Replacement for Deft Spray Lacquer

[Brian Parker]

I'm finishing up some curly maple frames (finished with some transtint mixed with distilled water) and I was going to use Deft Satin or Semi Gloss Spray only to find that Lowes no longer carries Deft products. It appears that PPG purchased Deft and they can't carry it due to the competitors paints that they carry (or so the guy at Lowes said). I digress to other options as there aren't any other places around that carry Deft products. I like them as they don't yellow over time.

I went and got a quart of General Finishes Arm-R-Seal Urethane Topcoat-Satin thinking that I wanted to go with a more flat finish. After three coats of the satin I think that I want a little more shine as I really like the wet look of the maple when I apply the finish. When it dries it is more of a so so look and the tiger stripes don't pop as much as when wet. I'm thinking of using some spray as I have assembled a couple of the frames while a few are not. I saw that Minwax makes a lacquer now but I'm not sold on it. I assume that I can spray anything on the existing satin, am I wrong in this thought? I thought of going and getting a can of the General Finishes

Also for future small projects where a rattle can of Deft was great can anyone recommend a non yellowing alternative?

[Alan Lightstone]

Woodcraft had it in my local store the last time I looked.

[Matt Meiser]

According to their product finder, there are only 8 places within 5000 miles of my zip code that carry it, all in the Northwest:
http://www.deftfinishes.com/trade/find-a-retailer

Rust-O-Leum makes a spray lacquer. I've used it when I want something quick on shop fixtures and it seemed to be basically the same as Deft, but I too had trouble finding any lacquer at Lowes last time. Google says Walmart stocks it so I checked their site and its shown as in-stock at dozens of stores in our region and is only $3.67 a can. UPC is 0002006619058. Be careful as they also show an Acrylic Lacquer online--who knows whether that's good or not.

Watco makes spray lacquer too.

[Bob Wingard]

ACE is the place ... at least around here ... they have cases of it on & under the display shelves. I asked about it and no one knew anything about a lack of availability.

[Matt Meiser]

Home Depot here still carries Minwax spray lacquer too.

[John TenEyck]

Just switch to Arm-R-Seal gloss. If you liked what the satin looked like wet, that's what the gloss will look like dry.

John

[Prashun Patel]

I have switched to the Minwax rattlecans of lacquer. I don't like it as much as the Deft, but I'm not sure why. It seems to perform the same.

I loved that Deft... RIP, Old Friend.

[Stew Hagerty]

I use Behlen "Top-Coat" Lacquer products. They have Sealer, Satin, & Gloss. They work and look amazing. However, my absolute favorite is Behlen "Smooth Coat" (formerly BuffCoat) Lacquer. It's in the satin to semi-gloss range and it is beautiful both in look and touch. It actually has a wax in it that give the wood a very deep hand rubbed look. To get my favorite level of sheen, I start with a coat or two of the Sealer, followed by Gloss, and finally the Smooth Coat. Of course, I buff very lightly with 0000 between coats to get rid of any nibs, except for the Gloss coat where I switch to an ultra fine pad.

In my humble opinion, there is nothing better.

Shellac.net sells it:

http://www.shellac.net/behlenfinishingproducts.html

[Brian Parker]

Thanks Bob,

I called my local Ace and they said it was in stock but they couldn't find it when I went. I tried a local ma and pa True Value this past weekend and was rewarded. They didn't have but one can of each on the shelf but at least they have it.

As a follow-up there is nothing in terms of general availability of Deft only that Lowes can't carry it as it's owned by PPG and PPG paint is a competitor of one or more of the brands which Lowes carries. We have a Rocker local but it's about 35-40 miles round trip from my place. Unfortunately the Woodcrafters that we had went out of business a few years back. I did see that Amazon carries it but I think that I'll go to the local True Value now. I like the ability to pick up a can when needed and not have to wait 2 days for it to arrive.

ACE is the place ... at least around here ... they have cases of it on & under the display shelves. I asked about it and no one knew anything about a lack of availability.

[Howard Acheson]

According to Bob Flexner and my own tests, it's the final coat the determines the final sheen. In other words you can apply a gloss sheen Arr R Seal over a satin sheen and you will have a gloss sheen surface. It's certain worth giving it a try. Spraying a lacquer over an oil base is very likely to be problematic. If you take that route, be sures to test is out before committing to the whole project.

[Charles Neil]

Some of the Ace Hardware still have Deft, I also found, ordered and got Deft thru the " Do it Best 'hardware stores and confirmed they will continue to carry it. You can go on their website and order it , and if you have a store close you can have it shipped to the store for pick up and no shipping charges ...Just FYI . Wall- Mart also list it , have not gone to check it out ..they only showed the spray cans though