"John" wrote in message
news
In message , William Noble
writes
let me second what Derek said - in fact you can make it simpler:

want cold and shiny - use lacquer
want soft and warm - use oil
want "natural" use karnuba wax only

you can go crazy with finishes - form and grain are generally more
important, but folks seem really impressed with ultra high gloss, which is
what Lacquer excells at.

Its interesting you say
folks seem really impressed with ultra high gloss
As it produces a cold finish. I wonder if it is to reflect their
personality?

To me warm is inviting, so I think it will be definitely on my list of
preferred finishes. Personally the only person I have to please is me. If
the wife likes it that's a bonus She has a lovely saying, if you don't
like our house and how it is, don't let the door hit you in the ass as you
leave
--

Contempt for the customer seems big with some people. I use the traditional
definition of warm finishes returning yellows and reds, cold being whites
and blues.

Here are some things I've picked up. Oils and waxes, which are closely
related to oils, are soft finishes. Some say non-finishes. With oils we
have taken to adding resins to harden them against the knocks and dirt.
With wax we can't. Carnauba is as hard as carnauba and bees as hard as bees
after any solvent used to soften evaporates. Not durable, but easy to apply
and reapplications are just as easy. Lots of oils and waxes also have some
color to them. Generally this is at the warm end of the spectrum.

You have probably noticed that oils look really nice after you first flood
the surface. Lots of people call it "popping the grain," though it's really
just a lesson in diffraction. The smooth continuous film optically adjusts
the scatter we got from out torn fibers and variously facing pores. As the
oil soaks in, the surface begins to scatter light again, and look matte.
Other ways of scattering light include the use of "satin" finishes, where
the scatter is from inside the finish itself, and with large polymeric units
in some water base finishes and some waxes, which do the same. Some people
put on a clear finish and then modify the surface by rubbing with steel wool
or similar to get the diffraction from the surface by cutting back on total
reflection. By randomizing the scratches, they redirect the light in many
directions.

A clear finish with resin to stiffen it rejects dirt and oil from the skin
bacteria and their spores, and allows us a low-scatter look at the wood
itself. It is not easily renewed in the case of varnishes, though lacquer
and shellac will clean up and work up well. An oil base finish is my usual
choice. You can thin it and keep it from building on the surface if you
don't want a film, or you can work up a couple more layers and get that
"deep" finish many customers prize. With shellac you can build easily to
brilliance, and you can buff to renew or wax to cut back the shine as you
please. Works well on display pieces.