Deft Laquer / Arm-A-Seal / Seal-A Cell.

Chuck Beland

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Rhode Island
My local Woodcraft had some Deft Laquer. Due to my basement shop & windows that don't open & oil fired boiler only 10 ft away I had to forget the oil based due to the can said must vent fumes & hazard for flash fire.

So I picked up the Deft waterborne clear high gloss. What is the best way to get a high gloss shine using this?

On the bowls I posted I used Minwax poly but I wanted to try Deft Laquer & I also just picked up the seal-a cell & arm-a seal. I want to see which one I like best for finish.

How would you get the best gloss from these?

Thanks for all the help

Chuck
 
Here's one recipe for using Seal-A-Cell and Arm-R-Seal.

Sand to 800, apply a single coat of Seal-A-Cell, dry for 10-12 hours. Then buff with Tripoli and White Diamond (see below). Next, apply two or three coats of Arm-R-Seal, allowing a minimum of 12 hours between coats. Buffing between coats may be recommended depending on how even the coats are applied.

That'll give you a high-gloss.

One thing to note... you don't want to use White Diamond on woods with open pores or lots of small inclusions. The white grit in the compound will get trapped in the gaps and look terrible.
 
Neal gave you some good advice. Only thing I do different is I don't buff between coats because even though I cleaned what I thought was pretty well when I did the second or third coat there were small places the finish wouldn't stick. Don't know if it was me or the buffing.

By the way I use the Seal-A-Cell and Arm-R-Seal for utility bowls used for food also.
 
Chuck, Bernie offered good advice regarding buffing in between coats of finish, especially using compounds most woodworkers use. Most tripoli and white diamond compounds use either animal or vegetable fat as a binder, to hold the abrasive together in stick form. This can at times prevent good adhesion of a finish if any residue is left from buffing. You would need to wipe the piece down well with a solvent to remove any residue before adding additional coats of the finish. I have experimented with finishing both ways, and I find that buffing between coats didn't yield any better results than buffing after the last coat was applied. (In some cases, buffing between coats ruined the finish, and made a mess of things, that was difficult to correct. :huh:

With the General brand of finishes, you can get a glass-like shine without buffing in between coats. Apply 3 coats, sanding lightly with 800 or 1000 grit between coats. When cured, I hand buff with a white synthetic pad, then go to the Beall Wheels. I finish it off with a coat of Renaissance Wax. With any finish, the end result begins with the raw sanding of the piece, and more importantly, letting the finish cure well before buffing. Finishing is a fickle thing. What works very well for one person doesn't work worth a hoot for another..........one of the mysteries of woodworking I guess! ;)
 
I'm curious about the water based Deft. I'm a fan of the Deft lacquer products but would like to try something that doesn't send me into LaLaLand when I breathe the fumes.
 
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