Dry pine and finishing.

[Robert WA]

I picked up a 3000 mm length of laminated pine, radiata, (the stuff they make bench tops from) at Bunnings. Someone had ordered it and had never picked it up. I was in there to get garden stuff for my wife (I swear to you that is the truth) and saw it leaning against a wall. Asked an assistant about it and ended up getting it for half price. It was 750 mm wide by 45 mm thick.
My daughter happened to turn up the next day and immediately demanded that I use it to build a 2400 mm desk. She is into desktop publishing and wanted a long narrow desk for her work. She is also into ignoring any advice I give her about soft timber desk tops.
The desk is made, trestle legs, modesty skirt and suspended drawers and keyboard slide. Now I have to finish it.
I don't know who made the slab or how old it is, but it is dry and porous. I want a finish that will give it some moisture and will resist cracking or lifting over the inevitable dents that it will suffer.
I will have to apply a grain filler to get a decent surface and I have a turps soluble one available. Is that the way to go, and what will best work over a filler?

[Shane Watson]

Whoa... Grainfiller on pine???? Might want to re-think that idea. Alls its going to do is provide some colour to the timber. Waste of time... You want to introduce moisture to timber??? Usually the idea is to have dry timber to avoid movement etc..

If it were my desk I would just throw a couple of coats of acid cure lacquer over it.

But then I don't 'use' a desk as a work bench like a desktop publisher does, so maybe a good seal with shellac and a good buff with some good quality wax is the best way to go. I would avoid oils as these might interfere with various papers etc that will no doubt find there way onto the desk top. Plus oils really do need to be re-applied regularly (though so do wax's, but not as often)

Anyway..HTH!

Cheers!

[derekcohen]

Robert

I think your key sentence was "She is also into ignoring any advice I give her about soft timber desk tops".

So I would go for a durable polyurethane varnish finish.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Shane Watson]

The problem with varnish's, lacquers, estapols etc on pine is that a big enough bang on the timber will fracture the finish. Think we have all seen cheap pine table tops with really dirty spots where this has happened and the dirt has worked in under the finish eventually causing the finish to start delaminating......

[Robert WA]

I didn't explain the timber very well. The surface is dry and powdery and has a tendency to come off in thin flakes. Something I have not seen before.
Rather than getting "moisture" into it as I said before, I need to get a binder into it. Something that will penetrate and hold the surface together.
I am concerned that any "setting" film finish I put on will just lift, bringing the timber surface with it.
Does the situation ring any bells?

[ubeaut]

Don't want to sound like I'm making fun of you. But, have you tried planing and sanding it. Sounds like you have rough sawn timber that hasn't been dressed yet. If it has been dressed then it sounds like it is rotten and needs to be burnt.

Cheers - Neil

[Robert WA]

No offence taken here. All comment is good comment.
The slab came dressed and coated in some sort of clear finish. The finish was rubbish, uneven and full of bubble pockmarks, obviously just a protective coat. I removed it by scraping and sanding. At that stage I began to experience the powdering and flaking of the surface.
My guess is that the timber has been dehydrated in the process of lamination of the slab.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Powdered wood - just add water?

[Kev Y.]

Robert, why not get a piece of glass cut to cover the desk top? that way it will not matter what condition the timber is in (within reason) and it will be easy to keep clean as well.