Thread: Minwax substitutes

Originally Posted by BoomerangInfo

Hey All,

Just looking through my old finish stuff to see if I've got anything like Minwax.

I have a 2L can of Wattyl Estapol and a 1L can of White Knight Instant Clear Polyurethane Gloss.

The Estapol says 8hrs dry, the Instant Clear says 4hrs. I read elsewhere about homemade Minwax as 2 parts poly/3 parts turps. You reckon the Instant Clear would be a suitable replacement to buying new stuff?

Thanks. Russell.

I think the poly/turps combo would likely be something like the WOP (wipe on poly)
but not sure about the recipe. I know several people who like to use equal parts of poly, boiled linseed oil and mineral spirits. They use the satin poly, don't know about gloss.

I think if you're going to thin the poly to make a 'Wipe-On' you might check the can to see what they recommend using as a thinner. That's the main difference, I think. Definitely check, though . it might interfere with either the drying characteristics or with the clarity of the finish.

So .. my expert opinion is: "I got no idea"

Might be time to grab some half inch dowelling and do some pre turning tests ! I am still hooked in my "natural finishes" stage hehe!

OK now that I'm actually "in operation" I'm hoping to revisit this topic.

I've used 1 part Clear Finish to 1 part Mineral Turps, which is the clean-up agent for it. I'm currently up to my 4th coat on my first pen. A few questions

1. The Instant Clear says "touch dry 2 hours, full dry 24 hours". What effect does thinning it with turps do to the drying time. Does it decrease it, or increase it?

2. How long do you think I should leave between coats. 2 hours still seems slightly tacky, although as yet I haven't timed it, just guessing how long I was in the shed. I put a coat on this morning, and have set a timer for 2.5 hrs. Is the test "feels dry" good enough or not? I also don't want to go touching it all the time to check, as that will mar the finish.

3. The mixture seems very thin. What consistency should it be to match other WOP. I've never seem Minwax to know what it's like.

4. What's the definition of "enough coats". The minwax tut says 6 - 3 sanded, 3 unsanded, and the CA tut says 20, but I see some people only use 3 or 4. So is there any sort of measuring bar as to when it looks like a finish is "done", or is it just whenever you think it looks good enough? I'm not seeing much visual difference on the 4th coat I've done to the 3rd, so all I can see it doing from here on is thickening up to add some durability.

Thanks. Russell.

Russell
you might want to check out the finishing threads - they have great and long debates about this
cheers

Originally Posted by Sawdust Maker

Russell
you might want to chech out the finishing threads - they have great and long debates about this
cheers

OK I'll look again. I did find some info, but must have missed the relevant parts.

Russell.

I think only time will tell you when your finish is 'good enough'.

At first you'll be tempted to get the pen off the mandrel ASAP so that you can
assemble the pen and look at it. Natural enough at first .. try it on some scrap lumber.

How long between coats.. that might depend on the thinner, and also on the wood.
Keep in mind that cleanup materials aren't necessarily the same materials you
thin with. (but usually are) Some will thin but also act as a retardant.. so that will
increase your drying time. It depends on what the solvent is for the particular finish.
For instance, I thin shellac with denatured alcohol, but that speeds up the drying time..
sometimes so much that I can't even brush it out. But using butyl alcohol also thins the
shellac, but also acts as a retardant .. sot the open time is much longer.

I couldn't tell you how many coats, because I don't know the finish, nor how much
it was thinned. But if I were to try it, I'd probably put on a few coats, see how long it
takes to sand it off. Then put on that number of coats plus a few more .. then see how
long it takes to sand it off. Add a few more coats etc etc . .that way I'd get a 'feel' for
the finish and have some idea what kind of abuse it will take.

You want enough coats to give you some 'build' .. some body to protect the wood
underneath, but not so much that you start to look at the finish instead of the pen.
After a certain point, you'd just be wasting time and materials. I mean . .you COULD
put on 125 coats and you could probably tell people you guarantee the finish for
200 years. (but only if they return it in person, non-transferable guarantee)

Try it out on some scraps and see what you think.