finish for desk top - shelac?

[Robert Trotter]

I have a desk top that has a a very thin veneer of walnut and looking at finishes.

Was thinking of oil finish and then orange shelac over that. It sounds like it should highlight the grain.

Sound OK? Any other recomendations for good finish?

How mush shelac flakes do I need? How much does 100g of flakes cover?

Not used shelac before so an y advice....

Or would wiping vanish be better? I can buy some varnish and thin it down. then put many coats on.????

Can you put a wiping varnish over oil or shelac for better protection?

thanks for any advice

Rob

[Prashun Patel]

Shellac will be IMHO too brittle for a desk top. It'll scratch easy. Yes, it's easy to repair, but you'd need to repair a lot, if you do any writing on the desk.

IMHO, a wiping varnish is a better choice. The easiest will be to skip the oil and just apply many coats of the wv. I'm partial to Waterlox - especially for the color it imparts to Walnut, but there are others.

If you want to get fancy, you can apply an initial thin coat of boiled linseed oil, but it honestly won't make much of a difference under an oil based finish.

I also like to preseal walnut with shellac. It's not necessary, and honestly, if you havent' used it b4, I'd skip this; just apply the WV; it'll seal fine. The reason I use shellac is because it dries fast, and sands very smooth. So, I can slop on a couple coats of 1-2# cut, and sand it with 400. This reduces the number of varnish coats I need to put on (saves a little $$). The biggest benefit, IMHO, in doing this is that walnut is famous (in my experience) for having areas that absorb the finish and seal at different rates. This can lead to frustration with wiping varnish because areas will appear dull. Rest assured, it will all eventually even out. Sealing with shellac, though, allows the first couple coats of varnish to go on with an even sheen. If you like a surface with a low build, then this can helps. YMMV.

[Jim Rimmer]

+1 what Prashun said.

[John Coloccia]

I love shellac, but I'd lean towards Waterlox on something like this too. Honestly, plenty of desks and counters have been finished with shellac over the years, and they're fine, but I just think Waterlox is a bit more durable in this application and it looks wonderful too.

[Scott Holmes]

+1 for the Waterlox.