Getting close . . .

[Nancy-ID]

to , well sort of, and thinking ahead on finishing Hugh. What is bothering me is that since I am doing it in basswood but I am leaving it natural finish, what might be the best finish for it. I am thinking Wipe-On Polyurethane. The biggest problem I am anticipating is the soft places in the basswood. There are tiny spots that no matter how much sanding is done I think it will soak up the finish and leave a darkened . . .odd looking ??? spot. Any ideas on how I might prevent this from happening if I can't get these little soft places sanded out without destroying the detail? Confused yet?

[kcwaterguy]

Just make sure those spots are in places that would naturally look like Live Spots ....

Sean - KC

PS - can't help you otherwise... too new to know the answer

[Lynn O. Doughty]

I learned a trick years ago when working with soft woods like pine, etc. Pine when stained takes on a blotchy appearance due to the uneven grain. To get around this you mix up a mixture of 1 part shellac to 10 parts alcohol. Paint this on and let it dry before you apply the stain. Believe me it works! Not so sure it would with basswood but don't really seen any reason why itwouldn't. Make sure you use the clear shellac not the amber.

[Ron Davidson]

I use minwax pre stain conditioner. It works the same way that Lynn's mixture.
Ron

[Nancy-ID]

Thank you Lynn and Ron!!!! I am going to try both methods on a test piece first. Lynn, forgive me if this is a stupid question but, what type of alcohol ? I mean I've heard of something like indentured (toothless? ) or the regular stuff or ?

Thank you, thank you

[AlArchie]

Use denatured alcohol from the paint ot hardware store. Rubbing alcohol (isopropyl) from the drug store or pharmacy is usually only 70% 0r MAYBE 80% concentration.....the rest is water and that is not too conducive to mixing with shelac.

Al