Thread: wipe on poly on burls.

Haven't used a lot of WOP but from what I've read it is like any finish - it can give you trouble and absorption seems to be one of them.

Another source of your problem could be the use of acetone as a cleaner. Perhaps the acetone is not drying properly from the areas where it is absorbed into the grain. When you seal it in it will react with the WOP and cause your problem.

i am thinking that because of the make up of a burl you will have some end grain type timber in spots and not in other spots . so the end grain will take more coats to build up a shine
i would give it a very light sanding and then a few more coats see what happens .
there may be tiny little voids that have to be filled before the shine is more even
just my thoughts

i think the voids theory is sound. The acetone is well dried off by the time i put the finish on. With the cold weather it's taking ages to dry but when it's dry i'll do as you suggest and lightly sand then do more coats. I'll post photos when it's done, which at this drying rate could be a while

Have you tried using a NC sealer after wiping with acetone but before applying the WOP?

That should "equalise" the absorption rate across the piece, hopefully reducing the effect (Assuming it's unequal absorption that's causing the problem in the first place, of course.)

I'm not a fan of NC sealer and rarely use it, but it does still have a place in my finishing arsenal.




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would shellac work in place of nc?

Applying 3or4 coats of shellac (light sand between coats) followed by 8 coats of Minwax gives me a good finish on burls.
Crow

I've never tried WOP over Shellac, but it's certainly worth a try on a bit of scrap.

If the two will co-exist, then it's as good a solution as NC.

might try that next time. I assembled the pen and it looks good according to swmbo, who is my greatest critic will post photos later.