I built a Trestle Table for our DNL. She requested reclaimed timbers.
I hope you enjoy the build as much as I did. Her table is my all-time favorite build.
Like you, I LEARNED a lot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Good luck and keep taking those pictures.
"I tried being reasonable..........I didn't like it." Clint Eastwood
Base is stained and first coat of poly is was put down a few minutes ago.
I was surprised with how much stain lifted onto my rag while wiping on the poly. I assume that once this coat cures, following coats won't lift any? I'm using Varathane oil based Dark Walnut with poly cut 50% with mineral spirits. It'll require more coats, yes, but I don't have to deal with runs as much.
What I suspect happened is the stain wasn't fully cured and the high solvent content in your varnish was enough to soften and pick some off. If that's what happened, there are 3 solutions I know of. Let the stain dry longer, maybe a few days before applying the varnish, have a scrap piece with the stain to test it, or give a coat of sprayed shellac (or your varnish for that matter). You might get by brushing the shellac, but it's a skill I haven't mastered and I think you mentioned no spraying so the shellac may not be a solution. You are correct, once your coat of varnish dries you won't pull any more stain off with subsequent coats.
I started with absolutely nothing. Now, thanks to years of hard work, careful planning, and perseverance, I find I still have most of it left.
First things first: I like that table! It's coming right along.
On to your finishing challenge: I did a multi-piece bedroom furniture project with red oak last year; used Minwax stain. I had significant trouble with it, more trouble than I've ever had with Minwax stains.
I used Minwax Satin poly thinned with MS to make a wiping finish; it's my standard go-to.
Like you, I had problems with the stain lifting off as I applied the poly. Upon close inspection, I could see that there were droplets that had settled in the pores, and these droplets were VERY slow to cure. As soon as the MS-thinned poly came in contact with the uncured stain droplets, I got streaking and it created an unattractive mess (I used significantly different words for that when it happened.)
The stain just wasn't curing in the cooler shop; I kept the shop overnight at 50-55 degrees, which was a significant drag on the propane tank as this was going on during our many days below zero last February.
I ended up stripping some of the pieces, and redoing them over in the house basement where temps were consistently 65 degrees, and I let them cure for 7 days before applying the wipe-on poly.
It's a great looking project! I appreciate that you used traditional joinery. That table really will be bomb-proof.
One note of your finishing issue. I've come to learn there have been lots of issues with finish manufacturers getting all the ingredients they need for their products. I'm sure some of it is due to this supply chain nightmare, but some are also due to the TX deep freeze last winter. Just walk into any Sherwin Williams store and they'll tell you. The issues you're facing could be related to your stain or varnish having a "less than ideal' recipe due to the availability of some ingredients. Not that it helps you solve your problem, but just a little insight.
How do you know you're learning anything if you don't screw up once in awhile?
Yup, it's been on the 50* side of cool recently, so the stain was slow to cure. I could smell it when I started the poly, so that should have warned me.
Instructions on the can say to reapply after four hours. If done before twelve hours, no sanding needed. So second coat went on at 4.5 hours. A bit of stain lifted, but much less. Then a third coat ten hours later and almost zero stain lifted.
Two more coats today and I think I'll call it good. I'll let it cure for at least a week before buffing it.
Brad, GREAT job on the table!!!
MinWax has been my go-to stain since day one. I doubt there is any amount of time you could wait and not experience "lift" using an oil base finish. On a current project with MinWax stain, I am using a water base finish and experiencing only a little "lift".
"I tried being reasonable..........I didn't like it." Clint Eastwood
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