(upbeat country music) - Hi, welcome to "The American Woodshop."

I'm Scott Phillips, and today, A to Z on finishing.

So, if you've ever had a challenge with finish work, stay around.

This is going to be fun, it's going to be easy.

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- What's the most important thing you can do as a woodworker?

Learn how to finish, right?

When people feel the furniture and they go, "Oh, that wood feels so good," it's not the wood they're feeling, it's the finish.

And if the finish is rough, well, you might as well give it up.

If you spend a lot of time like we did last week building this, and 26 minutes and 46 seconds on the show, you wanna take time finishing, right?

And let's just say you don't have a finishing booth.

Well, get yourself an all cotton drop cloth, and you can see those yellow poles going to the ceiling from the work bench.

And I'm going to get up there, hang this down, so when we use the HVLP sprayer to put the top coat on this, the finish stays in this area.

Let me get to work, drop clothing this, and then we'll get on into spraying perfect finishes.

(wood stacking sound) We're going to put the final coat of finish on this, and it's going to be shellac.

And I'm going to show you how to make that in a second.

Let me turn this on briefly, and just give you idea, a hint of what a HVLP system does.

(loud air spraying noise) Now watch, I'm going to turn this, so it's on the diagonal.

This adjusts the needle; it's pushed all the way in gently, one, two.

I back it off two partial turns, and watch what happens.

(air sound decreasing slightly) I'm going to put this on.

Watch the finial.

Now turn that off.

(air sound ending) And that shellac dries so quickly, because its base, the solvent is alcohol, which makes it safe.

But the over sprays caught by this drop cloth now, plastic, it would bounce back at you.

And HVLP means high volume low pressure, which means 90% of the finish goes where you want it to go, and it stays there.

So, a couple other things.

In taking care of the spray gun, when it's on the diagonal, that gives you a broadcast, which is good for hitting corners and inside edges, things with curves and details.

When you dial it that way, the spray pattern goes vertical.

So, that's good for the drawer fronts.

And when you dial it that way, goes horizontal, so, that's a really good way to do the side panel.

So, it pays to know the gun.

Now why use shellac?

It's a great finish, and it's also historically accurate.

These are lac flakes from Pakistan, Dewaxed meaning they're high quality flakes and what you do to make your own, because you can buy it in cans, but it just comes as a clear.

I want the color on cherry.

And why you use shellac in the first place on cherry, cherry blotches, everybody who's ever put a finish on cherry knows it's really hard to deal with.

Shellac's the one thing that cherry loves and it never blotches.

So, what you do is to make your own shellac is you get good high quality dewaxed flakes, and then you pour them into a plastic or glass container, never metal because it creates a reaction with the metal and then you cover it with alcohol, just enough alcohol, so that the flakes are covered.

And what you do then is you stir that up thoroughly, set it in the sunlight away from heat sources, whatever you do, no open flames obviously, and forget about it for a day.

Put a top on it, and then on the second day, stir it again, and let it melt down.

And then on the third day, you decant the top 75% off without stirring and that leaves any contaminants in the bottom and you end up with a pound and a half cut of shellac.

Now I've simplified it.

I know that's right, and that's what we're using on this gun.

So, what's next now, I have to take off all the brasses, and I'll get to that.

And then we can do some spraying to really make this shine.

A little bit of sanding, and I'm using 400 grit, this screen-like sandpaper with a block and a light touch to mellow out the edges.

Just barely touch it.

And then the big thing is surface preparation.

You need to tack it off completely, so there's no grit or sanding dust.

And have a brush ready when you get ready to spray.

Now I'll get the brasses off and then we can really make this shine.

(flash sound) The single most important thing about finishing is surface preparation, also, you want to be finishing in temperatures around 70 to 80 degrees and humidity is 40 to 60%, ideally.

Make sure it's thoroughly tacked off and clean before you start to spray.

And, I have ambient air cleaners on.

You can't hear them, but work in a very well-ventilated place.

Always wear gloves, because your skin does absorb solvents.

Alcohol is a solvent.

And let's turn this on.

(machine turning on loudly) (yelling) And we're spraying shellac.

I dial that all the way in.

One, two, two turns back.

We're going to do the vertical, watch what happens, with the vertical spray pattern right there.

