French Polish Problem

[John Turick]

After finishing several coats of French polish, I keep getting a sort of white cloud in , not just on ,the finish when applying some wax. This necessitates buffing through the finish and redoing it . I've tried using different waxes and am still getting the same results. The shellac seems ok till I wax it, although the gun hasn't been outside much. Thanks

[Opening Day]

Sorry I don't have an answer but really want to hear what answers you get, as I would like to know too

[Gary Rennles]

I was just wondering how long you waited for your last coat of finish to dry, before you waxed it?
How high is the humidity in your work area?
High humidity can cause clouding of the finish.
French polishing puts on very thin layers, and takes a long time to build up a smooth finish.
If the clouding only appears when you put on a coat of wax, I would think the finish was not built up enough to fill the grain of the wood.
When you wipe off the wax the small pits left by the open grain would fill with wax leaving it looking cloudy.
All just a guess on my part'
Gary

[John Turick]

Nope, the finish was glass smooth. Its winter so the humidity wasn't a factor. But, how long should shellac dry before waxing? It was only a few days. Also, the clouding was just that, almost a smearing look, not just micro spots. And the weird part was it went into the finish, not just on the finish.

[B. Dudley]

Did you use any Jap dryer in your Boiled Linseen Oil?

Even with Jap dryer I have had linseed oil finishes take months to fully cure to where they are not sticky feeling.

[wayne goerres]

Whats Jap dryer. Is that some sort of thinner sold under the name Jap.

[Gary Rennles]

When I French polish I use shellac cut with Everclear grain alcohol to thin, and virgin olive oil as a lubricant on the pad.
I do not put any wax on for at least 2 weeks or even longer if possible.
What are you using on your pad as a lubricant?
The lubricant floats to the surface, and needs to be cleaned off at the end before waxing.
Could it be possible that the wax you are using contains some alcohol in its mix, and is eating into your finish?




.

[B. Dudley]

Originally Posted by wayne goerres

Whats Jap dryer. Is that some sort of thinner sold under the name Jap.

Japan Dryer. It is an additive to aid speed the drying of oils.

Another note about linseed oil, a tual artists linseed oil is much better than the stuff sold at the home centers.

[John Turick]

Well, I did use BLO at first, but never seemed to get good consistent results. cleaned the wood, and started over using 3in1 oil, and started getting a much better finish. I don't think Renaissance Wax or Maguire's uses alcohol in the mix. But I am guilty of not giving the finish enough time to dry, thinking shellac dried almost instantly. As I said, the longest I let it set was a couple of days before waxing. Thanks for all the help.

[B. Dudley]

Anything with alcohol will effect the shellac.

Another question. Why not just skip applying wax?