Enduro-Var

[Jerry Thompson]

So far I have sprayed two coats of Enduro-Var gloss on a test cherry board. It was sanded with 220 as directed and wiped clean. I sanded the first coat after 2.5 hours with 320 as directed and wiped clean.
The second coat is now curing and I will probably shoot #3 in the morning. They recommend 3 coats. I plan on shooting a couple of more coats to make sure all is well protected.
My question is, does this product “melt” into itself as does lacquer as an example? I ask because I plan on rubbing it out to satin when all is cured. I do not want witness lines.
I got a pint of gloss because that was the smallest can they had at the time and have never used this product before. I do not know if the satin product would be what I want and want to do it myself.

[John TenEyck]

I've sprayed many gallons of EnduroVar but have never rubbed it out. Never saw a need. Anyway, I don't believe it melts into itself like Target claims their products do. Also, I use 600 grit to scuff sand between coats; 320 only if I have to fix a big problem. I also try to spray each coat no more than 3 hours after the one before so that they bond better. I'm not sure this is necessary, but it's what I do.

If your coats are light, you can spray 4 coats, but if you are spraying full, wet coats I would not apply more than 3. I had one project start getting that plastic look after I sprayed 4 wet coats of semi gloss. In your situation, I would spray one more coat and I would make it a full, wet coat to give yourself more cushion against cutting through. Let that cure for 6 or 7 days before rubbing it out.

Good luck.

John

[Jerry Thompson]

The test piece has just had it's 3rd coat. I don't think I did a very good spray job. I used to do well spraying but I have done anything in years. I will let this cure a week and then rub it out and report back.
I will probably use a pad on the next piece. All I have is what amounts to a touch up gun and the largest needle is 1.2. That is the largest they make for the gun.
I am getting up in years and I am not going to go through the expense of another gun or learning curve.
Thanks.

[Jerry Thompson]

Another question John. The sprayed surface is not "glassy" nor is it perfectly smooth. It has very, very fine little bumps. In other words it looks OK but raking light will show them. I doubt they would show up on a photo.
The gun has "made for A C Technologies on it. As is said it is a touch up gun. I have yet to have a need for anything else. I must not have it set right or too small of a needle, me too close?

[John TenEyck]

Hi Jerry. The rough surface you are getting is most likely because of that 1.2 mm N/N in your gun. EnduroVar has a viscosity of about 50 seconds #4 Ford cup and you need at least a 1.5 mm N/N for to spray it w/o thinning with a gravity feed gun, which I assume is what yours is. Even that is pretty small and you have to open the needle way up and go slow to get a good film.

You would have to thin the EnduroVar down to about 20 seconds to get it to spray well through a 1.2 mm N/N. If you have a viscosity cup then it's easy; add some water and check; repeat until you get 20 seconds. If you don't, try adding about 5% water and see how it sprays. Open the needle at least 2 full turns (maybe 3), the inlet air pressure at about 30 psi to start, and the fan control wide open. If you have a cheater air valve near the inlet connection open it up all the way. You are looking for good atomization but not a fog of over spray. If you shoot a burst on a sheet of paper you should get a nice ellipse. If you don't adjust the air pressure up/down until it's as good as you can get it. If 5% dilution was not enough add a couple more percent and try again until you get there. With a touch up gun you may also have to move the gun closer to the work (like around 6") and move the gun more slowly over the work to lay down a wet film.

You also need some sort of fan to carry the over spray off the work, which also will give you a rough bumpy surface. You don't need one if you are spraying something really small, just spray at a slight angle and overlap your passes moving the gun further away from you with each pass. That works OK up to a point, but with large surfaces you need air moving over the piece to assure the over spray doesn't fall back on the wet work piece.

And I don't want to hear about getting up in years. You just have more experience than younger folks. I've accumulated a fair amount experience myself.

I hope that helps. Good luck.

John

[Jerry Thompson]

Thank you John. I will get a #4 Ford cup and start dialing things in. I still plan on letting what I have done cure until next week end and try rubbing it out. I'll post feed back on that endeavor.

[Jerry Thompson]

Another question. I have heard many voice satisfaction with the Harbor Freight gun. It has a 1.4 needle. It is about $16. That might be worth a try. I could try thinning the product with the SWAG method.

[John TenEyck]

Yes, I forgot to mention that the 1.4 mm N/N HF purple gun, often on sale for about $10, sprays very well. You will still need to thin EnduroVar a little to get it to spray well, but it would be a big step up over a detail gun. That gun sprays shellac beautifully, too. If you buy one, be sure to disassemble it before you use it. Look for and pick out any white sealant you find inside the finish passages. And remove and discard the plastic filter, if there is one, below the finish cup at the inlet of the gun. Better to filter your finish before hand than to rely on that little filter, which will plug up and cause problems if you use unfiltered finish with crud in it. In any case, that gun is one of the HF gems. And there's no problem using WB products with it as long as you clean it out and dry it after each use. I spray a little bit of DNA through it after I clean it to make sure all the water is gone.

John

[Jerry Thompson]

Here is a Jeff Jewitt schedule to bring Endurovar up to high gloss. GF said that the coats do not become one with each other as lacquer.

Enduro Var Polishing Schedule
By: Jeff Jewitt


Day 1….

1). Prep wood to 220 grit
2). Spray full wet coat ofEnduro Var Gloss- allow 2 hours dry time
3). Level sand 320- spray asecond coat full wet coat-wait 2 hours-light hand sand 320
4). Full wet coat---allow todry overnight

Day 2…..

5). Level sand with 320….wipedown with water mixed with 5% Denatured Alcohol
6). Spray full wet coat… 2-3mils allow 1 hour dry time and repeatfor a total of 3 coats with 1 hour between coats.

Let dry 1 week.
Level sand dry with Mirka P800
Sand dry with P1200 Mirka
Sand dry with 2000 grit MirkaAbralon

(Note- Do not use anylubricants of any type for sanding)

Final: 3M Finesse-It Materialon a foam buffing pad to high gloss

[John TenEyck]

Thanks for posting that Jerry. Six coats sure seems like overkill, and I would not do it on anything but gloss for fear of getting a cloudy, plastic look. Actually, I wouldn't do it even on gloss. If you spray full, wet coats, you shouldn't need more than 3 or 4 coats. Once you have a complete film, what's the point? Maybe Jeff is taking off a lot of finish where he twice says to "level sand".

John

[Jerry Thompson]

John, the stuff can be made very high gloss. My thinking is whey can't it go to satin. When I get caught up on my naps I might give it a shot.

[paul cottingham]

I pad it on with a cloth, and wipe it, believe it or not. And I get great results. You could brush it on or even spray it, and buff it, I suspect.

Of course, I tend to do everything a little bass ackwards.

[Jerry Thompson]

I let the gloss cure for a week +. I used pumic for rubbing, mineral oil, and a felt erasure. With little trouble I was able to obtain a smooth satin finish. I put three coats on the other side of the board with the satin finish. It has yet to cure but it appears to be just a tad glossier than the rubbed out gloss.
Either appearance is acceptable to me. I will, however, us the satin in the future as this cuts out un-needed work.
I can discern no witness lines in the gloss finish after the rubbing out.
I might add that I used a foam brush to apply the satin and will do so with the project my wife and I are working on.
No pics. I am too lazy to drag out the DSL and set up the board.

[John TenEyck]

Sounds good Jerry. Thanks for posting how it turned out. You might try just using 0000 steel wool with wool lube or paste wax in the future. It will give you a nice satin sheen, too, with less sloppy mess.

John