This is on a test sample.

We're making sure that everything's coming out, no drips, no runs.

That looks perfect right there.

That's why I like garnet shellac on cherry.

Now, when I dial it straight up and down, watch what happens in this pass.

Notice I am triggering the spray and releasing it.

Stop right there.

(machine turning off) (normal voice) And the mistake that most people make when they do any sort of finishing is they try to put on too much.

And this is where that brush comes in handy.

If you see any blemishes, you can go in there like an artist and finish it off.

And that's all there is to it.

And you see how the brasses are telegraphed through.

Cherry is one of the rare woods that's photoreactive to ultraviolet rays of the sun.

And that's what happens.

You take that outside, you let the sun bring up that rich color and that way you don't have to use stains to bring up the rich color of the cherry.

This is why I love cherry, so it's gorgeous.

So, there's some really good tips on working with shellac.

Now let's say you want to use a durable finish.

There's a gentleman, Tom Monahan, who knows more about finishing than I ever will.

Let's go visit with Tom.

(wood stacking sound) We're lucky to be back with Tom Monahan of General Finishes.

And Tom, last time you helped us on the barn door.

Now we're working on a classic Queen Anne lowboy.

And we're working on the tabletop, making it durable.

Give us your pointers.

- All right, and what do you have on here now?

- Shellac, garnet shellac.

- So, you got garnet shellac on here.

- On cherry.

- On cherry.

So, what we're gonna do is we're gonna actually take light brown dye stain, and then mix it into the General Finishes high-performance flat.

I use this as a kind of an aged-finish or toner over woods like cherry and walnut, mahogany, but still makes it dry quick and handle really quick and easy.

I will sand it just a little bit though.

- Okay, now whenever you put the first finish coat on, it's gonna raise the grain.

So, this has been sanded down through 180.

- Okay.

- Okay, and I did that for color.

And you know how cherry likes to blotch?

- Yes.

- [Scott] Shellac does not let it do that-- - [Tom] Exactly.

- [Scott] It kinda seals the grain.

That's why I like that.

And I only use garnet on cherry.

And man, when we get that lowboy done, it's going to just shine.

So, we always wear N-95 dust masks when we sand.

- [Tom] Exactly.

- And use dust extractors, whatever you do.

Okay, so right now, tell us what you're up to.

- Well, I just, I'm just knocking it down with a 220 flexible sanding pad.

I'm not really trying to oversand it, because I gotta prep the shellac to accept the next coat of finish.

And the water-based finishes are actually very compatible with shellac.

On my finishing projects, I like to take a little bit of the dye stain and mixing it into the high-performance to create kind of just a toned finish.

It's not going to radically alter the color, but it's just going to give it more depth and bring out the natural color of the cherry.

And I think you'll see the result when we're done here.

- Okay - Okay, let's give it a whirl.

(machine powering on) (spraying sounds) - [Scott] Give us some spray tips right now.

- Slow and easy.

I don't wanna be too quick here.

I just wanna let the finish come off the gun, and you can kind of see I'm following my pattern and overlapping about 25%.

And it's just a mechanical movement.

You just wanna perfect-- Take your time, lay it down.

And this is gonna dry about tack-free in about 5 to 10 minutes.

You'll be ready to sand in 30 to 45 minutes.

And I can actually build more coats to finish, or I could stop right now.

- Boy, I'll tell you what, that's perfect right there.

And I really do believe (machine powering off) if there's any one mistake that people that don't finish a lot do is they try to put too much on.

- Right.

Less is more, nice even coats, they'll dry quicker, they'll flow and level uniformly.

So, when you can come back, this will be dry, like I said in about 30, 45 minutes.

I'll scuff sand it.

I could continue to build color coats and build more depth, or if I'm happy with my color, then I would put a final coat of clear on top of this.

So I could change the color of this if we had to.

If you wanted it more red, more brown, more amber, just use a different dye stain.

- Well, this is perfect.

So, from General Finishes, the reason I work with them and the reason I use more of their finishes is because it just works.

You've made it easy over the years, so Tom-- - Thank you.

- Thank you very much.

- Good stuff.

- It is great stuff.

And that will be what we use on the rest of this lowboy.

Would you look at that quilted-- - Gorgeous.

- Cherry right there.

