On Tue, 01 Apr 2008 10:01:28 +0000, schooner wrote:

The issue I am having is that the paint surface seems to remain tacky/sticky
when items are placed on it then moved later.

Despite what others have said, the tackiness NEVER goes away. It just
takes longer and longer for items to stick. I've got some storage
cabinets that are about 10 years old and if I leave something sitting on
them for a month or more they stick.

My suggestion would be a barrier coat of dewaxed shellac and then poly or
varnish over that. If you use super blonde shellac and water based poly
it shouldn't change the color much.