Wax Buffing System

Dan Mosley

Member
Messages
1,169
Location
Palm Springs, Ca
Thanks to everyone for their input on the Beall and Pencil setups....after a review and seeing the chucking etc ......i ordered the Pencil Buffing system and should be here by weeks end......I spoke directly with Don and he is a very nice guy and knowledgable. He offered to have me call him after setting it up and would answer anything i needed to know...he made sure i was ordering the correct setup for my Jet etc..........
Anybody have any tips or thoughts before i get it up and running let me know im going to be new at buffing as i have always used Varnish and Laquers.........guess this will add to the shine some or polish from what im told....thoughts? Thanks Dan
 
Follow the directions and sand the wheels. You won't regret it. At least wear a face shield when buffing, keeps the white fuzzies out of your beard!:rofl:
You will love it. It will add a whole 'nother dimension to your finishing techniques. Sometimes I use the last wheel, carnuba wax, for high finishing of lacquers or other finishes as a touch up. Then there are the opportunities of taking the raw product through all three wheels and ending up with a glass like finish. Also check the speed limits and move your VS or belts accordingly, can't remember at the moment what the speed is. Enjoy it when you get them.
 
One thing I will tell you is make sure your finish is cured before taking it to the buffing wheels. I leave poly, antique or danish oil and lacquer cure for a week before I buff. If you don't and get heavy handed you can burn thru the finish and that is not a good thing.:bang: Also on dark porous woods such as walnut do not use the white diamond on it. You will have a bowl or whatever full of white spots filling those little pores. I just use the tripoli and wax if I put it on. Most times I don't use the carnuba wax since if you get water on it will leave water spots.
 
Dan,
I have Don's buffing system and I definitely like it. The Carnuba wheel is a very soft flannel and you will definitely get lots of fluffy stuff in the air until it's broken in... and follow Jonathan's advise... you'll need to wear a breathing mask of some sort plus a face shield to keep the dust out of your nose and eyes and if you're like me and Jonathan, your beard.
 
Another note...when buffing a piece finished with brushing lacquer, buff lightly because it is easy to burn right through the finish since the finish is so thin.
 
Yet another note...

I concur with what everyone else has said.

I don't prefer a super high gloss, and so I have been skipping the white diamond on all species of wood. I buff with tripoli, then straight to carnauba. I still get a very nice finish, with a little softer look than a crystal clear shiny gloss. The sheen is also very dependent on how fine I sand the finishes between coats. I used the exact same finishing process on about 16 bowls this last September, and the ones I sanded with 600 before the final coat buffed very differently than the ones I sanded with 1000 before the final coat.

So keep in mind there a few different factors to consider when buffing. It's worth doing considerable experimentation.

Hutch
 
I just bought The Pencil system at the AAW Desert Roundup in Mesa last weekend. Don was a vendor there. Got the wheels, bowl buffs, goblett buffs and a wheel and buff and some sort of compound for one-step buffing of laquer and poly That he has started selling. I know zip about buffing other than the basic steps that came with the system. Looks like I'm in for some trial and error. Jonathan, what did you mean by "sand the wheels"?
 
I would suggest you cover the lathe bed with something to protect your project when the buffing wheel removes it forcefully from your hand :( and leave a big pile of shavings on the floor. I use a router mat spread over the ways.

George
 
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