That's just grand.

Well, thank you, Tom!

- Appreciate it.

- Now back to the shop and let's finish this.

(flash sound) (loud compressor sound) - (yelling over compressor) Now back to it here at the wood shop, see how that's set up?

I dial that in just ever so slightly.

I don't want to deliver too much material into those crevices.

It may not look like I'm spraying much, but I am.

And you want keep moving, whatever you do.

And then, notice how I'm trigger on, trigger off.

Now that gives me the vertical which what I'm doing right now is called crosshatching.

And that way I get a very uniform coat.

And you really don't want there to be-- (machine turning off) (normal voice) Lot of material in there, because shellac dries so quickly.

N-95 dust mask, a must.

Now let's do something unconventional.

There's a lowboy that Suzy's working on outside, because it's warm enough and she's using high-performance flat on top of that one that Tom Monahan did the top on.

And this is a great top finish for tables.

Let's go see what Suzy's up to.

(whirlwind sound) - All right, it's time to do some finishing on this beautiful cherry lowboy that I've always wanted.

So, thank you, Scott!

I love it.

I'm gonna use a high-performance flat finish on this, because with the beautiful cherry, I'm not gonna need anything more than that.

And I do have to give a shout out to Scott with his beautiful covered patio that's all finished.

I have a great big barn, but it's pretty nice when you can work out here.

So, he steals my tools, I'll steal his space.

So, let's get to it.

So, once again, the high-performance, I'm doing a flat so the cherry can really pop, that great pattern.

Don't forget your safety glasses, your dust mask or mask to protect from the fumes and gloves.

And I'm gonna get the sprayer going and it'll be looking good.

So, here we go!

(machine turning on) With the air brusher, less is always more, 'cause you can sand it, add more later.

And it only takes about two hours in between coats.

(wood stacking sound) Now after airbrush mode, you turn it horizontal and you get a vertical spray, and I can do the drawers and then I'll do the opposite.

And you can slowly see, that beautiful cherry shining through.

And just quick, easy coats.

Take your time and look at that, woo!

All right now, the figure on this is just awesome.

So, let's see how that goes.

And so that I'm gonna turn it vertical and it's gonna gimme horizontal for a better coverage area.

And as you're doing the motion, it's basically gonna be a trigger on, trigger off.

'Cause you don't wanna waste any more finish than you have to.

Trigger on and off as you're getting to the end, on and off.

And they need you to take your time, do as many coats as you need.

Two hours in between coats and you're good.

(wood stacking sound) Now I'm gonna do the legs and I'm turn airbrush mode for the legs.

And then if I need to brush it out a little bit, I can, boy, that's looking good.

Woo!

All right!

Boy, it's looking good.

Let it dry.

I might hit it with another coat.

And there you go.

(wood stacking sound) - I'll tell you, Suzy has the touch, light touch, no drips, no runs.

It's just spectacular.

And by using the flat, really makes that grain pop out.

Look at the figure in that top board, just grand.

And high performance is the way to go.

Now, moving on, tail of chairs.

Queen Anne-era led to Chippendale.

Queen Anne, Chippendale.

During Chippendale, Windsor forms became very popular.

That's a Windsor, this is a Windsor.

This is a Queen Anne.

You can see the distinct design differences.

And these are great chairs, but they need some care.

There are some products you need to know about.

This is called Odie's Safer Solvent.

Really good to use.

But whenever it says solvent, I'm always wearing good gloves, not the cheap ones.

This is furniture cleaner.

This is great stuff.

But there again, it has solvents in it.

So, wear gloves and work in a well-ventilated place.

So, what do I do with old pieces?

I clean 'em up.

I don't try to make 'em look new.

So, to that end, the first part of this, I don't do any sanding.

And by the way, once it's clean, it gets Renaissance Wax on top of it, because that keeps it close to the original form.

So, I use a tack cloth to get all the grime and grit off the chairs first.

And then, I go right to the furniture cleaner, the solvent.

And you know, some people say you should strip these things down.

Oh, heck no.

What you want to do is clean them up and preserve that old finish that's on there.

The less you do to it, the better it is.

And old t-shirts are the way to go.

And look what will happen, once you bring this up by cleaning it, you get that wonderful old patina that you can't recreate, and you just don't want to use these solvents on bare wood.

