On Sat, 17 Mar 2007 15:11:35 -0500, wrote:

Any suggestions with brands for starting out with lacquers or the
pre-catalyzed finishers?


First of all, don't kiss off polyurethane just 'cause it's poly!
Properly applied, it can look fantastic, and you're correct about it's
durability. It's really tough stuff, and extremely forgiving to apply
via wiping, brushing, and to a lesser extent, spraying.

If you want to go down the slippery slope of spray finishing, my
favorites are M.L. Campbell, Mohawk, and H. Behlen. Sherwin Williams
has professional products that others have recommended, but my local
SW dealers aren't as good as others have reported.

M.L. Campbell is distributed by Pratt & Lambert, so most local paint
stores that carry P&L can get it. Data sheets are at mlcampbell.com.

H. Behlen is the "consumer" version of Mohawk finishes. Woodcraft
sells Behlen, a local Mohawk dealer may be no further than your Yellow
Pages.

All sell nitrocellulose lacquer, which is a traditional furniture
finish, and is super forgiving to work with. The downside? It's
highly explosive (no kidding! this is NOT an exaggeration! You really
CAN blow the house off the foundation! G) and hazardous to your
health (think "huffers"). You'll need a real spray area, a good
respirator, and explosion proof fans and lights to use it. You can
spray it outside on a nice day, if you have the distance from the
neighbors.

NC Lacquer is a JOY to work with, it rubs beautifully, and each coat
simply melts into the last. It dries in minutes, so very little junk
lands in the finish. This product is very weather sensitive, so keep
good notes and never start directly on a visible section of the
project.

Lately, I've been doing a lot with water based "lacquer", with my
favorite being M.L. Campbell Ultrastar (usually "dull" for furniture,
which is more of a satin finish), although you'll need to add a
compatible amber dye, like Transtint Honey Amber or Amber Additive to
give it the warmth of solvent lacquer. Using Zinnser Sealcoat
premixed dewaxed shellac, as a sanding sealer (skipping the Ultrastar
sealer), also helps the "ambering". You don't want to build too
thick of a coat with Ultrastar, as it'll get fake looking on you.
Ultrastar dries as fast as solvent lacquer and is as durable as poly.
While it's not explosive, you'll still need a decent respirator, as
the fumes aren't healthy to breathe. Fuhr and Target are also good
brands of WB lacquer that I've personally used.

Personally, I use a Fuji Mini-Mite 4 (A cheaper Q4, minus the noise
reduction) HVLP turbine to spray. Another excellent turbine is
Turbineair. If you have a big compressor (I don't) you can pick up a
decent HVLP conversion gun for under $200. Check out
www.homesteadfinishing.com for conversion guns. With NC and WB
lacquer, I use a Fuji #3 setup and either a pressure pot or suction
cup, with the occasional switch to the #4 for heavier material. With
the Fuji gravity gun, I usually stay with the #4, as it dosen't seem
to feed as strongly as the pressurized cups. The ML Campbell WB
products spray right out of the can for me, with an occasional 20%
reduction for NC in hot weather.

As for pre-cat products, I prefer M.L. Cambell, simply because I have
a fantastic (not to mention very reasonably priced!) local source.
Sherwin Williams, Mohawk, and many others make them, practice using
the data sheets and ask the local reps for the specific setup tips for
your specific equipment. Pro finishes often have live, local support,
but be prepared to use a gallon or so in the learning process.

My favorite references to recommend are these (in order):

http://www.amazon.com/Tauntons-Complete-Illustrated-Guide-Finishing/dp/1561585920/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-7024228-0566367?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1174174889&sr=8-1
http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Wood-Finishing-Select-Finish/dp/0762106212/ref=pd_sim_b_3/104-7024228-0566367?ie=UTF8&qid=1174174889&sr=8-1

For spray-specific stuff:
http://www.amazon.com/Spray-Finishing-Other-Techniques-Woodworking/dp/1561588296/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2/104-7024228-0566367?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1174174963&sr=1-2

Also, there are others on this forum, notably "Nailshooter41",
"Robatoy" and Mike Marlow, who are very experienced finishers and post
lots of excellent advice. Sorry if I left anybody else out!

Nothing beats practice! It gives you something to do with all those
scraps. Once you start playing, don't forget to mess with some
moldings and doors. Save those milling mistakes. G

Please don't skimp on safety gear.