and Home Depot here so I have been using Minwax Polycrylic so far. I have been tempted to try the polyurethane, but I don't want to go spending a lot of money on trial and error if it is not necessary. I would like to know thoughts on the water-based finishes v. oil-based as well as any recommendations for common off-the-shelf solutions. I have not tried CA yet, but I don't think I can get the accelerant up here. Any information would be greatly appreciative!


Wayne

Since there are many hunters in Alaska I suspect you can find Birchwood True Oil Gun Stock finish at Academy and Dick's or any gun shop. True Oil doesn't have a bunch of nasties and you can apply it with your finger, though I usually use a plastic glove or paper towel. Goes on easily and leaves a nice soft looking look vs plastic looking. I usually follow it with Minwax finishing paste for a little protection from finger prints.

 

[randyrls]

Wayne; Like many here I use CA without the accelerant. I just leave the dust collector on and the lathe spinning at slow (~500 RPM) for a time while I am doing other things. You can become "allergic" to CA fumes over time. Wear a VOC face mask.