Walnut and Baltic birch Stereo Cabinet

[jteneyck]

I built this open cabinet for a young guy who's an audiophile and needs storage for LP's and a turntable and some kind of fancy amplifier/speaker.  His taste is fairly eclectic, and he showed me a picture of something similar to what I built made from cheap plywood and asked if I could make something similar.  I said sure, but let's use better materials.  

I had a piece of walnut about 1-3/4" thick that was just wide and long enough to do the shelves, so I sawed it into veneer and glued that to the shelves.  There's one piece of solid walnut across the back, only because I ran out of plywood.  As you'll see, the edges of the plywood are left exposed, by design.  Not everyone's cup of tea but he loves it so I'm happy.  



I hate the hairpin legs but that's what he wanted so so be it.  I used Rubio Monocoat for the finish.  It's the first time I've used it and I'm a fan.  It's very easy to use and it's incredibly durable against typical food and chemicals.  Zero VOC and almost no smell.  You could apply this stuff in your living room and not offend anyone.  

As the name implies you only apply one coat of finish.  Mix the accelerator with the main component and then spread it on with a plastic spatula.  Wipe it off after 5 to 10 minutes.  There are no lap marks, none.  Repairs are as simple as scuff sanding the area to be fixed and applying a new coat of finish.  Again, and most amazing to me, there are no lap marks where the new meets the old.  That feature is what swayed me to use it for this project.  Over time I can see the albums that get slid on and off the lower shelf to damaging the finish.  With the typical film finishes I use that would make any repair pretty difficult, but not with this stuff.  

Rubio appears very expensive, $52 for a 375 ml of can of finish and accelerator, but it goes a very long way and ends up costing no more than the products I normally use.  It took 1/3 of the can to do this project which has about 30 ft2.  Here's a closer look at the walnut after finishing.



 If you are looking for an easy to use, matte sheen finish Rubio Monocoat 2C is worth considering.  There are lots of YouTube videos and information on Rubio's website.  I don't get any compensation, etc., from Rubio or anyone else.  I'm just a very happy user.  

John

[FS7]

Rubio has been promoting their products relentlessly on social media for years. Many people seem to think it's magic, but it is pretty expensive. I may yet try it but I have not had a problem with Osmo Polyx, which is a similar product and almost exactly half the price. I cannot tell the difference between the two beyond the marketing and word of mouth push. Your endorsement means a lot for sure.

[jteneyck]

Rubio has been promoting their products relentlessly on social media for years. Many people seem to think it's magic, but it is pretty expensive. I may yet try it but I have not had a problem with Osmo Polyx, which is a similar product and almost exactly half the price. I cannot tell the difference between the two beyond the marketing and word of mouth push. Your endorsement means a lot for sure.

Amazon has Rubio Monocoat 2C for about $170 for a 1.3 L package.  Osmo Polyox is about $160 for a 1L container.  You only apply one coat of Rubio but you are supposed to apply 2 coats of Osmo, so ....  

I thought both were outrageously priced but, as I mentioned above, I used 1/3 of the can on test specimens and the cabinet above, so $17.  Had I used Arm-R-Seal, 3 or 4 coats, I would have used about 1/2 a 1 quart can, around $15.  One coat and done is really hard to beat.  Setting cost aside, these products are so simple and safe to use, and repairs are invisible.  Those attributes are - priceless.     

John

OK, now I see Osmo Polyox for $170 for a 2.5 L can.  That puts them at about equal cost on the finished product.

[FS7]

Amazon has Rubio Monocoat 2C for about $170 for a 1.3 L package.  Osmo Polyox is about $160 for a 1L container.  You only apply one coat of Rubio but you are supposed to apply 2 coats of Osmo, so ....  

I thought both were outrageously priced but, as I mentioned above, I used 1/3 of the can on test specimens and the cabinet above, so $17.  Had I used Arm-R-Seal, 3 or 4 coats, I would have used about 1/2 a 1 quart can, around $15.  One coat and done is really hard to beat.  Setting cost aside, these products are so simple and safe to use, and repairs are invisible.  Those attributes are - priceless.     

John

OK, now I see Osmo Polyox for $170 for a 2.5 L can.  That puts them at about equal cost on the finished product.

I used to buy my Polyx from Lee Valley as it was actually much cheaper than Amazon. Last purchase (I had to check) was $54 for a 750 mL can. I guess depending on how you look at it, the cost is similar, and the attributes are similar. I will probably try it just to see if it makes any real difference. My guess is that they're similar (and in fact all "hard wax" oil finishes are similar). I don't have the time or the energy to do a comparison test but my guess is that they're all pretty much the same in composition and results.

By nature I will read instructions, not necessarily follow them. One of the things I read about Rubio Monocoat was that you can't sand past 180 grit or the finish doesn't work. That to me meant changing everything about what I did since I always, always, always sand to at least 220. The other thing - and perhaps the most critical to me - was that Osmo described their resistances (albeit according to standards I am not familiar with). Specifically, they say the following - "Resistant to wine, beer, cola, coffee, tea, fruit juice, milk and water according to DIN 68861-1A, and Saliva-resistant and sweatproof according to DIN 53160." This meant a lot to me because I work from home and the single biggest problem I have with any wood item in my house is the spot (or spots, rather) on my desk where my forearms rest. I had searched high and low for answers to that question and found nothing until I found Osmo. So I might be attached for that reason. I am guessing that although Rubio doesn't say anything specifically about that, it's probably more or less the same. I imagine we're putting way too much thought into it.

But in any case, the piece does look nice. Knowing your work history, this doesn't seem to be your style (you've alluded to that already). Do you struggle to make pieces that you don't really "get?" I have done very few designs either that I don't like at all or for people I don't know, so it's a bit easier, but I can't really imagine doing something like this and being happy with it for the sole reason that it offends my sensibilities. That is of course irrelevant if you're making it for somebody else, but human nature is human nature, so I thought I'd ask.

[jteneyck]

When people ask me to build something I really hate, or just don't want to do, I politely refuse. Most of the time I can steer them towards something a little more pleasing than they originally thought of. In this case, it was my idea to use the walnut veneer with the plywood edges exposed. I did it to help control the cost but I rather like the contrast and how it mirrors off the Baltic birch side panels. He wanted the hairpin legs. I think I could have talked him into a more elegant base, one that would keep the lower shelf from sagging over time, too, but the budget didn't permit it so he got the hairpin legs.
Most of the things I sell I'm never going to see again. While I try to improve the design to please my own design sensibilities when I can, I have no problem making what the customer wants. It's their money and I'm honored to build something for them.
John

[Philip1231]

Piece looks great, and thanks for mentioning the Rubio product: will have to check that out.