"TC" wrote in message
...
I have a coffee table I sanded to bare wood. I applied water-based poly
with a brush. I get these puddles or orange peel looking "things" (see
links. I figure it might be the brush so I switch to a foam brush -
same result (yes, I sanded first).

Curious though, the sides are nice and smooth as I expected.

I diluted the poly about 10%. Am I putting it on too thick? What's
happening? The wood was smooth before applying. The poly is new. How
can I salvage what I have done?


http://home.cfl.rr.com/jmartin104/table.jpg
http://home.cfl.rr.com/jmartin104/table2.jpg
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TC,

I've read the other replies but one possibility has not been mentioned. You
didn't say what your sanding schedule was or how you did it. Normally, you
would start with a coarse enough grit to remove the old finish then work on
up thru 100, 150 and 220 - then stop. If you went on up to higher grits,
there's a chance that you have burnished the wood by sanding to hard and to
long so there's no "tooth" left for the finish to grab on to. You get about
the same reaction - if it can't adhere - it puddles. If this is the case -
start sanding again and as other's have stated - it's time for some shellac.

Bob S.