Hi, Matthias.. For such wide Tabletops i would recommend to put the same layer of "veneer" to both sides... Maybe some ugly left over stuff... We in Germany call this "Gegenzug". It is counteracting the behaviour of the top layer. An other trick, which i use for decades is to turn the paintcans over, when i put them into storage. (if the seal is still ok after opening) This way the varnish / paint does not skin over. I have opend recently a can, which i had sitting upside down on my shelf for over 10 years and the paint was perfectly fine...no skin...no loss of solvent. If the seal is leaky and i can not turn the can over, i "fill" the empty space with Argon from my Welder. It is heavier than air. This works also fine.... Greets from Germany
I might be wrong, but I think Matthias already made a video about replacing the air with a heavy gas. I think he did that in glass bottles, but it's probably a pretty old video cause I can barely remember. Turning the cans over seems like a great idea though, I'm going to note that one down.
I've been enjoying your content for years, Matthias. It's always a pleasure to watch an unusually smart person go about a task and solve problems. Keep up the good work!
Just want to say thanks for the awesome content as always. I always get lots of questions and admiration for my homemade pantorouter in my videos. And the screw advanced box joint jig is a serious time saver.
Scraping the varnish dribbles was really interesting to me. I’ve always used lacquer and I’ve been a little hesitant to try another finish. That demo helped me understand the differences between water and oil a bit more.
Thank you for imparting your knowledge. Flipping the grain on each plank is inspired. Most people would never even consider how moisture and seasons affect the wood.
I've never varnished a thing in my life... but something about MWs approach to basically everything he does is so interesting. He could probably make a video about how he washes dishes and it would be interesting.
Coming from a novice, this kind of content is really interesting, things I would never have known. Strange, when I was younger I used to hate wood work, but the older I get the more I enjoy it. I think because it takes more understanding and skill that say metal work. (I've done a lot of metal work over the years)
You are a thorough master of wood, Matthias. Thanks much for the knowledge. And speaking of wood warping, my dad stored planks near verticle for many years and they didn't warp. So I have been doing it too, with it staying straight. Just lean it against something.
Wish I liked working with wood still. Built to many houses, bridges museums and so on for so long the challenge has gone out of it. Nice to see you learning your way along.
I bought a cabinet scraper after seeing a few of Matthias' videos and man is it a great tool. It really cuts down on sanding and requires minimal work to keep sharp.
I hadn't thought about making a tabletop from cheap, easy to work with, wood and then glue veneer from another, more desirable, wood on top. You'll make me save some money on my desk!
I had a strip laminated countertop. I put a rubber matt on one side. Within 2 days the front edge curled up by 10cm! So the warping from humidity changes can be extreme.
Matthias, Very good tips which I needed to be reminded of. The info regarding the oil based vs water based varithane is very interesting to me. Sounds like it’s a change for the better I’ll have to try! Thanks for that.
The explanation of alternating the grain of wood to avoid cupping was one of the first things I learned when I was in carpentry school. That is why I always check for the center of a piece of wood and mark it after planing.
Hey Matthias, awesome video as always. Thanks for reminding me of the workshop air cleaner, something like that is just what I need for my paint booth project.
Looks fantastic, and built to last. We have a large Ikea table, and the veneer is already starting to pucker. Particle board furniture doesn't age gracefully.
Great tip for using the card scraper in between coats of varnish. I usually knock down the nibs with 400 sand paper, but it makes a lot of fine dust. Card scraper seems like a more elegant solution
1:30 i believe you are correct about the moisture from the glue causing the cup. my boss was recently doing something similar with oak glued onto particleboard, but his oak strips were even thinner. the oak was already very dry from the furnace in the shop. the next day almost all of the edges on the oak strips were raised up. the only thing i can think of it that the bottom of the oak strips expanded from the moisture in the glue and heaved up at the edges.
Like when applying finish it is best practice to apply finish to both sides (so they are balanced). This also applies to veneers. I'd also expect reducing the thickness of the veneer to under 3mm will be less of a problem with the differing wood movement (and the veneer will just respond more favourably to the movement of the pine underneath). Cheers, David
for your Oil-based finish woes, I started using StopLossBags a while back and I've been really happy with them. I've got some 9 month old Arm-r-seal that has no signs of even starting to go bad.
