First Trial With Deft WB Lacquer Finish

[William Young]

I went to my US post box this morning and it was like Christmas parcel time.
I picked up a quart of Deft WB lacquer which I had orderd and there were two other parcels from separate friends that had sent me a box of wood. In one box was some nice figured walnut amoung some other woods which I made this pen from this afternoon. It is just a modified slimline to try out the finish. The other box contains mesquite and as I have never made a pen with mesquite yet I might try one of those if I get a chance tomorrow.

I am quite impressed with this Deft finish. It goes on nice and levels out beautifully . I sanded lightly with 1000 grit Abralon within an hour after the first coat and it sanded very similar to another product I have used previously in the Oxford/Target brand. It cures so fast that the sanding dust comes off like fine talcum powder . I put put three more coats on one hour apart and it was self levelling so good that it required no further sanding.
W.Y.

[knothead]

Thanks William, I will have to give some a try. I spray most of my work. Is it thin enough out of the can or does it have to be thinned. I like the short turn around between applications.

Tom

[Rolf]

William how did you apply it? while on the lathe or after?

[Chase]

How much does it raise the grain?

Chase

[William Young]

I applied it on the lathe but just by turning by hand.
Grain raising is very minimal and is easily sanded off after the first seal coat .
Some people think a WB product will raise grain a lot because of the "water" base but the formulation is such that it doesn't raise grain any more than any oil based product on the first coat .
The product is recommended to be used as is without dilution but if dilution is required just a small amount of water would be used.

Method of application was a 1" foam brush. One thing about lacquer is that you have to put on a thick "wet" coat and work quickly because you can't go back and start brushing after about five seconds. It starts setting up so fast that you just need to turn it by hand for about 30 seconds and after that there will be no sagging or runs.
Gotta love the water clean up with those fast drying WB products. After each application I just wash the foam brush in a cup of water, shake it out and then blow it out with compressed air. It is then like new and ready for the next coat.
I am quite impressed with the appearance of this finish and I have no doubt it will wear very good.
Still not as fast as the shellac based "polishes" or the CA finish but is a happy medium in in length of application compared to the much slower drying urethanes that are called fast drying. .
W.Y.

[PuzzledMoose]

That's a nice looking pen, Bill and a nice piece of walnut. Is the centre band maple?

It looks like that Deft gives a nice finish.

[William Young]

Yes Ian , great observation .
The center band is rock (sugar) maple. A close look at it even shows some of the natural grain pattern in the maple center band.
W.Y.

[Doc249HMCS]

Bill, nice job!
Have you tried the "dipping" method? It works very well with the WB lacquer.

[Chase]

I use the dipping method. See my post "Finishing" on 2 Feb. I'm going to try it with the WB Deft when I find a place to buy it. Where do you guys and gals get WB Deft?

Chase

[Doc249HMCS]

Chase I think you will like it. I personally like it better than the regular lacquer.