Behlen's Woodturner Finish

[jttheclockman]

Has anyone used Behlen's woodturners finsh for their pen top coat?? If so how do you like it?? How well does it stand up??? How many coats do you apply??? What is your procedure to apply it??? Do you get a nice gloss with it??

 

[wickford]

I used Behlan's until I learned (just recently) how to do a CA finish.

When doing the Behlan's I sand to 400 with sandpaper, then MM 1500-12000, then a coat of Zinser's sanding sealer(the one without any shellac or wax in it), then EEE, then 3 coats of Behlan's. I buff the Behlan's between each coat with the lathe on using the dried paper towel that I used to apply the finish. Shines up very nice and seems pretty durable...

 

[Sfolivier]

It's my favorite friction shellac for pens . Like all finishes of this type it doesn't really last. I made curly maple pens that kept the finish for 6 months (and are still going), and I've made purple heart pens that kept it for 2 weeks. Overall, I would label it as "non durable". The gloss is fine (2-3 coat) but doesn't compare to a nice buffed oil/wax finish, CA or Enduro. I actually use it very rarely now. When I do I apply it as Wickford does but don't even use a sanding sealer (just EEE). Make sure it gets hot when applied (use thickly folded paper towels).

 

[loglugger]

Originally posted by wickford

I used Behlan's until I learned (just recently) how to do a CA finish.

When doing the Behlan's I sand to 400 with sandpaper, then MM 1500-12000, then a coat of Zinser's sanding sealer(the one without any shellac or wax in it), then EEE, then 3 coats of Behlan's. I buff the Behlan's between each coat with the lathe on using the dried paper towel that I used to apply the finish. Shines up very nice and seems pretty durable...

I use this sometimes but with out the EEE.
Bob