My First Pen Finishing Using High Gloss WB Laquer

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William Young

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Wynndel, British Columbia, Canada.
My quart of high gloss WB laquer arrived late this afternoon via greyhound bus so I went into my shop this evening and tried it out on a couple pens I had turned yesterday because I was waiting for the product to arrive before finishing.
There is definitely a learning curve to applying it (at least the way I am doing it) so I wont elaborate on that until I have got it to where I am totally satisfied with my procedure. But at this early stage I am delighted with the results. The film thickness of three coats of that has to be at least equivalent to a dozen applications of frction polish finishes and it is a lot more durable finish that should stand up to a lot of abuse and hard wear.
After experimenting with first semi gloss WB laquer and now with the high gloss version, I doubt if I will ever go back to friction polish finishes.

This finish is making some of my previous attemps look shabby now so I am going to dissasemble at least 6 to 10 of them (if not more) and either strip down and re-finish them or just use the hardware for some different pens.

Top one is Honduras rosewood with maple band and bottom one is my first olive wood pen and it has a walnut band.
The picture was taken with my camera with no flash and just my normal shop lighting.
W.Y.

65524050.jpg
 
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I too am a lacquer fan!! Your finish looks excellent!! Looks like your learning curve will be very small.[:)]

BTW- is this the WB lacquer recommended by Wayne?
 
Bill;
It is a different one than what Wayne is using. . This company has 12 distributors in USA and one in Canada. This industrial finishes manufacturer will also sell in quantities as small as a quart to hobiests as well as in large quantity to industry. It is not available in stores.
Here's the scoop on it.
http://www.targetcoatings.com/products/coatings/oxford_spray_lacq.html
W.Y.
 
I checked out the site for your WB lacquer, William. I am going to order a quart of the high gloss. When I get it I hope I can get some application tips from you. Sure would save some learning curve time.
Jim R
 
William, these pens look wonderful.

I will check out the link later today after some medical tests. I may be forced to explore other finishes as it is increasingly looking like the source of my hives problem is from the fumes and/or sanding of the CA finish I'm putting on pens.

If it proves true, and the tests today should tell me, then I am extremely interested in your application techniques as well.

Thanks for the information.
 
I have been using laquer for a while now. It is nice stuff. I also found that Sherman Williams sells a clear spray acrylic. (Think clear spray paint) Stuff drys solid if 1 min. 15 sec dry to touch.
 
Like I said in my original message here, I am still learning how to apply it. I tried putting it on with the lathe running and that didn't wok. The centrifugal force made it raise up in areas causing ridges abd hollows. Then I tried putting it on with it stopped and it was drying so fast that I had to learn to apply it quickly and not go back over it even if there was an imperfection because that would only make it worse. I also tried both paper towel and a lint free cloth and both left traces of fibre in the finish. I then tried a 1" foam brush and that was the answer as far as an application tool goes. But it was still going on too thick and wouldn't level out.
I have used WB laquer for years straight out of the can with a HVLP gun because it needs to be that thick to prevent runs on vertical surfaces of the large fretwork clocks and other scrollsawed items I make. Laquer has to go on in a "wet" looking application in order to level properly and that is what anyone that sprays has to learn... . how much is too wet and how much is not enough.
But using it as a wipe on finish on pens was another story. Finally a light came came on and my two brain cells collided and I thought it would level out better if I thinned it some which would help it level itself out when it isn't being atomized like in spraying but is just being wiped on.. So I stripped off all the finish to the bare wood of the top one in the picture and started over.
I put some in a little yogurt cup and chuga-a-luged approx 20% water into it. Presto. That was the answer to make it self levelling as a wipe on finish .
Now with my little foam brush, I dipped it into the thinned laquer and while <b>turning the hand wheel</b> on the lathe I wiped a very heavy wet coat right across the pen and it started levelling out just like glass. The product is a cream color so if it looks milky upon application dont be concerned . It will soon become crystal clear.
But <b>DONT STOP </b> turning the hand wheel for at least a full 60 seconds. By then the finish has levelled out like glass and is almost dry to the touch and then I turned the lathe on let it spin for about 5 minutes while I went about other work in the shop.
I came back and repeated that same process two more times . and let it spin longer with the final coat.
The finish was now hard so I stopped the lathe and took the pieces off the mandrel and set them a side to cure a little more and put the second one on the mandrel and repeated the process with it.

When it was finished, I put the first one back on and smeared a little paste wax on it and buffed it using a paper towel . I think it is best to leave them overnight before assembly but I assembled them both within half an hour of finishing with no ill effects. That stuff dries really fast.

I dont have any kind of a buffing system but I would imagine that would really put an exceptionally super high gloss finish on them after overnight curing.
Sorry to be so long winded but these were my initial findings with applying it on the lathe and I'm sure others as well as myself will find other tricks that work as good or better as we endeavour to get a high gloss and long wearing finish.
That product is practically odorless and is a joy to use . No need for respirators or fans or anything like that when doing small projects like pens. Even with using it as a sprayed on finish for my big projects I only need a little cross ventillation while using a HVLP gun for minimal overspray and I will only use a respirator if spraying for extended periods..
My old lungs are not good from too many years without a DC and using solvent based laquers . Using solvent based laquer or too much CA would kill me at this point so that is why I got into WB laquers several years ago and it was a pleasant surprise to find out that this particular product is far superior in both quality of finish and ease of application than anything else I have ever used.
W.Y.
 
Bill,
Thank you for posting your experiences here. You have gone to an expense as a test of a product and have freely given your results so others can benefit. Mark of a true gentleman.
Regards,
Mac
 
It's not quite as elegant as suggested above, but I went to Lowe's and bought a can of spray gloss lacquer. I spray the lacquer directly into the lid of a baby food jar, enought that a small amount accumulates in liquid in the lid. Then I dip a paper towel in the lacqer and make one quick pass across the blanks with the lathe on. Don't try to go back across the blanks. You'll mess them up. It dries in about 10-30 seconds. I let it spin for about 5 minutes, and repeat. Repeat with 5-10 coats, and finish with HUT friction polish.
 
Lou Metcalf;
Thank you for your interest in this . Yes , I have settled on an application process that works best for me. I have been busy at the fair for a couple of days and it is now after midnight. I will give both my brain cells some sleep and follow up with your request in the near future.
W.Y.
 
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