Wiping Varnish

[WMcD]

We've had discussions in various threads about refinishing Klipsch speakers. I have advocated the use of wiping varnish.

Attached is an article for your education.

I still cringe at any mention of using steel wool near a speaker. the author uses compressed air to clear the steel wool fragments -- which just spreads around the dangerous fragments. So I still say, use Scotchbrite. I saw the pads in the cleaning section of HD today. Of course you don't want the industrial strenght stuff.

The article says some things about different formulations. I use Minwax which the author says adds the least color. It can be found at HD.

WMcD

wiping varnish 1 MB.pdf

[thebes]

Yup, steel wool near magnets is not a good combo. Interesting article, and certainly a lot of work, but it should provide a nice deep finish.

[WMcD]

I have another article someplace. It about a Japanese artisan who was educating a young man concerning the technique of applying many thin coats of a wipe-on oil,probably tung oil, to a wooden tray.

The young man asks how long this all takes. The artisan just sighs.

Like I've said before. There is the Saturday at Home Depot syndrome. You buy some varnish in the morning and want the project to be completed by 5 p.m. when you put the burgers on the grill. So the work has to be completed in five hours. Dang. Most things at HD have a tag saying, "easy to install." Thus giving support to the notion of an afternoon project.

In reality, a large part of the project is patience. The individual steps can be accomplished in 30 minutes even with two units.

When you sign on to a project like this, all you need to commit is 30 minutes a day for a week. But you can't get good results in one afternoon.

I promise not to harp on this again until Christmas 2011. Smile.

WMcD

[thebes]

As a house painter, I can certainly understand that attitude. I describe my job as boredom relived by tedium, but it does look good when I'm done.

[KdAgain]

We've had discussions in various threads about refinishing Klipsch speakers. I have advocated the use of wiping varnish.

Attached is an article for your education.

I still cringe at any mention of using steel wool near a speaker. the author uses compressed air to clear the steel wool fragments -- which just spreads around the dangerous fragments. So I still say, use Scotchbrite. I saw the pads in the cleaning section of HD today. Of course you don't want the industrial strenght stuff.

The article says some things about different formulations. I use Minwax which the author says adds the least color. It can be found at HD.

WMcD

Thanks for sharing the article.

I haven't done any furniture refinishing but have done a lot of boat varnishing interior and exterior. Steel wool is an absolute no-no on a boat, especially on the exterior. When moisture hits any residue it turns to rust! So when someone wants to use steel wool for boat work I recommend bronze wool as being non ferous it doesn't rust. This quality would also make it better for speaker cabinets as the magnets can't attract it. But I still dont like the idea of it's residue possibly getting near the speakers.

Your suggestion of the Scotchbrite pads is a good one. A lot of the boat pro varnishers have switched to them. Just not sure if they are available in fine enough grades for furniture refinishing.

Rod