How to finish a piece of timber perfectly?

Hi im currently doing my HSC course for timber. An assessment task is coming up (i think its kind of pointless) and its about correct finishing techniques. What I have to do is collect a piece of timber given to me by my teacher, then sand it down through all of the grades, stain, wax it, rub it back, repeat etc.... This process has never worked out really well for me so if anyone could please give me some tips as to how i can increase the quality of the finished product that would be great

Ghostlysheet

Hi Ghostly.
I am not really qualified to help you with this one but I would have thought your teacher would have given you some infoprmation on types of stains and wax application etc .
Perhaps you could send a PM to Neil . the forums sponsor and owner of U beaut Polishes . Also Woodwould who is very knowlegable about finishes.

Can't help you with the waxing but the most common faults are in the sanding.
Sand with the grain. Any scratches made by going across the grain are difficult to remove and can show up in the final finishing.
Make sure you removed the marks from the previous sanding before starting on the next grade.
Don't press too hard and don't dub the edges over.
Clean the surface both during and between sandings. Make sure there is no build up on the paper either.
Dust is a killer on finishes. For a really good surface ready for waxing or whatever use a tack cloth to remove any remnants of dust.
Good luck,
Jim

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Originally Posted by ghostlysheet

Hi im currently doing my HSC course for timber. An assessment task is coming up (i think its kind of pointless) and its about correct finishing techniques. What I have to do is collect a piece of timber given to me by my teacher, then sand it down through all of the grades, stain, wax it, rub it back, repeat etc.... This process has never worked out really well for me so if anyone could please give me some tips as to how i can increase the quality of the finished product that would be great

Ghostlysheet

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Remember to sand with the grain not across it and practice practice practice :o:C

And never give up on it.

To soften the reality of it, there are many which have many more years experience at it than you and they still struggle.

So just keep at it and all the best.


cheers


Steve

When sanding, I have a habit of using a damp cloth on the piece to remove dust and also get the grain to raise so I can knock the tops off when I re-sand the piece. I could just be deluding myself that it works, but so far so good, so I'll stick with it...

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Originally Posted by q9

When sanding, I have a habit of using a damp cloth on the piece to remove dust and also get the grain to raise so I can knock the tops off when I re-sand the piece. I could just be deluding myself that it works, but so far so good, so I'll stick with it...

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It works and is especially useful if you are using machined planed wood where you get compressed fibres in bands.
Cheers,
Jim

Sanding the wood is very critical to make good quality finishing.
The sanding has to be done gradually with the coarser sandpaper grade to the finer.

The final sanding before the finishing process is usually is end up with # 240 or # 180 grade sandpaper.

But it is also depend on the wood type and the finishing you are gonna applied on.

You can visit this link to see more about the procedure of sanding the wood :

EDIT: Link removed by moderator.


Good luck

Cleanliness is paramount: Brush or wipe the dust off regulary and whack the abrasive side of the paper against the edge of the bench regularly to dislodge dust every five strokes or so.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ghostlysheet

Hi im currently doing my HSC course for timber. An assessment task is coming up (i think its kind of pointless) and its about correct finishing techniques. What I have to do is collect a piece of timber given to me by my teacher, then sand it down through all of the grades, stain, wax it, rub it back, repeat etc.... This process has never worked out really well for me so if anyone could please give me some tips as to how i can increase the quality of the finished product that would be great

Ghostlysheet

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It may help if we can find where the problem lies. Can you describe what steps you take and what the teacher has said in the past about your work? Also what type of timber, if known and what grades of paper are supplied for this exercise. Do you use a sanding block or just your hand to hold the paper, it all helps to find the problem. Also exactly what finish, how applied etc. Most probably the biggest problem is...do you enjoy it or hate the prospect of doing the exercise? If you hate it the natural inclination is to hurry and shortcut the steps necessary to make the project a success.

Hmmm. Perhaps this exercise is a prelude to the teacher's revealing the benefits of scraping, if not yet disclosed.

If the wood surface isn't too extensive, try scraping after the last episode of sanding - with the grain of course. A hand-held utility knife blade works almost as well as more expensive tools. Mirror smooth in most cases, sometimes reflective even before applying wax, etc.

Cheers,
Joe

Might I also add:

Patience?

and Time?

You did mention that it seems kind of pointless. This is true of much of schoolwork (much of life too) where you are only doing part of something and not seeing it as an element in a finished article. However, you are not just finishing a set piece of work to keep the teacher off your back, you are acquiring a skill and a discipline that will stand you in good stead in later life. If you can see furniture in a shop and think, "I could have finished it as well or better than that", you are there.
Cheers,
Jim

Can't believe I'm the first to suggest this:2tsup::2tsup:

My finishing improved dramatically after picking up a copy.