@@matthiaswandel But if you were going to cut a recess for the ends anyhow, why not put the breadboards on before the top? It would end up looking the same as what you did. Not criticizing, just questioning before I start working on my own tabletop.
I wonder if you could use humidity and temperature changes in your favor since you have oak on the one side and it cupped the bottom. Maybe leaving the bottom unvarnished for added expansion to match. I know it is supposed to shrink as well but in my experiences with one side unvarnished or painted, the project has always warped to the varnished or painted side.
I am always amazed when you use the Scrapers. Both on result AND on material they acutally take away. Do you know how and why they "cut"? Because you align the blade in a way that it shouldn´t on first glance.
For any of your non-water based paints, have you tried displacing the air in the can/jar with propane before sealing them up? I started doing it with POR-15 and had excellent storage results. I now do it with anything that is not water based.
I’ve made a few tables with that technique. I use plywood on the bottom that way there is little movement at all. But that might not be as stiff for a dining table as opposed to coffee tables and end tables.
How would you characterize the improvement in odor/fumes with the new formulation? I use water poly mostly for the convenience around the freedom from fumes not the ease of cleanup. For example, if I run the clothes dryer while oil varnish is curing, the clothes will smell a bit like gasoline because the dryer breathes in the fumes and somehow consolidates it into the fabric.
If you're looking for a good, durable waterbased finish: I've had really good experiences with “Bona Mega“. It's a waterbased 1K Polyurethane finish for wood floors, really easy to work with and get great surface finish, also pretty durable. I was very sceptical about water based finishes in general at the beginning, but this really changed my mind.
for oak i prefer danish oil, especially in the kitchen. In fact i have a table that looks identical to yours, but made from solid strips of oak. Next time i try your scraper trick, never even considered it ... and the varnish cloaks up the sanding paper so quick this easy trick will safe me some struggle i hope. thx !
This answered a question I had on the last video. Watching the varnish being scraped with a chisel was pretty satisfying. It got me thinking that you should make a sequel to your anti asmr with visually dissatisfying actions. Maybe a huge gash in a finished piece of wood? Cutting a straight line on the bandsaw and veering off at the last second?
My favorite way to keep a top from cupping is how I seen under the tables at Tim Hortons at Marysville, Fredericton. The company that built the furniture used a steel t bar in a two step mortise.
Hey Matthias, would you be interested in seeing some photo's of my undermounted table saw?........basically my table saw mounted to my heavy work table so that it flips underneath for storage.
Releive cuts half way through the top from the bottom side can help avoiding cupping. I'm quite sure you will do that if by time cupping is really an issue.
I have always used that brand, I find the oil base gives a deeper color tone than water base, so depending on the wood type and application I will choose oil or water base.
Good to know we are going to build our dining room table and I’m sitting on top a bunch of 30 year old cherry that I’m scared to cut lol so if your ever in Sackville NB drop in lolololol
I like to store my cans of varnish upside down upon being opened, that way the skin that forms is on the bottom of the can and is less messy when reopening. One just has to be careful not to puncture the membrane if one needs to stir the mix. Great video, thumbs up.
I like to put my cans of varnish in a vacuum chamber with the lid just barely in the groove but not sealed. When you release the vacuum quickly the lid snaps down into the groove and there's not as much air inside the can to form a skin. Gotta be careful though, if you don't do it right you'll be cleaning varnish off the inside of your pressure pot.
I really wonder if Matthias owns anything that isn't wood colored/varnished nor that hideous green color he puts on his tools. For once, just paint it black or gray. It's timeless and good looking :D Anyways, great video as usual :) Greetings from Norway.
@@matthiaswandel point taken. I guess you rip it. I was looking at avoiding warping in the spruce. I have a bunch of hardwood flooring. I was thinking of doing just what you did on 3/4 plywood then planing down the top.
I'm sure you had thought of putting the spruce verticle and ripping in half. I know, more glue joints but would the grain have been more stable? No Breadboard ends?
Breadboard ends are awful. Not very strong, always a joint where dirt can get in, and the edges don't line up with seasonal changes. And all that trouble for what end?
