SHELLAC

[jteneyck]

Everclear is the way to get small quantities of ethanol.

https://www.ansellpro.com/download/Ansel...eGuide.pdf


I wonder if it is the MEK that is in the Kleanstrip DNA and not the methanol. At any rate, the gloves I tested didn't have an issue. But I haven't tested them lately and I doubt HF is consistent in their suppliers.

The first nitrile gloves I had were from Home Depot, so I'm not blaming HF.  KleanStrip DNA doesn't play nice with nitrile gloves, and MEK could be the reason.  At this point I avoid skin contact as much as possible, and always use a respirator when spraying it.  

John

[jteneyck]

I was reading on the Shellac.Net website about denatured alcohol.  They were searching for 'high proof' and said out of ten different hardware and paint stores only Sherwin-Williams had 190 proof.  However, they also said that Klean-Strip Green was 190 proof.  I read the spec sheet and it says 80-90% ethanol and less than 5% methanol.  It is available at Home Depot for $6.87 a quart.  Has anyone used it?  Wonder what makes it green?

Lonnie

PS  Orderd a half dozen shellac samples (2 oz size) from Wellermart to try out on some test boards.  Cost was only $31.31 shipped.  You can order from 2 oz bag on up.  Prices were very reasonable, I thought, especially if you just want a small amount to try out.  Most places don't sell small quantities.

$31 for 12 oz of shellac seems high to me.  You can buy Sealcoat which is 2 lbs of it in a gallon of alcohol for $40, and for a few pennies dope the color to anything you want with Transtint dye.  

John

[Rob Young]

$31 for 12 oz of shellac seems high to me.  You can buy Sealcoat which is 2 lbs of it in a gallon of alcohol for $40, and for a few pennies dope the color to anything you want with Transtint dye.  

John

That's the sample pack price.  You are paying somebody to make up several small packages.  
A quick check on the web site and it also looks like that included shipping costs.

At the 1# increment, the dewaxed garnet is $22/lb
1# of platina (lightest color) dewaxed is $28/lb  
Get above $30 on the order and you can get free shipping.

So make a 2# cut of something similar to S.C. is going to cost around $56 plus the alcohol.  This is more than a gallon of S.C. 

Yes, flakes probably cost more than a gallon of S.C.  But if you want to dye it, add the cost of Transtint.  $19/2oz bottle (that should be more than enough to color a gallon of S.C. plus its shipping (order from Homestead Finishing but eBay store doesn't seem to have the 2oz bottles, 8oz seems to be smallest qty plus $16.70 shipping) or sales tax if you pop into a Woodcraft.

Homestead Finishing eBay store
8oz bottle $50 + $16.70 = $67.50/8oz or $16.88/2oz

Woodcraft
2oz bottle (can't find 8oz) $20.50 + sales tax (say 10% to cover tax and maybe a few drops of gas for the car) = $22.55/2oz


Trying not to cherry-pick numbers too much but also choosing by "buy local" for liquids :

Using the Homestead Finishing cost but only 2oz from an 8oz bottle you have to add about $17 to whatever price is paid for S.C.  In town I'd pay $35 at Menards.  My town sales tax is 10% so that's $38.50 + 16.88 = $55.38 to color a gallon of S.C. to be "garnet".  Scale back the colorant add-in if you need less than 2oz per gallon.  I'm really not sure how much it would take to color a whole gallon.

A gallon of KleanStrip DNA purchased here in town would be about $13 (again Menards) or $14.30 after tax.  So if I make up from flakes using the garnett above, $44 + 14.3 = $58.30

Only about a $3 difference but I had to buy $50 worth of dye to get there (and assuming I only need 2oz of a single color dye).

I'm still not counting in the cost of some other junk like a clean gallon paint can, maybe a coffee grinder, etc.

Still though essentially a wash IF my goal is to get a sort of standard color (garnet, orange, etc).  For more detailed color matching, it is a different story.

I'm usually mixing up small quantities like a pint at a time.  The flakes last (nearly) forever and I buy the alcohol as needed. The S.C. has date codes which may or may not be an issue but my rate of use is lower than John's.

I like playing with the flakes (the shellac kind and the people kind).  


TL;DR -- use either flakes for S.C+dye, doesn't mater.  Just step up your game and add dewaxed shellac to your finishing arsenal.

[jteneyck]

TL;DR -- use either flakes for S.C+dye, doesn't mater.  Just step up your game and add dewaxed shellac to your finishing arsenal.

On that, I definitely agree.  

Relative to the cost, I can't remember ever having to add anywhere near a whole 2 oz. bottle of Transtint to a gallon of Sealcoat.  I do some really dark toners at around 1%; that would be about 1.25 oz/gallon, but most of the toners I make are much less than that. 

But cost aside, the real benefit of Transtint in SC is that I can make any color I want; I'm not stuck with the stock shellac flavors, or having to buy several flavors and then having to intermix them to move the color.  With SealCoat I can stick with one product and just dope the color to anything I want.  Everyone chooses how to go about things.  I like simple and this way is simple for me.    

John