Staining Wood and finishing with Polyurethane.

[JJkizak]

Some pictures:

JJK

[Max2]

I see a stool or chair peeking behind that looks very one off as well.

Since Audio Android said he didn't care I will put one more. The stools are more or less one off, I made a bunch, 14 and there heavy duty and swivel, also two tables, and a 24' bench along the pond. I love to building things. After the biggest part is over it will be time for adding plants and a few other things I'm thinking of.

I want to put varnish on the two table tops also

Thats a cool Pavilion or "Party Cabana." You have room there for plenty of friends there. No wait, you have room for outdoor music, a couple of waitresses, a full BBQ kitchen, full Bar and friends Awesome woodwork!

Edited April 17, 2014 by Max2

[dtel]

No wait, you have room for outdoor music, a couple of waitresses, a full BBQ kitchen, full Bar and friends

Thank you, well I have 3 of the 4 listed, there is a set of Heresy's now installed, room to the left out behind the bar where (with the tractor) I can put the smoker/grill, all I need is waitresses, I would love to pick them out and the uniforms but doubt the wife would like that much.

When building the bar the wife said make it strong enough just in case someone decides to dance up there, but I would bet she wouldn't want me to pick them either. Everyone seems to like it even the mail lady asked if she could go look but so far I seem to spend the most time out there, usually in a hammock listening to music, there waiting for it to warm up a little more for parties .

[dtel]

Some pictures:

Those are cool, very different, I could see where you would want to spray a finish on them, it would be very hard to paint evenly without drips and runs.

[thebes]

Some pictures:

Image103.jpgImage97.jpgImage102.jpg

JJK

Skills, talent, creativity and a touch of whimsy. I approve. Congrats JJ.

Marty

[dtel]

Some pictures:

Image103.jpgImage97.jpgImage102.jpg

JJK

Skills, talent, creativity and a touch of whimsy. I approve. Congrats JJ.

Marty

Add a few more touches of whimsy and you would be describing yourself !

[JJkizak]

You guys made my day.

JJK

[dtel]

You guys made my day.

JJK

You make those ?

[JJkizak]

Yes, here are a few more:

[dtel]

That's cool, are they carved or root's finished to look like that, not looking for secrets just a general idea. Whatever it is it requires a lot of patience to look like that. Very nice

[JJkizak]

A more detailed answer for Android:

The surface is prepared with 220 grit sandpaper then sealer (Cabot Brand) applied which soaks and hardens up the soft areas of the wood. I sand with 220 grit again with any machine and device that you can think of then make sure the profiles are all ok. Viewing under sunlight or very bright lights really helps to detect anomolies. Then 3 coats of polyurethane one coat every two hours. let dry for 3 days minimum to set properly. Most of the time all kinds of subtle profile changes and depressions will appear for no reason. Sand your life away to make everything smooth again with 320 or if a lot of bad stuff then 220. Some bad areas you might sand through the three coatings you just applied. In that case just hit those areas again. Tac cloth then spray one nice coat then let set for 3 more days. If it is smooth enough (if not use 400 grit paper) you can jump to the OOOO steel wool, then apply the Minwax with cloth or steel wool. Two coats of wax and you have it. If there are large checks or cracks you have to clean the crap out of them or they look like they are full of something. The steel wool wax finish gives you a non sticky silky smooth feel. I haven't experienced any bubbles using the spray cans but watch out if it is raining or very humid outside or you will get fogging.

JJK

[JJkizak]

Dtel:

I always look for roots or large knots in the wood. My current project is a partial stump/root inverted

with a sandstone base for balance.. The sandstone is ordinary California flagstone sold at Lowes.

My good friend Ray Muniak is the real artist with his own website at Muniart.com. He tells me if the

stuff I make is junk or OK and he tells me why and doesn't leave out the bad words.

JJK

[dtel]

Well the first thing that came to mind was, that takes a lot of patience and an eye for shapes. Very unusual, it's a real talent to be able to make something like that.

Very nice

[Audio Android]

Well this is getting a bit insane, or maybe I'm just an idiot.......definitely, a little of both. I posted some pics of the spray. It was actually nicer than it looks in the pics, it looks like a lot of deep orange peel, but it was quite nice for a final coat.......But I have been at this too long to just leave it like that

I do believe that applying the finish the slow way is faster than the HD fast way.

McDermott I liked your post, I do believe in doing things at a pace that serves for a better result. When I told you I wanted this done 2 weeks ago, I had actually been at this for three weeks. I thought it was going to take me a week to stain and finish....... and it's actually been almost a month now....

Edited April 20, 2014 by Audio Android

[Audio Android]

Now I should say before JJKIZAK comes down on me for not sanding, that I did not finish sand after the last coat of spray because I'm looking for a glass like reflection, like it was dipped in glass. I have even sanded with 1500 and it just isn't getting me my glossy, glassy finish I'm looking for......So during the week I went to a furniture finishing store and the man there was none too happy with MiniWax. So he sold me this.... I'm in the process of finishing this weekend.....hopefully... ......I also got some new boards I'm wokin' on

[Audio Android]

JJKIZAK I forgot to tell you, your work is FREAKIN AWSOME!!!.. ......Thanks for your help!!......Thank You to everyone who has been posting with suggestions.... ...Because I'm losing my mind .

Edited April 20, 2014 by Audio Android

[Audio Android]

Did I mention I'm a perfectionist and this frequently leads to mental instability..... .... . Happy Easter!!

Edited April 20, 2014 by Audio Android

[dtel]

Did I mention I'm a perfectionist

That's obvious, in a good way.

I have question if you don't mind.

I have two round table tops to do, there 31" across. I like how you did those and would like to get something similar. I was wondering how you got the edges that dark and fading into the center like that, it looks great.

Just a pic from the other day of a shadow on the table so you could see it now.

[jason str]

Orange peel can be wet sanded out, just be extra careful not to sand through on the edges.

Start with 320 grit for stock removal and work your way through with finer sandpaper until you have a glasslike finish.

[Audio Android]

I was wondering how you got the edges that dark and fading into the center like that

Dtel, I wasn't going for this look in the beginning so the procedure is kind of hard to recall, but I remember putting a coat of MiniWax Red oak down on the board. Then spray painted the outer edges trying to fade as best i could to the center. Then I sanded by following the grain of the wood......Hmm this is hard to explain, If you look at the board you can see the lighter grain stands out because I sanded on the edges of the dark grain to highlight the lighter parts of the wood and keep as much black paint in the dark grain as possible. I put sand paper around a sanding pad and used the very edge to get as small area of sand paper on the board to get as much control as possible. I did this with several coats of black spray paint.....And the paint I used was a black (brake caliper) paint, so I'm not sure how normal spray paint will work. I had to put about 4 coats of black spray down before I got the look I was going for. Sanding like I explained each time......Are we having fun yet!!!.. I then put down 2 or 3 coats of stain over the black....each coat was a mixture of 3 parts Ipswitch and 1 part Red oak....Then I started on the clear poly.... ......If you need more instructions Dtel I'll be happy to post some pics.....and who doesn't like pics..I'll post some.