finishing drawer slides and dividers

[Myanna Pontoppidan]

Hello all,

This is my first time posting here - hoping to get some help!

I've spent quite a while working on a large quarter sawn white oak dresser. It is now just about complete, and I am starting to apply finish. What I've decided to use is Transtint medium brown dye, followed by a coat of dewaxed shellac, then a coat of General Finishes Nutmeg gel stain, and then a couple of coats of General Finishes wipe on poly. Whew!

My question is this: My drawers are going to be set in about an eighth of an inch, so the drawer slides and dividers will be partially exposed. I don't want an oil based finish inside the dresser because of the smell, but I want it to match the outside. I was thinking I would just apply finish in about half an inch on those parts, but how would I get a nice neat line? That dye bleeds very easily.

I would appreciate any ideas - thanks!

dresser 101.jpgdresser 100.jpg

[Jamie Buxton]

Why do you need a nice neat line? The drawers cover it.

[John TenEyck]

Apply the finish further in and don't worry about the edge; the drawer will cover it. My main comment, however, relates to the topcoat you mentioned. If you are talking about GF's Gel Urethane Topcoat I found it to have poor chemical durability. However, if you are talking about GF's Arm-R-Seal, it has excellent chemical durability. It is my preferred wipe on finish and I'm sure you will be pleased with the result.

BTW, your finishing schedule is not overly complicated; sort of standard procedure for a high quality finish. Be aware that you will have to spray the shellac sealer in order to prevent it from pulling up the Transtint dye. If you don't have spray equipment you can use rattle can shellac, or you could use GF's Seal-A-Cell oil based sealer which won't pull up the dye.

John

[Kent A Bathurst]

Apply the finish further in and don't worry about the edge; the drawer will cover it. My main comment, however, relates to the topcoat you mentioned. If you are talking about GF's Gel Urethane Topcoat I found it to have poor chemical durability. However, if you are talking about GF's Arm-R-Seal, it has excellent chemical durability. It is my preferred wipe on finish and I'm sure you will be pleased with the result.

BTW, your finishing schedule is not overly complicated; sort of standard procedure for a high quality finish. Be aware that you will have to spray the shellac sealer in order to prevent it from pulling up the Transtint dye. If you don't have spray equipment you can use rattle can shellac, or you could use GF's Seal-A-Cell oil based sealer which won't pull up the dye.

John

John is correct - that is how you go about finishing QSWO - the shellac seals off the dye from the gel stain; the gel stain fills the pores.

John is also correct about spray shellac with Transtint - otherwise the color will lift. HOWEVER - if you use the Transfast powder instead, this problem almost goes away - "almost" means 99%. I switched to Transfast powder for exactly this reason, and use padding cloth to apply the dye.

[George Bokros]

Doesn't it depend on what he mixed the TransTint wit? If he used water will the shellac still lift the dye?

I just applied TransTint mixed with water and plan on applying ArmrSeal as top coat but do not plan to use a shellac sealer. Am I in trouble?

Sorry to hijack the thread.

[John TenEyck]

Doesn't it depend on what he mixed the TransTint wit? If he used water will the shellac still lift the dye?

I just applied TransTint mixed with water and plan on applying ArmrSeal as top coat but do not plan to use a shellac sealer. Am I in trouble?

Sorry to hijack the thread.

Hi George,

Transtint is soluble in both water and alcohol (and a few other things, too). It doesn't matter if you dilute the dye with water, alcohol will still redissolve it, and the other way around, too.

You are fine applying any oil based product over Transtint. It is not soluble in oil based products like Arm-R-Seal, so your plan is fine.

John

[Myanna Pontoppidan]

Thanks for all the quick replies! I did many test samples of different dyes and top coats, and I didn't notice the dye coming up with the brushed on shellac - but i suppose on a larger area, some unevenness in the color might become noticeable. I did try the seal-a-cell as well, but liked the warmth I got from the shellac. Spraying is not really an option for me. And neither is Transfast, as I've already started the dyeing process on some of the parts.
I suppose you all are right about not needing a sharp line, just being anal!