Rockhard update
In my earlier post on Behlen’s Rockhard Table Top Varnish, I talked about a finishing schedule of mineral oil, shellac, then varnish. HOLD THAT THOUGHT! Here’s the problem: the first coat of varnish doesn’t adhere properly to the shellac if you do it the way I described.
I sanded back down to wood, and found that you can fix it with three simple steps:
1) Skip the mineral oil, or use a hardening oil (like boiled linseed oil) instead–residual liquid mineral oil reduces the surface tension of the varnish and can cause it to flow out improperly, leaving an uneven surface
2) Scuff the shellac lightly with sandpaper before applying the varnish, to promote adhesion
3) Don’t thin the first coat of varnish if it’s going over shellac, since the wood is already sealed by the shellac
Or you could just skip the whole shellac thing and follow the instructions on the can, instead of being difficult like me.
In the words of Michael Dresdner: Fabulous finishers frequently finish firewood first.
As you may have gathered, I am not a fabulous finisher. But the Rockhard is a pretty fabulous finish.
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