Tinting Shellac or Lacquer,which can give you the widest array of colors?

[robert raess]

I am attempting to tint/color/dye a clear fast drying finish and turn it into a paint[think Japan black lacquer].I am limiting myself to a couple of criteria :quick drying,re-emulsifies[so i can store it in a spray gun and not clog up],a finish that can take deep tint such as vibrant red,orange, blue etc.,..also the ability to rub out the finish. This will be a total opaque finish, showing no grain.So my ques. is,does shellac or lacquer avail itself to deep colorants?,whatever tints or colorants or dyes or artist pigments you suggest please include in your response.The project is interior wood. Thanks Rob

[Scott Holmes]

Why not use paint? 100% acrylic would be a good choice.

Shellac is not a finish that can or should be built up to a thick coat. Thin is best with shellac.
Lacquer can be built up to a thicker finish.

Some of the water-borne finishes dry very fast and can be tinted.

[Jim Becker]

Adding on to what Scott mentions, you can by a black varient of Target's EM6000 and just load it into your spray gun. Once you get your build, if the sheen available isn't what you want, you can shoot additional coats of clear EM6000 in the sheen of your choice or rub it out.

[John Coloccia]

Mix lacquer with this:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Finishin...ctions#details

and you'll get an opaque finish.

[robert raess]

Thanks John,i think this is exactly what i am looking for.I looked for the spec.'s on what makes it diff. from artist pigments which are usually a linseed oil or other oil variation. Aside from that bit of info,i'll be able to keep it in my gun unlike any water-borne finishes and go back a week or month later and shoot with an unclogged gun.I have tried using water urethanes in a spray application and the end result was great,but you have to thoroughly clean everything: pot and all parts of gun.So you can see why a self-dissolving finish is perfect for my application.Thanks again!!

[John Coloccia]

Well, you still should clean your gun. The lacquer will get gummed up in there and just spraying more finish through it won't really clean out all the clogs.

What you need is DeKups. I'm adding it to my system as soon as my new booth is finished. It's absolutely brilliant, and honestly I'm a little annoyed I didn't think of it myself.