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by:
Shane Eagen
photos: Simon Cheung |
PADDING THE TRUTH |
| How
to apply shellac like a pro |
The most popular technique for applying shellac is French polishing,
or padding, and it is this method I will devote the bulk of
this space to.
Shellac is available in liquid
form in most hardware stores and has a shelf life of about six
months. If you use this premixed shellac, there is no way to
know exactly how old it is when you buy it. Before using it,
rub a thin layer onto a scrap piece of wood. If the shellac
is not dry in five minutes, don’t use it. Shellac that
is too old will take forever to dry and very old shellac may
never dry. Shellac is available in flake form from Lee Valley,
as is the thinner for dissolving it. In their dry state, flakes
have an indefinite shelf life but once mixed with alcohol have
the same shelf life as the premixed form. Try to mix only as
much as you need. Denatured alcohol is often cited as the best
solvent for shellac, but it’s hard to find in Canada, as
it seems our government believes Canadians can’t be trusted
not to drink it. The Lee Valley product, inspiringly named Shellac-Lacquer
Thinner, is a blend of ethanol and isobutyl alcohol that works
perfectly for dissolving shellac flakes. Wear the appropriate
gloves and mask and apply the shellac in a well-ventilated area.
Mix the flakes with the thinner the day before it is to be used,
and give the flakes a periodic shake to help them dissolve.
There are basically three ways
to apply shellac: padding, brushing and spraying. Spraying shellac
is similar to spraying lacquer, as the consistency of both is
practically the same. Because shellac dries so quickly, there
are some special techniques for padding or brushing.
Cloth Application
Padding
is done by hand with a lint-free cloth. Fold the cloth into
a smooth ball. Do this by folding the corners into the middle;
repeat until the cloth is small enough to fit comfortably into
the palm of your hand. The face of the pad should be tight with
no seams or wrinkles. A technique used by some French polishers
is to place a wad of upholsterer’s stuffing into the centre
of the cloth and then fold the cloth around the stuffing. (I
tried some dryer lint as a stuffing substitute. It worked well.)
Make the Cut
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| The
key to successful French polishing is the pad. Fold
a lint-free cloth (in this case, about two yards
of cheesecloth) into a 12" square. Then, fold
the corners into the middle. Fold the new corners
into the middle, and repeat until the cloth is a
smooth ball that fits comfortably in your hand.
The face of the pad must be free of seams or wrinkles.
For added bounce, you can wad some upholsterer’s
stuffing in the centre of the cloth and fold around
it |
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Shellac
should be applied in thin layers of gradually increasing cuts
followed by layers in decreasing cuts. (Remember: cut refers
to the pounds of shellac mixed into a U.S. gallon of denatured
alcohol.) I mix a portion each of a 1.5-lb. cut, 2-lb. cut and
3-lb. cut and apply them in the following sequences: 1-5 lb.
cut, 2-lb. cut, 3-lb. cut, 2-lb. cut, 1.5-lb. cut.
Note: some finishers rub a very
thin coat of penetrating oil into the wood before they apply
shellac. They say it gives the finish greater depth. I don’t
recommend using oils under shellac, as I believe that a layer
of oil between the wood and the shellac will cause problems
with adherence and shorten the life of the shellac.
Pour a little thinner into the
back of the pad, not the face. Slap the pad into the palm of
the other hand to spread the alcohol through the pad. Put some
of the 1.5-lb. cut on the face of the pad and repeat the slapping
motion.
Ready For Takeoff
Start at the far edge and work toward yourself. Pretend the
pad is an airplane; with the pad held a few inches above the
surface and at one end of the wood, land the airplane and taxi
it to the end of the wood surface, going with the grain, and
right off the edge. Reverse direction, and repeat as above.
Continue this pattern, covering the entire surface. By the time
you cover the surface once, the shellac should be dry enough
to start again. When the pad gets sticky, refill it with shellac
and repeat the application. Do this for about 15 minutes. Wait
an hour and repeat the process using the next cut in the sequence.
Some people wait a day between cut applications, and some lightly
sand with fine (400 grit or finer) sandpaper between applications.
I run my hand lightly across the surface once it’s dry,
and if the surface feels a little rough, I sand; if not, I don’t.
After the last layer of the sequence
has dried, I go over the surface one last time using a 1-lb.
cut. The last one or two times over the surface I just squirt
a little thinner into the face of the pad. This last procedure
should even out any ridges in the finish.
Buffer Zone
Once this last application has thoroughly dried, rub the surface
down with some rottenstone, white oil and a clean cloth. Then
apply a protective wax finish. A hard wax will buff out to a
higher gloss than a soft wax, so choose your wax with this in
mind. Also, the softer wax will have to be reapplied more often
than the harder wax.
Brush Application
To apply shellac with a brush, use only the 1.5-lb. cut or thinner,
otherwise the shellac will not flow out properly before it begins
to dry. Use a good nylon brush, 2" wide or smaller. Apply
at least five coats, letting each coat dry in between. Sand
between coats if desired. After the final coat has dried, sand
the brush strokes smooth; apply wax and buff as above.
To restore a shellac finish, first
remove dirt with Murphy’s soap (follow the directions on
the bottle, do not make the soap too strong). De-wax the surface
with odorless mineral spirits (sold at Canadian Tire). Finally,
apply a 1-lb. cut of shellac. One application is all that is
necessary. This will amalgamate and restore the surface layer
of the finish.
If the piece you’re restoring
is in need of regluing, try disassembling the piece, taping
off the joints and applying the shellac before regluing. Wait
for the shellac to dry thoroughly, remove the tape, reglue and
reassemble. Any squeeze-out should pop right off the finish.
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