The "oil" based paint is water/moisture curing. The water based one is curing when drying. You can prevent th e"oil" based paint from drying prematurely by splitting the can into smaller jars with lids. I usually put a plastic bag between lid and jar before closing it. The issue here is that the can while open will suck moisture from air and will cure over time. If you open the can and immediately pour it into 3-4 smaller jars and then seal the one you dont need at the time you can save it from spoiling. Also this explains why the first layer was not curing quickly. Air was dehydrated quickly around the table and the paint was not curing as quick as it could. That explains why fan trick worked. Also low temperature - making the air less humid in absolute value did not helped too. The new style varnishes/lacquers are much much worse than old style ones. The new ones are supposed to be low volatile organic compound paints but their durability is much much worse. I use the polyurethane, stinky paints or sometimes even the nitro celulose ones if I need really durable finish. Also using roller gives much more even result. The difference between thick and thin layer is that if you have flexible paint then you can use thick coats. The paint will not chip easily. If the paint is kind of hard (the diamond types) then adding too much will make it crack if hit. So in such case its better to use thin layers and put only as much as needed to get the finish you want and not any more as that will make whole finish more prone to cracking.
The best reason for your type of table is the character and personality it has. We don’t expect perfection. Or as they say down south, “we like our mashed taters with lumps”
So to use mortices or cockies are necessary when the glue is holding endgrain to non-endgrain, but not in cases where the glue is used for places where the joint does not include endgrain faces. A lot of important info in this video. Thanks.
Does daylight not have an effect on storing either our or water varnish in a glass jar? I've often wanted to do this when the lid distorts & has crusty crud on the rim, but worried the varnish would go off??
Some varnishes, especially water-based ones, can actually lose their grip on the previous layer without sufficient mechanical bond / tooth. Some finishes require sanding to 220 between coats, otherwise you’re relying entirely on the chemical bond to resist the incredible surface tension that builds as it dries. I use a cabinet scraper as well to get dust motes out of the finish, but I always buff before coating again. It’s just not worth the risk to me
The advice I know of is to wait no more than a day between coats for better adhesion. The layer below won't be fully cured, plus there is less time for atmospheric surface grime to accumulate. But if it's an old coat of paint or varnish, definitely sand it.
did you know any varnishing method which preserves natural color of dry wood and doesn't make it yellow ? i need to coat some birch plywood pieces and keep its pale white color.
@@matthiaswandel that time was about the peak of my own darkroom activity but curiously I now have more enlargers and other good junk than I had back then. Just wish I had a use for all of it. Can't chuck it away.
Using a cabinet scraper or a sharp plane will always always always give you a better surface than sanding, unless you take your sandpaper up to ridiculously high grit.
At the end of your video, you said " I will be using more of the oil-based varnish GOING FORWARD." Do you know of some way to use varnish GOING BACKWARD? Can we get the plans for your time machine to go forward or backward in time?
@@matthiaswandel It is redundant to say "Going forward." It has become very popular to say "Going forward" in the past few years though. It is never possible to go backward in time.
Hi, Matthias.. For such wide Tabletops i would recommend to put the same layer of "veneer" to both sides... Maybe some ugly left over stuff... We in Germany call this "Gegenzug". It is counteracting the behaviour of the top layer. An other trick, which i use for decades is to turn the paintcans over, when i put them into storage. (if the seal is still ok after opening) This way the varnish / paint does not skin over. I have opend recently a can, which i had sitting upside down on my shelf for over 10 years and the paint was perfectly fine...no skin...no loss of solvent. If the seal is leaky and i can not turn the can over, i "fill" the empty space with Argon from my Welder. It is heavier than air. This works also fine.... Greets from Germany
Gegenzug oder Blindfunier-Blitzkrieg ;) ... ich denke das wäre die bessere Alternative gewesen
Good point & btw Matthias has German roots. He can speak German. :D :) Which is quite funny. :)
If it leaks, close the lid, shake the can, and wait for it to dry. Maybe then you can flip it over, and it won't leak?
I might be wrong, but I think Matthias already made a video about replacing the air with a heavy gas. I think he did that in glass bottles, but it's probably a pretty old video cause I can barely remember. Turning the cans over seems like a great idea though, I'm going to note that one down.
brilliant
No need to apologize for woodworking geekery, that is exactly what we're here for.
