Large, built in Furniture finishing

Good Morning! In the next month, I will be starting on two separate projects.

The first is an open-backed white oak (ply) entertainment center (attached to the wall), which will house a 55" TV, and be flanked by a bookshelf on each side. I will be attempting to match (what I believe to be) white oak molding and sliding door which are adjacent to the location for the entertainment center. I am looking for suggestions regarding what kinds of finishes to use. Since this is going to be a high use piece, and relatively permanent, durability is of high concern. My wife and I also have a dog, and are looking to have kids in the next couple of years, both of which are concerns.

What I am considering currently is BLO (or Tung), a coat of blonde dewaxed shellac, and Target Coatings Ultima Spray Lacquer for the topcoat. Any staining will be to match the existing woodwork, which has a flat finish. Is the BLO necessary for waterproofing, or is the topcoat sufficient? Is there a different topcoat I should be considering? I DO have a spray gun, I do NOT have a shop set up for spraying combustibles. I will, however, likely spray the shellac due to the size and number of panels.

The second project consists of built-ins for a 6'x8' closet. I am planning to use birch ply, a wash coat to prevent blotching, cherry stain (IIRC, I used oil based on my test), shellac (blonde dewaxed) and the target coating product mentioned above. I'm planning high gloss here, because I like it. :)

I am new to this finishing thing (that is, finishing beyond a can of spray shellac), but have done a few test pieces to get a feel for the products mentioned above. Any advice/recommendations/things to avoid, etc. would be appreciated! I have had some issues with staining pine before, while using shellac as a wash coat. Since I don't want to strip multiple sheets of plywood if I screw up, I'll spend the money and get the pre-stain product that goes along with the stain and work hard NOT to screw up!

Thanks for the help... virtually everything I know about finishing I learned from these forums. It's time to get some experience under the belt and check a couple of items off of last summer's to do list (and justify the workshop purchases... a lot of them... to the wife!).

BLO will do a nice job coloring the wood; Tung oil will do a nice job too; at a much higher cost. BLO is to color wood e.g. pop-the-grain, not seal it.

Contrary to popular belief, neither BLO nor Tung oil are good at sealing wood. In fact "oil only" finishes are only a little bit better than wax, which provides very very little protection to wood.

Shellac, then the Target finish should work well.

The BLO isn't "needed" for anything but to enhance to look of the grain. The top coat is fine as is. Waterbourne finishes sometime have a tendancy to look "lifeless" without something else there. I usually use sealcoat (dewaxed shellac) to combat this.

I have sprayed a fair amount of the USL and it is easy to use, great looking and fairly durable.

White oak is positively a dream to stain compared to birch. You are wise to run several samples, preferably large ones to see how it works. I tend toward dyes more and more, especially on hard to stain woods.

Joe

If the oak trim has been rather recently finished (5-10 years), the stain is most likely a pigment stain such as those manufactured by Minwax and then coated with a varnish or poly varnish. It would help if you knew what it is and use the same thing. If your objective is to match the existing, then using the same products will give you the best change of getting a reasonable match. For example, almost no trim finishers would use BLO. Finally, use some reasonably large sized pieces of your scrap and test out some alternative finishing schemes. That way you will know what it will look like and prevent having to start over.

Pay close attention to what Howard wrote. I'd be testing samples of likely finishes on my new material to compare to the work that's already in the house. Test until you get it right, then you know what to use.

As for staining -- if you do end up using the target lacquer why not use their stains that you know will work with their finishes? I've not used any but they seem to have a complete finish system.

Both points noted on the oils. I do understand that it offers little protection, except that it offers some waterproofing that shellac does not. Is that right? You both confirmed my suspicions, that it would be unnecessary with a lacquer finish, which should prevent against kid damage and water damage.

I will look into Target Coatings products for staining as well. I have a rockler store about 30 minutes away, and I think that they carry the products. I have not played with pigment stains or dyes as of yet, but I will pick some up as well and see how they work.

In regards to the trim, I appreciate the suggestions. I was guessing that a lacquer was used, although it didn't look right to me. I'm still very much a beginner in that regard.

The trim is between 10 and 15 years old. I believe it was done in the early to mid-90's when an 'enclosed patio' was added to the house. I could find out an exact year, since it was in the family when that work was done. I have a piece of white oak that I plan to use to test, but I have not done it yet. Originally I wanted to go with a different wood, but decided that I needed to try to match the existing since they will be very close, possibly even touching. I will try the finishing with varnishes to match. Are there any that I should look at in particular? IIRC, Spar varnish is usually used on boats and is water resistant. Are most water resistant (parties + cold drinks = water rings next to the coasters!), or do I need to be aware that some are not while considering my options?

Why not visit a real paint store where the pros shop. They'll be glad to help you with this project. Even custom mix a stain for you.

What would a 'real' paint store look like? We have a Vista paint nearby, but I don't recall whether they carry stains. I do recall that the last time I was there looking for finishing supplies, they did not have them. Rockler carries a nice stock, including plenty of stains, pigments and dyes, but they won't mix for you. Any recommendations? Even an online store that would give me an idea of what to look for in a brick and mortar location?

>>>> I do understand that it offers little protection, except that it offers some waterproofing that shellac does not. Is that right?

No, just the opposite. Real tung oil and boiled linseed oil allow water and water vapor to pass right through. Shellac is one of the most moisture and water vapor resistant coatings particularly dewaxed shellac.

Jeremy,

Your statement... "IIRC, Spar varnish is usually used on boats and is water resistant. Are most water resistant (parties + cold drinks = water rings next to the coasters!), or do I need to be aware that some are not while considering my options? "

Is exactly backwards.. Spar varnishes used on boats are LESS waterproof thaninterior varnishes THEY ARE formulated to be more flexible and thus LESS waterproof and softer.