David says...

After numerous light coats of shellac on walnut, I'm unable to remove
the light residue from the pores from either: dry sanding with 1000, wet
sanding 1000, gray or white pads. The shellac leaves residue in the
pores that I can't wipe out with a wet rag or by vacuuming. To remove
them I have to recoat. The problem is the sheen isn't PERFECT, so I
still need to buff the final coat. I tried wet pumice (dark gray) but
the sheen isn't what I want.

solution?

Dave

Hmm. I only have that problem after sanding, not with steel wool, and
my current project is very porous coffeetree. You could try brushing or
padding on some pure or nearly pure alcohol. That should melt the
residue in the pores. I use naphtha to wipe off sanding dust and
sometimes a toothbrush along with it. I don't wet sand shellac. I just
use the beige colored lubricated 320 that you can get anywhere. Of
course, if you keep going long enough, you will fill the pores and your
problem will be solved.