Finish For a Chest-on-chest Bottom-chest Top

[Bob Stanny]

I’m trying to decide what to put on the top of the lower case of a chest-on-chest I’m making. I’m looking for something tough and repairable that I can apply with a brush or a rag. The chest top in question is veneered.


Most of the chests’ exterior surfaces are Waterloxed. (The interiors are shellacked.) The upper chest is heavy; I would expect it to mar a Waterloxed surface that hadn’t cured indefinitely.


Shellac appeals to me because it looks nice and seems unlikely to cause problems in future repair efforts. But I don’t know whether shellac is hard and tough enough for this application. Brushing lacquer? Arm-R-Seal? (Is it hard to repair Arm-R-Seal on veneer?)

I’d appreciate any thoughts.

[Robert LaPlaca]

Hey Bob, I would imagine that a heavy upper case carelessly dragged across the lower case is going to be problematic no matter the finish.. My first two choices would be either Waterlox OSF or shellac, I have never used arm-a-seal, urethane finishes are really tough, so it seems like it would be a good choice..

I might suggest that on the bottom of the upper case, that some strategically glued on leather might go a long way of protecting the top of your lower case, the leather provides enought cushion to not marr the finish, but not so slippery as felt would be, I have used it on secretaries with the same issue as you describe..

[Bob Stanny]

Robert, thanks for replying. I was hoping someone would put in a good word for shellac. I really like Waterlox, but in in my hands it never seems to get very hard. Maybe I've been putting on too much.


I’ve used Arm-R-Seal over Seal-A-Cell once or twice. It makes a beautiful finish that looks much like Waterlox to me. I'd expect it to be somewhat water resistant--a plus even in bedroom furniture here in NW Fla. I suppose it would be easy enough to sand and recover a few square feet of chest top with more Arm-R-Seal. But I worry about what would happen if someone mistook it for the Waterlox that's everywhere else on the outside of the piece and wiped on an overcoat of that.


Thanks also for the leather suggestion. Leather had crossed my mind but I’d decided against it for fear it might interact with the lower-top finish so as to convert my chest-on-chest to a tall chest. Given your experience with secretaries, however, I think I’ll try it out.


I suppose it’s unlikely anyone will see the lower-unit top between moves. However, my parents had a chest-on-chest they used as separate pieces for years. Dad put stained chunks of 4x4 under the upper unit and called them country buns.