Choosing a Lacquer-esque Waterborne Clear Finish to "Main"

[Kevin Oberg]

I'm a long-time occasional hobbyist who is finally getting more serious and regular about woodworking projects including (in order of frequency) furniture, kid's furniture, household trim, shop items, and other miscellany for friends and family. The majority of what I've done has used oil-based stain followed by brushed or wiped oil-based poly (big box brand Minwax, Varathane). I've done a few projects with danish oil and shellac where durability isn't a big deal. I love the look and longevity of these oil-based finishes I've "main-ed" in the past, but I hate dealing with solvent safety and cleanup. My shop is a third-stall of a garage loaded with kid's stuff and I'll never have a dedicated area for solvent-work, so I'm looking to go 100% waterborne low-VOC stuff. I will be spraying with a second-hand Fuji Semi-Pro 2 I recently acquired.

Goal of this thread is to select a single waterborne spray finish that will serve as my go-to which I can master and use for the next decade and beyond. These are the criteria I'm considering:

• MUST HAVES
  
  • Adheres over water-based stains
  • 3-4 coats may be applied in a day (e.g. recoat window between 30-90 minutes) and achieves the product's intended finish
  • Serves as a single product finish; nothing required beneath or above it
  • Comparable mar durability and resistance to water and household chemicals as nitro/pre-cat solvent-based lacquer
  
  
• OPTIONAL PLUS-ES
  
  • Adheres over oil-based stain
  • Works over sealcoats such as de-waxed shellac
  • Burn-in repair-ability a la solvent-based lacquer (does anybody other than EM6000 even CLAIM this?)

Based on these criteria, I've come up with the following short-list:

• PRIMARY CONSIDERATION
  
  • General Finishes Enduro Clear Poly (https://generalfinishes.com/wood-fin...uro-clear-poly)
  • General Finishes Enduro WB Pre-Cat Lacquer (https://generalfinishes.com/wood-fin...re-cat-lacquer)
  • EMTECH EM6000 WB Production Lacquer (https://www.targetcoatings.com/produ...ction-lacquer/)
  
  
• SECONDARY/CURIOSITIES
  
  • Lenmar DuraLaq WB (https://www.paintoutlets.com/product...-satin-1wb-104). Seems like many people see this as the bargain version of the GF products.
  • Deft WB Clean (https://www.ppgpaints.com/products/i...sh#data-sheets). Curious as Deft was apparently THE go-to solvent lacquer in decades past.

I would greatly appreciate any thoughts the community has to offer regarding these products (or others) and how they might meet the goals I'm looking accomplish for my projects for my nascent woodworking journey!

[Jim Becker]

Many of us use waterborne finishes and have for years. I've been utilizing Target Coatings products since the early 2000s. Their EM6000 is one of the few waterborne finishes that actually has the "burn in" that is a key value of traditional solvent based lacquer. The rest of their line is excellent too. Lots of folks use the General Finishes products...they are very good and have the advantage of availability in many retail settings. I believe John T has used the Lenmar product you mention. As to Deft, I didn't know they had that project but it should not be surprising since there are geographies where many solvent based products can no longer be sold or in only small quantities. If they want to stay in business long term...low- or no-VOC products are essential to survival.

All of these waterborne products spray well. In fact, it's the recommended application method. Once you get your gun dialed in for a particular product, your result should be excellent.

[John TenEyck]

I've used many of those products. My preference is EM-6000, Enduro Clear Poly, Duralaq WB, and Enduro WB Pre-Cat Lacquer.

EM-6000 sprays great and is very, very clear. I have no clue if their claim of burn in is true. I've never needed to rub it out so it's irrelevant.





Enduro Clear Poly is my all around favorite WB finish. Sprays great, looks very good, and is the most physically and chemically durable of these WB finishes.




Duralaq WB sprays like a dream and looks great. However, it is easily damaged by ammonia containing cleaners.

Enduro WB PreCat Lacquer doesn't spray as well as the others, at least for me. I found no compelling reason to use it over the others.





Bonus option: GF's High Performance. Sprays great with a little thinning and looks great.




John

[Kevin Oberg]

Jim, thanks so much for your thoughts on the brands at-large. It is good to know that more experienced folks have used these products long enough to have established trust in each of them for their given purpose.

John, the experience and sample photos you've provided really give me a great compare/contrast take that I need to whittle down the choices. At this point, I'm leaning very much towards just going whole-hog down the General Finishes water-based track with the Enduro Clear Poly as my mainstay. As time goes on and I pine for adding more products to my repertoire, the EM6000 and the Target Coatings line-up at-large would be the next up.

Assuming I move forward with Enduro Clear Poly as my workhorse, are there any tips or preferred methods of application that have worked well for you and a novice woodworker/spray finisher like me ought to know?

[John TenEyck]

Jim, thanks so much for your thoughts on the brands at-large. It is good to know that more experienced folks have used these products long enough to have established trust in each of them for their given purpose.

John, the experience and sample photos you've provided really give me a great compare/contrast take that I need to whittle down the choices. At this point, I'm leaning very much towards just going whole-hog down the General Finishes water-based track with the Enduro Clear Poly as my mainstay. As time goes on and I pine for adding more products to my repertoire, the EM6000 and the Target Coatings line-up at-large would be the next up.

Assuming I move forward with Enduro Clear Poly as my workhorse, are there any tips or preferred methods of application that have worked well for you and a novice woodworker/spray finisher like me ought to know?

I've sprayed Enduro Clear Poly through both a gravity feed and my current pressure assisted HVLP gun. I think I used a 1.4 mm N/N in my gravity feed gun and I use a 1.0 mm in my pressure assisted gun. I suggest you start with something in that range. Shoot bursts on a sheet of Kraft paper and adjust the fan until you get an elliptical pattern with even distribution. Adjust your flow setting until you optimize that pattern.

I spray passes that overlap about 50%. I prefer to spray coats just short of what most people would call a full, wet coat. If you have a mil gage, I look for around 3 mils. My motivation is to avoid orange peel and/or runs on vertical. Fortunately, Enduro Clear Poly does not easily orange peel, but it will run if you shoot to heavily.

You can scuff sand in an hour and recoat immediately afterwards. Three coats in a day is easy to accomplish.

John

[andrew whicker]

Hi John,

By pressure assisted, do you mean a pressure pot for the product?