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Hi all
I am in the process of building up some panels, I want to make sure finish is a good finish (thats what most people cares)
Saw this coffee table at my neighbours, its new, the finish is smooth, feels like a lacquer over it.
Tried to take some photo of the coffee table.
Can I get this kind of finish at my home workshop? or I need a professional spray booth?
Thanks for your time
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These days I would have thought most commercial shops would be spray painting their finishes, I think you will find lacquers have been replaced by polyurethane type finishes these days.
Having said that pre-cat lacquers are one of the easiest finishes to spray and because of the quick drying time you can do it outside with the right equipment and a little practice.
It might be a little expensive for a short run of panels, but if you plan on using it often its well worth the investment.
Do some searching on this forum for HVLP spray guns etc.. and you find a lot of information or post up any specific questions you have.
goodluck
joez
Sand properly, then 3 coats of wipe on poly.
Thanks Joez, I have been making a lot of panels but the finish on them has been rather poor, I will still be making them in future, thanks for the input, I now have a starting point....Quote:
Originally Posted by joez
Cheers.
Albert,
I recently upgraded to a 2ltr pressure and a new star V3 200 gun (1.5mm tip) I am very happy with this setup and wish I did it years ago. Its not cheap but for the spraying I do theres a lot of benifits over a regular gravity feed setup I had.
I bought them from airless.com.au they were great to deal with too:
AA Spray - Star New Century Pressure Feed Spray Guns
AA Spray - Pressure Pots
The benifits I have found are:
Runs at a lower pressure (I use about 18 PSI) so the compressor works a lot less
Mixing 2ltrs at a time is easier and eliminates any issues between different batches (especially when adding stains etc).
Not having a pot on top of the gun means I can spray inside cabinets that normal guns wont fit into.
Gun can spray in any direction even upside down.
This gun can be used for spraying sanding sealer as well but I use a second gravity feed gun with a larger 2.2mm tip for that. The reason being I thin the mix less allowing me to build up the sealer coat quicker.
joez
There are many different ways of achieving a great finish in a home workshop - but commercial furniture will almost inevitably be lacquer sprayed. It does take some practice and skill with the spray setup to get a good result, but it can be done at home. Don't rely on getting a great result first time. Part of a home workshop is doing things cheaper than the pros, so you probably won't have top grade spray equipment, or choose the best finish the first time you try it, and you won't have years of spraying experience behind you. But for sure, it can be done if you are willing to get setup with some decent gear and put in the time to get good at it. I've sprayed a few things with pre-cat lacquer, hanging bits up under the clothes line to spray them. I've had some good results, and some terrible results where after 6 coats I gave up trying to get a decent finish out of the gun and spent many many hours sanding and polishing to get a nice finish. For home use, polyurethane is an easier finish to apply, and spraying that can also help to get a brush-mark-free finish. But my favourite finish at the moment is Danish oil. It's not up to the rigours of a young family dining room table, but I love it on my camphor slab office desk.
Oh, and PS, I believe the main reason commercial shops use lacquer is not necessarily the quality of the finish, but the fact that it dries quick and doesn't require sanding between coats means that it cuts down labour, and they can run a lot more stock through in a shorter period of time, without having to have a huge dust-free area to store the furniture while it dries. I'm not saying it's a bad finish, because it does look good and lasts well, but it's primary commercial advantage over other options is that after you factor in labour time and workshop floor space requirements, it is a very cheap finish.