laquer help needed

* ok, i just ordered a spray setup to put laquer on some of my pieces. i ordered from Homestead, Jeff Jewitt was
of great help and put a convertion HVLP system together for me. i ordered a 1 gallon pressure pot, a nice
gun(forgot to ask which one he is sending) and an additional gravity fed gun. with the nice gun, i told him to
get me the best one he thinks, i'll call him tomorrow and ask him which one.
my question now is WHICH laquer to spray. his recommendation was Sherwin williams either the T70 series,
T72 series or the cab acrylic laquer T75 series. T70 and T72 are out for me since my local serwin
williams(california) needs to see a permit, but they do carry the T75 series. problem is, they only have the 5
gallon buckets and the laquer has a pot life of 6 months. there is no way i'll be using that much, so i'll probably
throw out 4 gallons of that.
also, I don't have space for a real spray booth, i can rig something up, i don't mind going alll out with fan and
such, but i need ideas for a small tear down booth that i can either use in my shop or outside. * any ideas would
be appreciated, maybe some of you could send me an e-mail with pics of their setup.
then, today, i talked to my local serwin williams store and they recommended Kem Aqua, water based laquer or
the Sherwood low VOC * laquer, both have a much longer pot life and are available in 5 gallon buckets, the Kem
aqua is supposed to stay clear where the Sherwood might get some yellowing.
since i have never sprayed before, i need a recommendation, maybe i should get a different kind of laquer all
together, but i don't know what to pick.
please guys, fill me in on the secret of laquers, which kind to use, water based or Solvent based, NC/Cab or low
VOC. which manufacturer is preferred.
thanx so much in advance guys
sascha ** *

To me, there is no such thing as water based lacquer. Lacquer is lqcquer. I hesitate to reply, Sasha, because of all the regulations in Ca. Can a girl still use fingernail polish? That is lacquer, 'ya know? Nail polish remover is acetone. Anyway, lacquer is the easiest, finishing product you'll probably ever use. I have lacquer in the shop that's probably older than you are. I can't remember it ever going bad. May discolor in time, but I really don't know. There are many brands of lacquer, some locally made, and certain grades. There is a precatalyzed lacquer on the market. Used to, bar top was the hardest of the lacquers. But, I simply don't know anything about water based, lacquer, products and don't intend to. The reason is drying time. Under normal conditions, lacquer dries rapidly and you can control the drying time with the thinners you use. The "hotter", the faster. Lacquer will "blush" or fade under high humidity. You can use a retarder to control this, or simply respray. You can build lacquer quickly, sanding between coats, to a fantastic finish. You can spray colors. It is highly combustable, no doubt about it, and should be handled with care. Fumes will make you drunk. That's the reason I use it daly. :eek: I'm kidding, of course. If you get a run or a sag in your finish, you can easily sand it out and recoat. It is usually thinned 50% with lacquer thinner for all applications. If you can find M H Campbell lacquers in your area, try them out. I think they are a great product.

The water bourne products are almost always acrylics, but are some are formulated to behave like lacquer...and uncorrectly as it may be, are marketed using that name. (Target Coatings USL, for example) They dry very quickly, "burn in" either partially or fully in the case of USL, and behave very much the same as the true lacquer products. The major difference is safety, which is one of the reasons I tend to "push" them to hobbiests who want to spray.

But I will absolutely agree that NC lacquer and other adaptations give a most wonderful and easy finish. If I had the right environment to spray them, I'd probably use them...particularly the ML Campbell products that my pro-cabinetmaker friends use to great advantage.

I have been told that the water based or "acrylic" lacquers may be safer for the atmosphere but the acrylic vapors are as bad or worse for your than the oil base. Jim, thank you for pushing safety. We should also remember that the respiratory hazards would be worth a gentle reminder now and then also. I know I need a gentle (2 X 4) reminder now and then. by the way, thanks for your great input here on the creek.

Using low- or no-VOC finishes, like the acrylics sold by Target and Fuhr, doesn't mean you don't have to take precautions and wear a respirator, etc. There are still particulates that get in the air and so forth. But the "vapors" are very much like latex paint. The bottom line is you can use these finishes without fear of fire and explosions. ...but you still need to be able to clear the air and protect yourself. This also means you can spray them safely in shops that are in your basement or garage...no way would I spray NC lacquer in a basement shop without a very well designed explosion proof ventilated booth/room. (I have a friend who built one...big bucks)

[QUOTE=Jim Becker] They dry very quickly, "burn in" either partially or fully in the case of USL, and behave very much the same as the true lacquer products.

I'm not versed in jargon, I work alone ;) Will these water products melt the previous coat as lacquer will? Just curious.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Phil Phelps

Will these water products melt the previous coat as lacquer will?

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If a property of the specific finish product is listed as "burning in", then yes, each coat becomes one with the previous coat. This is a feature of evaporative finishes, such as NC lacquer and shellac. Somehow, Target was able to get the same property with their Premium Spray Lacquer (PSL) which has been reformulated and renamed Ultimate Spray Lacquer (USL). This is an example of a WB product that closely emulates lacquer which is a nice thing for anyone switching from the solvent based products to low- and no-VOC water bourne finishes. Not all of them are this way, however. Some are reactive finishes...

Finishes that are reactive, such as varnishes, paint and some acrylic products, do not have this property. They build in layers and stay in layers. This is the reason that you can get some, um...unattractive results...if you happen to sand through one layer into another with some varnishes, especially poly. (Which hates to stick even to itself...)

thank you guys so much for your help

sascha