Agreed
Agreed
Thanks for the geekery. Now I know why my table is bulge in the middle. I didn't put varnish under side of the tabletop
At what point did he apologize?
Geek on!
This channel is never a commercial for the most generous tool maker,thank you!
"Woodworking geekery" is EXACTLY why I subscribe. Always fantastic watching your mind work!
I've been enjoying your content for years, Matthias. It's always a pleasure to watch an unusually smart person go about a task and solve problems. Keep up the good work!
Just want to say thanks for the awesome content as always. I always get lots of questions and admiration for my homemade pantorouter in my videos. And the screw advanced box joint jig is a serious time saver.
I absolutely love your videos! I have yet to watch a single one that doesn't leave me glued to the screen fro start to finish.
Scraping the varnish dribbles was really interesting to me. I’ve always used lacquer and I’ve been a little hesitant to try another finish. That demo helped me understand the differences between water and oil a bit more.
This might be one of my favorite videos you have made in a while. Something about this back to basics woodworking that is nice to watch.
Thank you for imparting your knowledge. Flipping the grain on each plank is inspired. Most people would never even consider how moisture and seasons affect the wood.
I've never varnished a thing in my life... but something about MWs approach to basically everything he does is so interesting.
He could probably make a video about how he washes dishes and it would be interesting.
But the follow up videos would be even better ' How I built this machine to wash dishes ' !
@@Justchuck69 You mean "How I built this machine from scrap wood and old electromotors to wash dishes" :D
The amount of information, experience and know-how in this video is just mind-boggling.
Coming from a novice, this kind of content is really interesting, things I would never have known.
Strange, when I was younger I used to hate wood work, but the older I get the more I enjoy it. I think because it takes more understanding and skill that say metal work. (I've done a lot of metal work over the years)
You are a thorough master of wood, Matthias. Thanks much for the knowledge.
And speaking of wood warping, my dad stored planks near verticle for many years and they didn't warp. So I have been doing it too, with it staying straight. Just lean it against something.
Wish I liked working with wood still. Built to many houses, bridges museums and so on for so long the challenge has gone out of it. Nice to see you learning your way along.
I think the cabinet scraper is very satisfying.
I bought a cabinet scraper after seeing a few of Matthias' videos and man is it a great tool. It really cuts down on sanding and requires minimal work to keep sharp.
I had no idea that they were even a thing, but I'm so going to get one for my next project.
@@gworfish they’re really helpful! I recommend watching Matthias’ video on sharpening one ruclips.net/video/YEP84sKCgF0/видео.html
Go ahead and start working fir a cabinet maker and you can scrape all you want for free.
Christ, this guy makes damn interesting content out of literal random dribbles of varnish on his workbench. Unbelievable.
😂
Dinner conversation: "honey, can you pass the salt and dial indicator?" :-)
I hadn't thought about making a tabletop from cheap, easy to work with, wood and then glue veneer from another, more desirable, wood on top.
You'll make me save some money on my desk!
I had a strip laminated countertop. I put a rubber matt on one side. Within 2 days the front edge curled up by 10cm! So the warping from humidity changes can be extreme.
Wow that's a lot! What did you do to counter the warping?
@@spinafire I just removed the rubber and it naturalised on its own.
Matthias, Very good tips which I needed to be reminded of. The info regarding the oil based vs water based varithane is very interesting to me. Sounds like it’s a change for the better I’ll have to try! Thanks for that.
Alternating grain direction is the first thing I was taught when making wood slabs.👍
Woodworking Masterclass!!! ;) Loved the detailed explanations! ;)))) Moooreee!!! Keep them coming!
The explanation of alternating the grain of wood to avoid cupping was one of the first things I learned when I was in carpentry school. That is why I always check for the center of a piece of wood and mark it after planing.
That was a very good discussion/demonstration of the diffs between oil and water based Varathane. Thanks very much!
Thanks for uploading your vids! Love watching all the cool stuff you do!
Thank you for the "new" varnish tip! I will use it. It does leave a nice finish. The table turned out gorgeous. Love from NW Colorado. Thanxz
I hate it when my friends come over with their metrology tools and judge my furniture of its tolerances.
