Woodworker's Journal 2011-35-Winter, страница 42

Try Mixing Your Own

Mark a lidded jar with a line indicating how much shellac you will need for your project. Now make a second line halfway to the first. Fill up to the lower line with loose dewaxed shellac flakes, then pour in denatured alcohol to the upper line. Screw on the lid and shake the jar frequently for the next two hours or so, then leave it overnight. By morning it should be ready to use, but stir it to make sure all the shellac is dissolved. Remember to put a date on the jar and use it within six months.

Shellac is excellent as a sealer under other finishes as well. In that case, use only dewaxed shellac, since some finishes won't adhere well to the wax in orange shellac. Liquid shellac sold in cans contains wax. To get dewaxed shellac, you must buy it in flake form and mix it yourself, or buy aerosol cans, which contain the dewaxed version.

Some Tricks of the Trade

As nice as it is, shellac can sometimes be a bit tricky. Because it has a high surface tension, it may pull away from the pores of large pore woods like oak and ash after brushing or spraying. If this happens, there are ways to make it lay out better. First, simply add some denatured alcohol. Thinner shellac flows out better, but also dries faster. To slow it down, try finishing in the early

or late hours of the day when the shop is cooler. Alcohol evaporates slower at lower temperatures. If that is not enough, you can substitute Behkol solvent, from the Behlen company, for some of the alcohol. Behkol is a slower drying alcohol mixture. For even better flow and leveling, there is a surface tension reducer on the market called "Shellac Wet." Just a few drops of it will make the shellac lay flat

One final warning: Like all materials, shellac has a shelf life. Older shellac will take longer to dry and will create a softer film. Zinsser puts a fill date on the bottom of their cans, and you should use it within two to three years of that date. But the more alcohol in the shellac, the shorter its shelf life. Thinned shellac will last only about six months.

WAGNER MOISTURE METERS

FEATURING ADVANCED

IntelliSense Technology

Measuring moisture IN the wood, not ON the wood

> More accurate*& over 10 times faster than pin-type meters 5" Quick & easy deep measurements without the damage

> Proudly manufactured and supported in the USA

Providing fast and accurate moisture measurements, Wagner's CLEARLYADVANCED moisture meters have been the preferred choice of professionals for over 25 years.

Www.wagnermeters.com 1-800-505-1281

mple And Sweet