Beginners Finish for Cabinet

[asayer]

Hi all,
I've been wood turning on and off for many years and have almost always used a wax or polish of one type or another.

Im getting to the end of my first cabinet making attempt, a baby change cabinet with draws etc.

I've started with a coat of Cabbits Walnut Satin Stain/Varnish and although I like the color as well as the finish on my test piece, I am finding dust is a problem which is leaving spec marks etc.

I did the best I can to minimise any dust including letting the workshop settle for a day.

So is there any quick and simple things I can do?

And/or is there any wax type finishes out there that a readily available that don’t cost a bomb that will harden up to provide a reasonable finish?

Thanks in advance
AS

[BozInOz]

Hmmm. Dust is the killer of those thick film finishing. It's a good idea to leave the shop dust to settle for a day or two. Try very thin coats, sanding back in between layers to remove the dust bumps, also helps with varnish lumps. Try sealing the wood with a sealer or 1lb shellac to prevent wood rise. Hmm...

Personally, I gave up with film finishes. Minwax wipe on poly is good as it's thin and has good reviews. I did all my early projects with Feast Watson's Satin proof, lovely tough finish, but has fust problems.

Nowadays... nearly all my finishes are a coat of 1lb shellac... than organoil danish or hard burnishing oil. Sand between coats. Couldn't be easier.

[RufflyRustic]

I've found that I make all the sawdust, get the projects sanded to finishing stage and then have a massive cleanup in the shed before I do a lot of finishing. I generally have about 3-4 projects ready to all be finished at the same time, it just depends on the size of the projects though.

I find having a couple of tack cloths on hand extremely useful. I keep them in those glad sandwich bags which seal very well.

One tack cloth for lower grades of sandpaper, one for the finer grades and another for when I'm in the middle of applying the finish and I've just lightly sanded the finish to de-nib it.

Another method is to have a vacuum cleaner on hand and a soft-bristled paintbrush and go over the surface with both together.


As for a wax finish, you can't go past U-Beaut's Traditional Wax. Readily available, easy to apply and gives the finish that you said you wanted in a wax.

Cheers
Wendy

[asayer]

Thanks guys, :yourock2:
Appreciate the suggestions, I'll give it a go.