Yeah, they’re like this is 5000th of an inch out of tolerance. All I can do is hang my head in shame.
Thank you for this video, I learnt enough to hate varnishing a lot less.
Hey Matthias, awesome video as always. Thanks for reminding me of the workshop air cleaner, something like that is just what I need for my paint booth project.
Looks fantastic, and built to last. We have a large Ikea table, and the veneer is already starting to pucker. Particle board furniture doesn't age gracefully.
Great tip for using the card scraper in between coats of varnish. I usually knock down the nibs with 400 sand paper, but it makes a lot of fine dust. Card scraper seems like a more elegant solution
Matthias, fantastic rationale as always!
The table top is very nice. The finishing information is very useful. Thanks.
1:30 i believe you are correct about the moisture from the glue causing the cup. my boss was recently doing something similar with oak glued onto particleboard, but his oak strips were even thinner. the oak was already very dry from the furnace in the shop. the next day almost all of the edges on the oak strips were raised up. the only thing i can think of it that the bottom of the oak strips expanded from the moisture in the glue and heaved up at the edges.
Yes, that can be a problem if not fully clamped! Fortunately, I didn't run into problems with that, or at least not any noticeable problems.
The color of that oil-based varnish reminds me of the "spar" urethane which I see sold under the Minwax-Helmsman name.
Like when applying finish it is best practice to apply finish to both sides (so they are balanced). This also applies to veneers. I'd also expect reducing the thickness of the veneer to under 3mm will be less of a problem with the differing wood movement (and the veneer will just respond more favourably to the movement of the pine underneath). Cheers, David
That Ilford mug .... super old school 😁 Brings up good memories of photo lab in school 😊
for your Oil-based finish woes, I started using StopLossBags a while back and I've been really happy with them. I've got some 9 month old Arm-r-seal that has no signs of even starting to go bad.
Matthias, lots of helpful tips. Many thanks. John in the Peak District.
COOL!!!
Good point about seasonal expansion! Nice and short explanation
"a bit of woodworking geekery". That's why i'm here Matthias, keep the geekery coming.
you did it Matthias, you got me to watch paint dry!
SALUDOS Matthias desde Panamá.
Buen trabajo.
Beautiful work, dude! Really nice looking table! 😃
Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊
Very good dribble analysis!
Adding breadboard ends might have helped with the wood movement in the future. Just a thought.
Breadboard ends are awful.
@@matthiaswandel ha ha. Fair enough. I have to admit that I am not a fan of their aesthetic despite whatever functionality they may offer.
@@matthiaswandel Breadboard ends are visually awful but functional. And you can always veneer over them.
@@matthiaswandel But if you were going to cut a recess for the ends anyhow, why not put the breadboards on before the top? It would end up looking the same as what you did. Not criticizing, just questioning before I start working on my own tabletop.
Nice to see an Ilford Film mug :)
I wonder if you could use humidity and temperature changes in your favor since you have oak on the one side and it cupped the bottom. Maybe leaving the bottom unvarnished for added expansion to match. I know it is supposed to shrink as well but in my experiences with one side unvarnished or painted, the project has always warped to the varnished or painted side.
I am always amazed when you use the Scrapers. Both on result AND on material they acutally take away.
Do you know how and why they "cut"? Because you align the blade in a way that it shouldn´t on first glance.
I have articles and videos on that topic, if you want the answer.
How's she goin'? That's cool info about the oil based varnish maybe having a formula change. That would be good. Nice table top!!!
For any of your non-water based paints, have you tried displacing the air in the can/jar with propane before sealing them up? I started doing it with POR-15 and had excellent storage results. I now do it with anything that is not water based.
yes, mentioned in a video too.
Thanks for answering the dowel question. That was what I was going to ask about if you didn't address it in the video
I’ve made a few tables with that technique. I use plywood on the bottom that way there is little movement at all. But that might not be as stiff for a dining table as opposed to coffee tables and end tables.
0:22 a riving is knive handy
How would you characterize the improvement in odor/fumes with the new formulation? I use water poly mostly for the convenience around the freedom from fumes not the ease of cleanup.
