Max wrote:

And I don't mind spending whatever I have to for a good finish. The
paint
I used on the trim (Glidden Endurance) seems to be holding up very
well.
I'm wondering about the durability of an oil based paint. What's your
verdict?


Recently, Glidden latex went head to head with several different
paints and won the overall comparison due to its UV resistance, the
ability to be washed, and color retention. I liked Glidden paint, and
used it exclusively for years and NEVER had one bit of problem with it.
It was considered old fashioned by some as it was clay based as
opposed to the powder based stuff, but I liked it, and more importantly
so did my clients. Never had one complaint with Glidden.

But the local lumberyard that sends me a lot of business pushes
Coronado. I really like the top end of their line for spraying and
rolling. It has so much ammonia in it that it kills anything the power
washer doesn't take off, and it penetrates the wood and old paint
really well. I don't like to brush it as it is like bubble gum on the
brush after about 15 minutes time. This is not workable for painting
a house full of door frames or a 15 panel exterior door. For brushing
outdoors and smooth trim, I like the top end of Sherwin Williams (700
line?). It smooths like glass with a good brush.

But Max, you have brought another issue to light. If YOU sprayed them
with McCloskey's and you say they now look good, you putting in the
last piece of the puzzle that would make my decision. McCloskey's is a
pretty good finish, and I think their strong suit is supposed to be
their marine line. So if you say it looks good (as in good shape),
chances of adhesion from ANY finish being what you want (10 more
years?) to these doors are almost none. McCloskey's has something like
30% resin in it, so it is a heavily resined product, meant to be
industrial strength. I personally don't think sanding would do it, and
with all the work involved to get it off, you would be faster to strip.
Sanding would just expose fresh, hard varnish.

If it was my house, I would put on oil, and here's what I would do.

Take the door off and put it in the shade so it stays cool. Put it on
some saw horses put over a cheap tarp (I buy mone at Big Lots - 6'X8'
is something like $2). Clean off the surface with some thinner. When
it is dry, tape the edge of the door up with some good masking tape,
NOT the blue stuff. Apply Bix K3 (the orange can) or better as
directed.

This is an old timer's tip, and it will take the sting out of the
stripping. When you see the finish starting to bubble, and you are
ready to hit it with the plastic putty knife, don't. Put on a couple
of handfuls of sawdust in the area you are working first
and literally scrub the door with a stiff nylon brush. Keep the
sawdust in the brush, and buy a couple of different brushes at the
dollar store to make sure you have the one you want. The sawdust is
the tip here, and it is worth its weight in gold. The sawdust will do
three things; it acts as a pore and nook and cranny cleaner, a mild
abrasive, and it will pick up the spent stripper with a lot of the old
finish attached. Work your door in thirds, and the door will be pretty
close to or actually dry at the first third by the time you get to the
end. You won't believe what that sawdust will do to the loosened paint
and how much it speeds and cleans up this nasy process.

Brush off any loose sawdust. With only a coat or two of finish, you
shouldn't need to do this more than once if you are patient enough to
let the Bix work (always hard for me, no matter how many times I do
it). Sand as needed to make you happy, remembering that since it will
be painted you don't have to have it perfect.

Then I would put two to three coats of urethane oil enamel on it. No
matter whose brush it is in application, no door ever looks as good as
when it is sprayed by a good hand. At this juncture, I would like to
mention Mike Marlow, who really helped me get my finishes first rate.
If you are following this thread, thanks again, Mike. Anyway, take
the door off and spray it.

I use urethane oil as opposed to alkyd as it is easier for me to spray,
and it seems to dry as closed to the same hardness as the old lead
based paints as any of the finshes out there. It can also be tinted
just about any color. For me, I shoot Coronado (the only one I could
find that I like that comes in quarts!!) with about an ounce of Japan
drier and an ounce of thinner for 30 ozs of material. It will dry like
glass, sticks like hell, and you can get another coat on the door in 4
hours on an 80 degree day, not the 8 the recommend. So you could two
coat in a day (depending on how you do it) and then the following day
put a final coat on it in the morning and hang it that night. I always
use the Japan drier as it makes the final finish harder, and of course
it makes the finish catalyse faster. The thinner amount depends on the
temp, and if it above the middle 80s, I usually don't thin. I am
putting these details in hoping you still have the rig you sprayed the
door with in the first place. I am using a high pressure auto touch up
gun which works great for me.

Of course, YMMV. And as always, depending on your rig you may not want
to do anything to it, just follow the manufacturer's requirements.

The door can be hung when it is really dry, and if you handle it right,
you could do it all in a weekend, weather permitting.
Strip and sand one morning (2 hours), then apply coat #1. Few hours
later, coat #2. Next morning, coat #3. Hang as late as possible that
evening.

In case you haven't used some of today's coating for a while, you
should know that the total dry and hardness of the door will not be
100% for about 20 days. The door will be dried, but not cured. So
don't test out the scrubbability with 409 when you get some grease on
it from reinstalling those old locks. Mild soapy water is always best
anyway, but a must for about three weeks.

My only concern would be this; you will be in the same boat as you are
now if you want to refinish this door at a later time. So if you
change the paint color on the house and want the door to follow again,
you will start at the top.

However, if you do it in latex, you can follow pretty much the same
procedure and get pretty good results. The finish won't be as hard,
and won't be as UV/scuff/water resistant, but then when you need to
paint again, you can just clean it, sand it, and paint it.

Let us know what you did and how you did it. Hope this helps.

Robert