clouds, acetone

[Munsterlander]

OK, batting about .333 on CA/BLO finish with the biggest culprit being the dreaded clouds.

Russ posted a while back that that happens when there's still too much moisture in the wood. I also saw someone say to throw them in a drawer and wait and sometimes they go away (you guys have more patience than me... ;)

So couple questions:

1) Somebody said you could remove all the CA using acetone. My intuition is to try that because I'm a little afraid of sanding back down because it would be pretty easy to wind up sanding below the bushings. So if using acetone is not a bad idea - and I realize this will sound like a silly question - but could someone say how they actually do it? Is it just as simple as getting a cloth, getting a little acetone on it and rubbing? How long does it typically take? I have this really beautiful set of barrels made from curly australian cypress I don't want to ruin - are there pitfalls to avoid with the acetone on the wood?

2) Once that's done and I have to wait a while for the moisture to go down - how long? Someone said throw it in a bucket of saw dust, got plenty of that... Other ways to get it dry?

Thanks.

[LostintheWoods]

Having used acetone to remove CA from bushings on a regular basis, I would have second thoughts about using it to remove a CA finish; I can foresee a sticky, gooey mess. Not saying it can't be done, but if it were me, I'd opt for CAREFULLY sanding down the finish, instead. When you get close to bushing size, use a fine grit of sandpaper so as not to take off too much material. (Just my "dos centavos'" worth.)

[leehljp]

I have removed CA on several occasions and started over, including with a fairly thick coating. Mostly I did it because of problems on oily ebonies. Patience is a must. If you are really skillful, you can use your favorite chisel to turn of most of the coating and then sand the rest off.

As Shannon said, it does cause a gooey mess. But that is part of it. It probably will not come off in 30 seconds, and takes working it for two, three or four minutes (or maybe more) literally - of working, soaking it with an <s>CA</s> [u]ACETONE</u> dampened paper towel and wiping. It is not a matter of "how many minutes" but of "what is it going to take to get it right" which is totally dependent on the individual's skill and degree of perfection value. With experience, the time required will usually decrease with each trial.

I allow overnight drying in the fall, winter, and spring and at least an hour in the hot summer before going forward. Patience is your friend, get to know her! Patience spurned is like a woman scorned. :D

[redfishsc]

Originally posted by leehljp

It probably will not come off in 30 seconds, and takes working it for two, three or four minutes (or maybe more) literally - of working, soaking it with a CA dampened paper towel and wiping.

Hey Hank, you might try using a paper towel soaked in Acetone instead of CA, might cut down on your time a little!;););)[8D]

[leehljp]

Originally posted by redfishsc

Hey Hank, you might try using a paper towel soaked in Acetone instead of CA, might cut down on your time a little!;););)[8D]

YOU GOT THAT RIGHT! [:o)] [:I] [B)] :D