For example, if I run the clothes dryer while oil varnish is curing, the clothes will smell a bit like gasoline because the dryer breathes in the fumes and somehow consolidates it into the fabric.
The board with the pith is always like a propeller. Best cutting the pith out or ideally avoid when buying.
If you're looking for a good, durable waterbased finish: I've had really good experiences with “Bona Mega“. It's a waterbased 1K Polyurethane finish for wood floors, really easy to work with and get great surface finish, also pretty durable. I was very sceptical about water based finishes in general at the beginning, but this really changed my mind.
Beauty. Such a classy wood, oak.
for oak i prefer danish oil, especially in the kitchen.
In fact i have a table that looks identical to yours,
but made from solid strips of oak.
Next time i try your scraper trick, never even considered it ...
and the varnish cloaks up the sanding paper so quick this easy
trick will safe me some struggle i hope. thx !
This answered a question I had on the last video. Watching the varnish being scraped with a chisel was pretty satisfying. It got me thinking that you should make a sequel to your anti asmr with visually dissatisfying actions. Maybe a huge gash in a finished piece of wood? Cutting a straight line on the bandsaw and veering off at the last second?
Cabinet scraper is a great idea for in between coats. Sanding makes a mess, is a pain, and I don't always do it for that reason.
My favorite way to keep a top from cupping is how I seen under the tables at Tim Hortons at Marysville, Fredericton. The company that built the furniture used a steel t bar in a two step mortise.
I prefer what the oil based looks like too.
A while ago you injected propane to oil based varnish jar to make it last longer. Did it work?
Thank you. Top quality information. I love it.
Hey Matthias, would you be interested in seeing some photo's of my undermounted table saw?........basically my table saw mounted to my heavy work table so that it flips underneath for storage.
Nice table.
Why didn't you use MDF as a substrate?
because MDF is awful.
Releive cuts half way through the top from the bottom side can help avoiding cupping. I'm quite sure you will do that if by time cupping is really an issue.
Yes, I might do that when cupping becomes an issue with the old top, which I made the same way, 13 years ago. Still waiting.
Good thinking on ditching the twisted board. If a fairly straight grained piece of wood has that much tension in it, it has no place in a table top.
I have always used that brand, I find the oil base gives a deeper color tone than water base, so depending on the wood type and application I will choose oil or water base.
Would prevarnish the under boards to stop the cupping and put a metal c channel underneath
I love your informative videos
Yes, you would. And the boards on top would not stick because wood glue doesn't stick to varnish.
Good to know we are going to build our dining room table and I’m sitting on top a bunch of 30 year old cherry that I’m scared to cut lol so if your ever in Sackville NB drop in lolololol
Nice Ilford mug! Do you shoot film sometimes?
I like to store my cans of varnish upside down upon being opened, that way the skin that forms is on the bottom of the can and is less messy when reopening. One just has to be careful not to puncture the membrane if one needs to stir the mix. Great video, thumbs up.
I like to put my cans of varnish in a vacuum chamber with the lid just barely in the groove but not sealed. When you release the vacuum quickly the lid snaps down into the groove and there's not as much air inside the can to form a skin. Gotta be careful though, if you don't do it right you'll be cleaning varnish off the inside of your pressure pot.
Yes! I do this with everything! Paint, glue, pvc weld, honey (But make sure it's a honey lid that seals!! Most won't!),
I really wonder if Matthias owns anything that isn't wood colored/varnished nor that hideous green color he puts on his tools. For once, just paint it black or gray. It's timeless and good looking :D Anyways, great video as usual :) Greetings from Norway.
Could you use a 3/4 plywood for the base in place of the spruce board?
and how would I clamp it?
@@matthiaswandel point taken. I guess you rip it. I was looking at avoiding warping in the spruce. I have a bunch of hardwood flooring. I was thinking of doing just what you did on 3/4 plywood then planing down the top.
7:11 huh you can tell how dry it is by the reflection. Conceptually knew that but it didnt register until just now.
I'm sure you had thought of putting the spruce verticle and ripping in half. I know, more glue joints but would the grain have been more stable? No Breadboard ends?
Breadboard ends are awful. Not very strong, always a joint where dirt can get in, and the edges don't line up with seasonal changes. And all that trouble for what end?
