Looking for a glassy finish

[Novice Jeff]

Hi,

I have an old, solid, Queensland maple cabinet I am doing up, and after reading lots of postings on this site, I decided to use Cabots Gelclear Gloss - polyurethane. I have sanded down the whole cabinet, down to 600 grade, and it looks great.

Have put 4 coats on with sanding in between. I am using a brush and am hoping I can get it to glassy finish. But so far it still has lines in it - brush marks.

Do you think it is possible to get mirror finish using brush and Gelcoat?? Is there something else I should be doing??

Any advice appreciated - Jeff

[ciscokid]

Hmmmmm. You could try an experiment on a piece of scrap. Try wiping the finish on with clean cloths. It takes longer to build up a finish, but I don't get lines when I do it this way. Best of luck!

[Novice Jeff]

Thanks - I'll give this a try. I have also read about the EEE on the forum, and maybe I'll try cutting the finish back with that when I have have a few more layers on. Maybe that will polish any imperfections out.

[munruben]

If you have brush marks in your work you are not going to get rid of them by applying more finish with a brush. You really have to sand the brush marks out between coats to provide a smooth surface for the next coat. Is it warm enough where you are doing your work? Temperature can have a bearing on your finish like brush marks if it is too cold. I would do as ciscokid suggests and try using a cloth to apply the finish instead of a brush.
Might be an idea to have a look HERE and read about Traditional Wax as a final process if you want a really great finish to your work. Good luck

[Novice Jeff]

Thanks John,

Have just sanded out all the brush marks (whew!!), and put a coat on with a cloth. I can see it will take a few coatings this way, but it does look a smoother finish.

Temp here should be OK - am not far from you in Brissy. Probably trying to put too much on with each coat using the brush. The gel is pretty thick and it feels like you have to load up the brush to get coverage.

Looked at the traditional wax info, and I will probably try some of that when I have put more coats on.

Thanks for the advice.

Jeff

[starr]

To get a smooth finish I wet sand between coats. Start with 320 grit wet and dry paper after the first coat and wet sand, using a little soap in the water. Wipe off any residue. Recoat and use 400 grit this time. Repeat using 600 grit. By the end it should be as smooth as a baby's bottom, but won't be a gloss finish if that's what you are after.

If you want gloss, you can use car polishing products (Mequires is probably best) with a sheep's wool pad on an polishing disk in your drill to really bring out the shine.

[durwood]

To get a realy glossy finish you have to have a few things going for you.

First if the material is too thick it will set up before it has time for the brush marks to flow out. so you may have to add some turps to reduce the viscosity. Take it easy it will only need a tiny amount ( you can always add a bit more harder to take it out)

You will need a good pure bristle brush and the temperature needs to be in the mid twenties. too hot and the paint will dry too quickly too slow as Munruben says tends to stop it flowing out also.

Practice on something first, and apply a full wet coat with the brush just get it on quickly) once the area is covered then wipe out the excess paint and lightly wipe the surface with the tip of the brush along the length of the panel. It should be still wet enough to allow the brush marks to flow out before it sets up. If the surface is vertical finish your brush strokes up and down not across ways.

There is no need to use as fine a paper as you are using 240 in more than smooth enough ( the material will easily fill the scratches left by it) but before you brush any surface it must be smooth. The next coat won't be able to handle any faults left in the previous coat it can only become perfectly flat if it is on a surface which is also flat. Tiny variations sometimes come out but if you knew they were there and they didn't come out you immediately know you should have rubbed a bit more.


Done properly it is impossible to tell if the surface is sprayed or brushed, it just takes a lot more effort to brush a perfect finish than spray one.

[Novice Jeff]

Thanks for the advice,

Must admit to some frustration - feel like I have sanded off more than I have put on!!!!

Have sanded wet with 600 grade, so got the surface smooth as glass. But putting the gelcoat on, both with brush and cloth, has proved difficult. I think you are right that it needs thinning - I think it is drying out too quickly. Just not sure about thinning the gel product. Will have a go tomorrow.

Thanks again

jeff

[MacS]

Jeff,

The more coats you keep applying on the piece, the greater the odds that the coating will eventually start cracking. You need to allow the coating to dry for at least 72 hours

There comes a time that you have to start rubbing out and polishing it up to bring out the gloss in the coating.

Is the "gelcoat" your using a gloss, satin, or flat. Read the label, some gelcoats are not intended to be altered, the way they dry is the way they stay.

Good Luck

[manoftalent]

umm.....I may be tired ....but was'nt there a product called "glass coat".....that when applied was =to 50 coats of poly?......I am sure I read it here some time ago, and if memory serves me ....bunnies has it ..

[Novice Jeff]

Thanks,

The Gel coat is gloss - and I don't think I'll thin in down. Have rubbed back again to "glass" finish, and I think I'll try some traditional wax on it now. I have a buffing pad for angle grinder and see if I can buff it up with the wax.

Thanks for the tip about "glass cote". Will see if I can find out more about that as well.

Cheers

jeff

[Cruzi]

Angle grinders are waaaaaaay to fast for polishing, they go around 10,000rpm, you need a polisher if you are going to buff the piece, most go between 900-3000rpm, much safer for polishing.

Also read that if looking for high gloss finish, the longer you allow the finish to cure before rubbing the final gloss the better, 2-3 weeks minimum.

[MacS]

If professionals had to wait that long, they would go out of business.

That's OK, if your getting the real big bucks for your work, or its for yourself and you have plenty of time.

Also, it depends on the coating your using.

[Cruzi]

If professionals had to wait that long, they would go out of business.

Thats why most commercial furniture is finished in satin.

The book reasons that the finish should be fully cured to get highest gloss, with polys this is usually 2 weeks, with shellac its about 6 weeks

You can get a gloss finish much quicker, but its not as long lasting or glassy.

It didn't sound like Novice Jeff was doing a commercial production run, rather a restoration at home, don't think production efficiency is a high priority.

[artme]

At one stage I considered myself to be the world's worst finisher when it came to "painting" on a finish, be it with a brush, a roller or anything else.
however advice from those with experience taught me this:

• Don't work the finish too much, because it will start to "go off before you are done.This leaves ugly marks.
• Work quickly and smoothly
• For "varnish type" finishes a Lambswool applicator is often the best solution.
• Try o have the surface you are working on in a horizontal poition as this will give the finish a better chance to level itself.