Praise for Wipe on Poly

[Prashun Patel]

I just wanted to share a recent recipe for a good, easy finish:

Minwax Polyurethane.

My easy recipe is one pint of semi-gloss, one pint of satin, one pint of mineral spirits. Shake well.

I use blue shop towels for application, and single serve yogurt containers for dipping.

I have found this product to mix very well with mineral spirits, and has comparatively low odor to phenolic resin varnishes I've used.

The issue many have with poly is that it looks like plastic. I agree, but only if brushed on, and mostly with gloss sheen. Wiped on, and NOT BUILT UP THICK, this is not an issue for me.

The satin/semi mix is great on open grained woods, where the uneven reflection of light can cause issues with any gloss product.

Sand to 400 or 600 grit. It's nice to vaccuum the surface and wipe it all down. But you don't have to be too careful. Any captured dust will be sanded or wiped off later.

For the first coat, flood it on, wipe it around, come back in five mins, and wipe off the excess or any pools. Rub in any areas that are absorbing too much.

For the subsequent coats, the big 'secret' I've realized with wipe on varnishes is that you cannot overwork it. I apply it with a folded 1/3 shop towel such that the whole surface is slick, in circles. Then I open up that same towel, and wipe in large circles just to spread out any build up. Then, I look for any missed spots, give them a quick swipe, then WALK AWAY. The problem with wipe on varnish is over wiping or working it too much. Especially with the satin/semi mix, parts will dry fairly quickly to a dull sheen, which can give you the impression that you missed a spot or even that there's a ridge. I tried to show this in the second pic. Ignore it. If you've wiped thin enough and with broad circles, those spots are illusions. Don't try to lay it 'with the grain'.

Every couple coats you can sand with 600 grit sandpaper. You can do it with the surface misted with water or mineral spirits, or dry. Sand for feel. When it feels good to your fingers, wipe it all down, let it dry, then apply another finish coat. Unlike some other wiping varnishes, which can take two more coats to bring back and even luster, this mix shines back up after one even very thin coat.

This finish is so fool proof, I don't even have to apply it in a dust-free location; I apply it right in my dusty shop with no ill effects.

Anyway, don't be afraid of wipe on poly. It works for me.

The third pic shows it fairly dry. It has about 5 coats. Any more and it starts to look like plastic, IMHO.

While not bombproof, it's surprisingly durable and resistant to dings. I'm forever looking for a finish that strikes a balance between durability, appearance, ease of application, and simplicity of setup. This finish has all those qualities, and is relatively inexpensive to boot!

[Eduard Nemirovsky]

Prashun, thank you for explanation. Bookmarked

Ed.

[Jebediah Eckert]

Thanks, maybe I will try that on the chest. It may end up being easier then bringing it up to the garage and spraying. Might be more time consuming but easier overall.

[Mike Null]

Nearly 20 years ago I built a large kitchen table of red oak. Chairs are a bit beyond my woodworking ability so I bought good quality unfinished red oak chairs. I sanded them thoroughly then used Minwax wipe on poly. I applied it with an old cotton bed sheet. I followed each of 5 applications with a rub down with 0000 steel wool. Then I waxed the chairs. These chairs are used at least twice a day and still look like new. I am a big fan of poly particularly for utility woods.

[John TenEyck]

For the life of me I can't eliminate swirls when I apply Arm-R-Seal with a circular motion. I recently did a large walnut slab top and thought that approach would work, but after the second coat I could see swirl marks from the coat below. I sanded back, did it again, and got swirl marks again. After I sanded back the second, or maybe even the third time, I diluted the Arm-R-Seal with about 25% MS and applied it with a foam brush. Man, what a difference. It flowed right out, no problems at all. Which leads me to wonder if that's why your process works; maybe it's the 1/3 MS you thin it with that makes it flow out, and maybe I would have gotten good results wiping on the Arm-R-Seal after I diluted it. Gotta try it and see.

Thanks for the post.

John

[Prashun Patel]

I also get that problem with ArmRSeal. It doesn't feel as thinned as this solution is.

I've said a million times how much I love Waterlox OSF for the color. It performs similarly to this mix; it levels when wiped in circles. But the smell is a non-starter when finishing indoors. It's also a one-gloss pony, only available mail-order for me, and has a short bottle life.

In fact, I finished this bench with Waterlox OSF just for the color on the sealing coat, then switched to poly for the rest.

[John TenEyck]

That's beautiful Prashun. Just to be clear, when you say Waterlox OSF, you mean this one, right?



I can only get that by mail order, as well, and so far the price has kept me away. At some point I'm going to have to try it though, because I've seen some excellent results with it. Of course, I've read all kinds of tales of woe, too.

I used gloss Arm-R-Seal on the walnut slab top I just made. I put on 5 or 6 coats total, 3 wiped and 3 brushed. After about 12 days I rubbed it out. You can get any sheen you want that way and the feel is amazing. Rubbing it out was pretty darned easy, at least the way I did it; all with my ROS. 1500 grit sanding disk, then 3000 and 4000 Abralon pads, then automotive polishing compound on a microfiber pad. Didn't make much mess either. I liked the satin sheen best after the 4000 grit Abralon, but the grain was so amazing that I brought it back up to gloss with the polishing compound.

IMG_4311.JPG

John

[Jeff Monson]

Nice write up Prashun! I'm always a fan of wipe on poly, so I will add this to my stable and give it a shot. Thanks for the info.

[Prashun Patel]

John I mean this one.

It's pre-thinned to be a wiping varnish and it's darker than the can you show. To be clear, too, WL makes a VOC compliant formula (that is red). The Original Formula which uses Stoddard Solvent is more Rust colored on its label.

[John TenEyck]

Thanks Prahun. That says "Medium Sheen", but I thought you complained that it tends to be too glossy.

John

[Prashun Patel]

Its not that its too glossy. It is a great sheen. But my original post here was praising an easy finish that is forgiving. The satin and semigloss blend just hides imprefections and nonfilled pores better than the waterlox sealer.

[Steve Wurster]

That's a cool technique. Could you see this being a viable option for a kitchen table that will see a lot of use? I'm working on the leg assemblies for a walnut table for our kitchen, and I've been wondering what type of finish to go with. My primary thought has been to use Waterlox OSF for the whole thing, but that can be a pain to use indoors and takes a while to dry. Perhaps your technique of a sealing coat of OSF and the rest with this poly mix would work, but only if that poly mix is a good choice for a table such as this.

[Bill McNiel]

Thank you Prashun, I am a Waterlox fan but am always looking for a finish that I don't have to wait 30 days to rubout. Your post is exactly why I come to this site.

Question - how does this finish do on the waterproof scale? Can I use it on tables where clients will put drinking glasses etc.?

[Prashun Patel]

Bill and Steve-
The issue is that this starts to look plasticky once you get north of 5-6 coats. IMHO for high use items you should be putting more coats on for protection. But for lighter use things - which is the majority of my work - this is a viable option.

With so few wiped on coats i have seen that it doesnt hold up to daily abuse. But all that really means is having to wipe on a refresher coat every couple years. This may not be an issue if you building for yourself as i am mostely doing. For clients, thats a different story.

[Mike Null]

I used brush on poly for my red oak table and it is now ready for refinishing but after nearly twenty years. We use it multiple times daily without table cloth or placemats so it has taken plenty of wear. I will bow to Prashun's expertise relative to a plastic look. My eye has not detected that but it does seem to be a common complaint with poly finishes.

I don't think I would use wipe on poly on a kitchen table that will be subjected to the hard use mine gets.