Arm-R-Seal vs Gel Top Coat

[Charles Li]

I'm in the process of using GF's Gel Top Coat to finish off a project (that has a GF gel stain under it). So far it is crazy easy to apply. I think you have to try to make a mistake to get some unevenness. I picked the gel because I'm a newbie and figured I'm supposed to use the gel since I used the gel stain. However, I never read anyone using this stuff. All I hear about is Arm-R-Seal. I guess my main question is what's the advantage (if any) of Arm-R-Seal vs their Gel Top product? Does one need more coats than the other? Is the hardness when cured totally different? From reading the product description they seem exactly the same except one is a gel. Well, that and I'd like to try a semi-gloss which leads me to Arm-R-Seal. They both seem easy to apply. I'm actually using a minwax poly on a less visible part of the project (I only bought a 1/2 pint of the gel). As expected, it's much harder to get an even coat (ie takes some skill). Is Arm-R-Seal harder to apply?

[John TenEyck]

I've used both products. There are two main advantages of Arm-R-Seal compared to GF's Gel Urethane Topcoat - clarity and durability. Gel Topcoat is available only in semi-gloss AFAIK, while Arm-R-Seal is available in satin, SG, and gloss. If you compare both products at the same sheen, semi-gloss, Arm-R-Seal has far greater clarity. But the prime reason I prefer Arm-R-Seal is that it has much greater chemical durability compared to Gel Topcoat. The Gel Topcoat is damaged by almost every chemical I tried on it, including water! Alcohol, Windex, Fantastic; they will all cause more or less damage on Gel Topcoat, some completely distroy the finish. Arm-R-Seal, on the hand, is unaffected by brief exposure to any common household chemical or food I tried on it.

I don't find Arm-R-Seal hard to apply except on very large surfaces. It's no harder than Gel Topcoat for me.

Put very simply, I would not use Gel Topcoat on any of my projects. It's the only GF product I've tried that I would not recommend.

John

[Charles Li]

The gel is only satin. Interesting about the clarity. Maybe that's what I'm looking for as just a tad more would be great. Surprised about the durability. It's not a kitchen table or anything so I'm going to stick with the gel for this piece.