Rockler gel polyurethane two thumbs up

I had asked about Old Masters Gel Polyurethane in a previous thread. My local hardware store caries it at about $25/quart, I was curious whether anyone had tried it.

I couldn't get over the positive reviews of the Rockler Gel Poly, and decided to go that way instead. A 20% coupon bringing the price down to $17 and change didn't hurt.

I read-up on gel polyurethanes and learned about thixotropic compounds, which change state from gel to liquid when stirred/agitated/shaken. Gel polyurethanes are thixotropic in nature.

Now, finishing is one of my many Achilles' heals. I'd say that while my other woodworking skills have steadily improved, that I've struggled when it comes to finishing. It has only been within the last year or so that I feel I've started to really improve in this regard. I've had pretty good luck with the wiping varnishes, but have often lamented the # of coats required to build a decent film from the thin, somewhat difficult to control material.

The Rockler Gel Poly sorts those concerns quite nicely. I applied some of the stuff to a scrap of QSRO and then sanded it with wet/dry 200-grit paper, creating a slurry to fill the open grain. That went pretty fast, and seemed to do a nice job filling the pores.

The next morning I applied a 2nd coat, and when I got home from work I was amazed to see that I had a nice film finish. Whether another coat was required was debatable. For a table top, sure. For just about anything else, nope.

It only comes in satin, and I'm fine with that, I love the look.

Many of the reviews of this stuff indicate that you just can't go wrong. It seems that may be true.

So if you've struggled w/ finishing as I have, you may want to give this stuff a shot.