@@matthiaswandel Of course you're correct about the functionality, I was thinking more of the farmhouse look.
The "oil" based paint is water/moisture curing. The water based one is curing when drying.
You can prevent th e"oil" based paint from drying prematurely by splitting the can into smaller jars with lids. I usually put a plastic bag between lid and jar before closing it.
The issue here is that the can while open will suck moisture from air and will cure over time. If you open the can and immediately pour it into 3-4 smaller jars and then seal the one you dont need at the time you can save it from spoiling.
Also this explains why the first layer was not curing quickly. Air was dehydrated quickly around the table and the paint was not curing as quick as it could. That explains why fan trick worked. Also low temperature - making the air less humid in absolute value did not helped too.
The new style varnishes/lacquers are much much worse than old style ones.
The new ones are supposed to be low volatile organic compound paints but their durability is much much worse.
I use the polyurethane, stinky paints or sometimes even the nitro celulose ones if I need really durable finish.
Also using roller gives much more even result.
The difference between thick and thin layer is that if you have flexible paint then you can use thick coats. The paint will not chip easily. If the paint is kind of hard (the diamond types) then adding too much will make it crack if hit.
So in such case its better to use thin layers and put only as much as needed to get the finish you want and not any more as that will make whole finish more prone to cracking.
The best reason for your type of table is the character and personality it has. We don’t expect perfection. Or as they say down south, “we like our mashed taters with lumps”
So to use mortices or cockies are necessary when the glue is holding endgrain to non-endgrain, but not in cases where the glue is used for places where the joint does not include endgrain faces.
A lot of important info in this video. Thanks.
Does daylight not have an effect on storing either our or water varnish in a glass jar? I've often wanted to do this when the lid distorts & has crusty crud on the rim, but worried the varnish would go off??
Have you tried an Hard wax oil finish (osmo, odies oil, tried and true or rubio monocoat)?
no. This is a dining table, it will get banged and scratched by kids. No wax for me.
Some varnishes, especially water-based ones, can actually lose their grip on the previous layer without sufficient mechanical bond / tooth. Some finishes require sanding to 220 between coats, otherwise you’re relying entirely on the chemical bond to resist the incredible surface tension that builds as it dries.
I use a cabinet scraper as well to get dust motes out of the finish, but I always buff before coating again. It’s just not worth the risk to me
The advice I know of is to wait no more than a day between coats for better adhesion. The layer below won't be fully cured, plus there is less time for atmospheric surface grime to accumulate.
But if it's an old coat of paint or varnish, definitely sand it.
Very interesting findings on the water/oil base
did you know any varnishing method which preserves natural color of dry wood and doesn't make it yellow ?
i need to coat some birch plywood pieces and keep its pale white color.
Thumbnail looks like a party at Charlie Sheen's house.
Great video!!
Excellent tips.
👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Good to know, Mat thanks for valuable knoledge.
I like your ILFORD mug. Go FP4!
From 30 years ago!
@@matthiaswandel that time was about the peak of my own darkroom activity but curiously I now have more enlargers and other good junk than I had back then. Just wish I had a use for all of it. Can't chuck it away.
Please tell us how you get your scraper so sharp
Look it up on my website.
@@matthiaswandel Thanks, found it: woodgears.ca/scraper/
Store your varnish upside down to prevent the skinning over.
Great job on the table! It looked better without the varnish though.
maybe, but once it gets used, an unvarnished table would get ugly fast.
@@matthiaswandel Very true.
Awsome work are you saying that scrapping a large surface rather than sanding it is a better Finnish??
Using a cabinet scraper or a sharp plane will always always always give you a better surface than sanding, unless you take your sandpaper up to ridiculously high grit.
Excellent flat top in the end. there’s not much life in the water-based finishes, no matter what people tell you, I think of them as sealers really.
More geeky stuff please!
At the end of your video, you said " I will be using more of the oil-based varnish GOING FORWARD." Do you know of some way to use varnish GOING BACKWARD? Can we get the plans for your time machine to go forward or backward in time?
Do tell where I referred to going backward.
@@matthiaswandel It is redundant to say "Going forward." It has become very popular to say "Going forward" in the past few years though. It is never possible to go backward in time.
Very interesting as always, thanks.