Thanks people for all of the advice. So far i have taken my time in sanding and i have used sand paper grades from 80,120,240,3?0,400,1200,1500 and 2000. The timber i am using is treated pine (a common, cheap construction material) its finishing quality will never be excellent. After running it through a thicknesser to take the bow out the top face i began sanding. I used 80 grit for about 20 mins to get rid of the roughness left by the thicknesser, then moved on to the 120 to make sure it was evenly sanded and there were no longer any scratches etc. Then i used putty to fill in some small anomalies in the timber. Left it to dry over night, began sanding steadily from 240 grit to 2000. The end product was nothing ive ever done before, it was completely smooth qnd reflective like glass. I was wondering if that was too much and if the laquer wont soak in?? Are there any problems with what i have done so far??.

Oh, and a side note. My teacher wont help me because this is supposed to he a test on our ability to gain and implement skills we have learnt now and in the past.

Also any tips & techniques on applying finishes, waxing etc would be extremely helpful, because the final step of finisbing is always my weak area. So yeah any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers Ghostlysheet

I find a tack cloth very helpful removing the fine dust between sanding with higher grit papers. I think there is a recipe for making a tack rag/cloth in U-Beauts Finishers Handbook

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Originally Posted by ghostlysheet

Also any tips & techniques on applying finishes, waxing etc would be extremely helpful, because the final step of finisbing is always my weak area. So yeah any help would be greatly appreciated.Cheers Ghostlysheet

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You gotta get a copy of A Polishers Handbook available Here

Are you sure this is treated pine i.e. saturated with poison? Sounds like a pretty inappropriate material for an exercise based on creating fine dust.

Wait. I'm confused here.

In the op you said stain and wax. I don't consider wax an actual finish but go figure. The later mention lacquer while mentioning your sanding schedule.

First if your going to stain then you're going to have trouble if you sand past 180 grit or 220 tops.

If your going with a clear lacquer then you can sand to 320. Anything higher than that and your going to have adhesion issues.

Even with an oil finish ill only take the bare wood to 320 then sand in the oil with successively finer grits.

Back to clear top coats. Sand 320/400 between second and third coats and before final coat if you're going with more coats. Let ut cure then you can sand with the crazy fine grits for polishing the finish. You don't want to polish the wood but the FINISH.

Gidday :D

Mucking around with sandpaper grades n the like can be a real drag! An epiphany usually happens when inexperienced woodies start mucking around with well tuned hand scrapers n handplanes......................

Ive yet to pull of a spot on finish with a handplane BUT can assure you that a Handscaped finish is hard to beat!!....................

Try a handscaper its well worth the effort.........................n will open new dimensions to your finishing!!!

Regards Lou :2tsup:

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Originally Posted by ghostlysheet

The timber i am using is treated pine (a common, cheap construction material) its finishing quality will never be excellent.

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I'd say the perfect finish for treated pine is Decking Paint.

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Originally Posted by Fuzzie

I'd say the perfect finish for treated pine is Decking Paint.

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...Heh, heh! 'bout right.
As to 'finishes' This is completely subjective. Some of the best timber finishes I've seen are those that require the least amount of work and I just recently completed some Japanese style Spotted Gum doors that I brushed Penetrol on, then wiping off almost immediately, lightly sanding it once dried and then applied one coat of Sikkens TS Interior Transparent satin. That to me was a great finish because it was very effective AND simple and I've done some very 'fine' finishes with shellac etc. The finish is dependant on the required result.

I cant believe they're supplying TREATED pine. Madness.
My tip is to submerse/soak it in wood hardener and let dry before sanding past 320p.

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Originally Posted by Fuzzie

I'd say the perfect finish for treated pine is Decking Paint.

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There is treated pine and treated pine. I needed some book shelves to span two metres and hold a lot of books and not bend. It turns out that you can buy clear treated pine bearers and joists and I bought some 50 x 200. They were rough headed finished, is that the term? they had those fine grooves in them all round. I machined them in the thicknesser, put some poly on them and they look fantastic, just like furniture grade timber. I would defy anyone to pick them as structural pine they just look so good. There are many surprised comments from those who think they know timber when I tell them what they are. BTW I am still walking around and that was about ten years ago.

Agree with what the others have said about the treated pine - the dust is dangerous stuff. Since you've done the worst of it, I'd give it a coat of thinned blonde shellac as a sanding sealer, give it a light sand after it's completely dry, stain it, wipe on another coat of shellac or give it a few coats of oil, then wax.