Finishing a desktop

[msweig]

Working on a desk for my daughter. Legs are maple, top is purpleheart.

I'm already aware of purpleheart's ability to change color, and how much variation there seems to be in how the wood reacts over time due to different species (some seem to get purple after cutting, some get the purple later, all seem to lose the purple color eventually). I'm fine with all this. The piece I have seems to be keeping it's purple color well (granted, not a lot of direct sunlight exposure). And the darker color down the road could be good as I'm sure my daughter will grow out of "I want a purple desk phase".

I'm more concerned with the writing surface itself. I want it to be smooth enough that you can write on it with no problem. I have a desk made out of cherry where I finished with shellac and it seems to be fine. But the purpleheart seems to have a bit larger pores (but not much, definitely not like oak). Will finishing it with a water based UV resistant finish deal with the pores well enough, or do I need to look into filling the grain?

(My other finish option would be something like shellac, but I'm guessing a UV resistant coating will hold the color for longer)

[jteneyck]

If you want to write directly on the wood, I'd use a hard topcoat, like Behlen's Tabletop Rockhard Varnish

John

[fredhargis]

You'll need to make it smooth, or use a desk pad. Personally I wouldn't worry about the UV part, the wood is going to do whatever it wants, and when it wants to. Besides those finishes with UV inhibitors may well be softer than what you want since they are primarily out door type finishes such as spar varnishes. They have to be softer to accommodate extreme wood movement

[Ridgeway]

If you want to write directly on the wood, I'd use a hard topcoat, like Behlen's Tabletop Rockhard Varnish

John

I agree. I think he'll also need a grain filler to get a really smooth surface, but I am not sure how nice most grain fillers would look with purpleheart.

[msweig]

Thanks for the input. Looks like I'm going to have a larger chunk of scrap than I thought so I should be able to try a few things.

And I didn't think about a UV finish potentially being softer. Good point.