Spray Finishing Strategy, etc.

[Sal Giambruno]

Hey Guys,

I'm nearing completion on a desktop letter organizer. If you're a FWW online subscriber, you can see the details of the piece by searching the FWW Projects section using the keywords "desk organizer. Basically, it's a typical desk organizer with four mail slots located above a slim, center shelf with a small drawer at the bottom.

In any case, it's time to start thinking about finishing. My options for application are spray, brush, wipe, etc. I have lots of Nitrocellulose Lacquer, Sealcoat, Varnish, Shellac, Poly, etc. I'd prefer to spray with lacquer, so as to practice my spraying technique and because I really like lacquer.

My questions are:

1) As you can imagine, this project has lots of extremely cramped spaces and corners. It also has a small drawer, something I've never had to consider finishing until now. Should I finish the individual pieces/components prior to glue-up, or after final assembly?

2) Because I'm using White Oak, I'd like to fill the pores. Is this feasible/desireable/customary on such a piece?

3) Does every surface get a finish? In other words, do I finish the inside of the carcase where the drawer goes? What about drawer and related/adjoining surfaces? The bottom surfaces?

4) Does every surface get the same finish, or should the sliding/hidden parts receive a different, lesser, subdued or simpler finish?

Time spent on finishing this project is not an issue. In other words, I'm not looking for the most expedient approach, but one that will provide a high-quality finish that will further differentiate this piece from a mass-produced piece, and that will stand up to close inspection.

Sorry about all the questions, especially the ones whose answers seem glaringly obvious. But, as most of us know, false assumptions can sometimes lead to regrettable decisions, which I'd like to keep to a minimum.

Thanks!

[Tony Bilello]

I say spray the lacquer.

I assume the letter organizer is not big....gee, and I came up with that all by myself.
If it were mine, I would spray the drawer front and mask off the drawer. Traditionally, drawers were never finished inside. Has something to do drawers sticking in hot humid weather, which with most modern finishes
is no longer applicable. Either way, I would stick with tradition.

I dont know the size and shape of the letter box, but I'm sure it will be difficuly to get into every nook and cranny, and possibly you wont be able to. If that be the case, Get all of the visable areas and some will get into the areas you cant see. I have never finished before glue-up but I cant find any reason why you cant. Just mask you stuff real well. Dont want finish on your bare wood joints. Then when you are fished glueing up and the glue has dried, give a light overall coat on the entire thing.
As for filling the grain (pores), it is feasable, dont know about the customary or desirable part, being its on a letter box.
It certainly wouldnt hurt to try. If you mess up, lacquer thinner will pull it right out again.
Only visable areas get finished and not the inside of the carcase. Thats tradition and probably because it serves no real purpose.

I will say this much, you certainly could not have picked a more difficult piece to practice/learn on.

If all goes south, lacquer thinner will readily wipe off all the lacquer if you dont wait too long.

The things I do first are 1) shoot the gun into the air and see if you have a nice steady fan coming out to make sure there is no clogging.
2) Take a few swipes on a piece of cardboard or scrap plywood to check to see how much fluid is coming out. I do this about every 10 minutes or so. 3) this is the biggie....if you intend to put on 5 nice coats and after the fourth, it looks real good....stop while you are ahead!!!


I use a cup gun a lot. If I'm only going to take a 10 minute break between coats, I still empty the gun, run thinner through it, shoot some out and leave the thinner in the gun until you are ready to spray lacquer again. I save 1 Gal. milk jugs. Cut the top off and pour the "dirty " thinner in the jug. Use this to clean the gun later, followed by clean thinner.

[Ed Peters]

I use a cup gun a lot. If I'm only going to take a 10 minute break between coats, I still empty the gun, run thinner through it, shoot some out and leave the thinner in the gun until you are ready to spray lacquer again. I save 1 Gal. milk jugs. Cut the top off and pour the "dirty " thinner in the jug. Use this to clean the gun later, followed by clean thinner.

I keep 2 cup guns loaded with lacquer in my shop at all times. One for gloss and one for satin. The cups are refilled as they empty and the only portion of the gun that requires any cleaning is the air cap occassionally. Save your thinner for lighting brush piles.

Ed

P.S.
I break out the pressure pot from time to time for large jobs, this does get broken down for cleaning after the job is done. Only because there is a lot of time between jobs that require it's volume.

[Sal Giambruno]

Hey guys, thanks for the terrific feedback. It looks like there is no easy answer to these questions, but at least now I have eliminated a few more unknowns, and have a little more information on hand to digest.

I'm leaning towards finishing prior to assembly - I just don't think I can get to all the surfaces on the fully-assembled project. The distance between any two of the vertical letter dividers is no more than about 3-1/2", and go 8" deep, and 6" down into the recesses of the carcass - it would be impossible to maneuver even a spray-can in such cramped quarters. I realize there must be several alternative solutions, but I'm just not that skilled yet, or willing to risk any effort on pursuing some other creative finishing scheme (i.e. different finishes with different application methods for different parts).

I've also decided pore-filling is a must since I really dislike the heavy grain of White Oak. And therein lies another reason for pre-finishing . . .

Thanks again.

[Jim Becker]

If you're going to spray a lot of small projects, then having a small gun is going to be a nice convenience. There is no rule that says you can only have one gun...and the "laws of tool acquisition" pretty much indicate multiples are in order!

Pre-finishing components might be a good idea if you intend to spray these small projects that are "boxy". Heck, I do that for cabinet carcasses as it's a lot easier to spray flat things. The extra preparation time is made up for by the more consistent results I can get. On the other hand, with small projects you may find you don't like the way that the finish doesn't flow over the joinery as well as it would with application after assembly. Honestly, some small projects may very well be best served by hand-finishing rather than spraying...

[Rob Cunningham]

I like to finish as much as I can before assembly. On a small sized project I would spray all the inside surfaces first, assemble, and then spray the outside.
Another approach is to finish all surfaces before assembly, assemble the project, then give the outside one more coat.
I have done it both ways depending on the job.

[Sal Giambruno]

Jim, Rob:

I think you guys hit the nail right on the head.

One of my biggest concerns with pre-finishing was exactly that the finish wouldn't "flow" over the joinery and that it would look like a piecemeal kit once assembled. Rob's suggestion of the various pre-finishing strategies sounds to be an excellent approach. Then again, I haven't ruled out hand-finishing, either. In the end, I'll have to check my gut with all the available information and summon the courage to go through with one approach or another.

Heck, and FWW calls this a "weekend project." I really wish they would be a little more careful with their wording . . . considering the real challenges this project has posed, both in construction and finishing. Then again, for a seasoned veteran actually capable of producing FINE WOODWORKing, this just might be a simple weekend project. Not for me though . . .