It's not good for it.

It raises the grain, and this chair tells a story.

It's been around a long time.

So, why would I want to make that all go away?

So, I'll get this cleaned up, then go to the Queen Anne chair, do the same over here, get it cleaned up.

And then we'll talk about some other things that you can do to add life to chairs.

(swishing sound) Everybody uses a chair every single day.

And the Windsor form is my favorite.

And that one is cleaned up and ready for the kitchen.

It's all done.

I can buff a bit with wax.

This has a padded seat that's probably 90 years old.

It's in pretty good shape.

Gets fastened from below, but I'll buff this out with a little bit of wax.

Several good coats on this.

I don't want to change the finish, 'cause it's old.

It has a story to tell.

Now this is a piece that I made a while back, and it's a blend of various things.

Maple on the top, red oak spindles, laminated hard maple, figured hard maple, and genuine mahogany.

And what I want to do with that is put Arm-R-Seal on it.

And this is why: out of all the finishes that I use, I end up using more Arm-R-Seal than anything else, because it just soaks into the wood.

It's a very durable finish.

I like high-performance for tabletops better than this, but it's a very durable tabletop.

And just look at the wood grain.

It just speaks to me.

It's just grand.

So, I brush that out on the entire chair, and then look at the arms.

Watch this, look at that figure, that tiger maple that's been cut into thin strips and then laminated.

I mean it's just like alive.

That's why I make things.

I love the surprise that the grain has for all of us.

Can you just imagine your life without wood?

I can't.

There's no way.

So, those are some of my favorite finishes.

Let's hit that crest rail.

You didn't realize there would be a history lesson today in the wood shop, but how in the world can you make it if you don't know the roots and know the history of it all?

So, let's see that crest rail here.

Ooh, buddy!

Just needed it.

And then the other cool thing about this is the grain really-- (laughing) is prettier on the back.

Look at this.

I mean, good grief, that's grand, and that's why you make your own things.

So, you can use the wood as your palette to really tell a story and just draw people right on in.

And it really does enrich everyone's life when you make beautiful things.

So anyways, Arm-R-Seal, fabulous, finish that you should give a go.

Now it's time to head outside and do some outdoor finish work.

Looking nice!

(wood stacking sound) - (yelling over sprayer) All right!

We're gonna get a nice outdoor finish on this beautiful keyed chair we did a couple episodes ago.

We're using an exterior 450, and it's just a great finish.

So, have it at an angle, so it's like an airbrush thing.

And here we go.

Start at the bottom, quick.

Quick brushes, and just go back and forth and just do light coats.

'Cause you can always go back and do the rest later.

This airbrush is good for getting in those crevices.

Woo, it's looking good!

Then I can turn it on horizontal and get better thicker coats now and just go back over it.

Light beautiful coat.

And I love using this, because it's just a great durable outdoor finish.

What do you think, Scott?

- (yelling over sprayer) I think you're a master.

Let me borrow that.

- All right.

- There's one little area right here that you couldn't see.

- Yep.

(machine turning off) - (normal voice) And I'll tell you what, Suzy, this is gonna be fun for the garden party.

- Yeah!

- We made a bunch of these so, and some people are going to win 'em.

- All right!

- So-- - All right!

- So that's what you can do.

Throw your own party and give away some of the wooden things that you've made.

- Yes.

- Now Exterior 450 is good on signs too, so I'm gonna get to it.

Whatever you do, go get busy in your wood shop!

See you later.

Thanks for being with us this week.

- See ya!

- Bye.

(country music playing) - Woodcraft.

Since 1928, providing traditional and modern woodworking tools and supplies to generations of craftsmen.

Woodcraft, helping you make wood work.

(rock music) - Pro Tools for tool pros.

Rikon Tools.

- Woodcraft Magazine, projects, plans, and web links designed to help you make wood work.

- PS Wood, home of Timber Wolf, Swedish silicon steel band saw blades, and super sharp scroll saw blades.

- A bed to sleep on.

A table to share meals.

A house that feels like a home.

The Furniture Bank of central Ohio, providing furniture to neighbors in need.

- For more information on tips behind "The American Woodshop" and watch free episodes 24/7, check us out online and like us on Facebook.

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