"Shawn" wrote on 15 Jan 2005:

I used a 3-inch foam brush (from Home Depot), as it says on the
Minwax can you can use.

Determine whether you're using an oil-based poly or a water-based
poly and use the appropriate bristle brush. I prefer a sash brush
for jobs like this.

I had poly dripping off the brush onto the floor, running down my
hand and arms,

That's poor technique, which is easy to make worse with a foam
brush. First, a 3" wide brush is way too wide for a lot of the
work you're doing, especially if you aren't a pro. Don't overload
the brush. Stroke up, not down. Remember to unload the base of
the bristles from time to time by running them over an edge.

then, just went I
thought I'd gotten a good coat on a certain section, I'd catch
it from another angle in the light and see a large area that
didn't have any poly at all on it.

Again, poor technique. Use lots of light and paint systematically.
But you are going to sand lightly and do a second coat, right? If
you miss a few spots on the first coat, hit them first on the
second coat before you start painting the door systematically.

--
Doug Boulter

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