Vectric Customer

My biggest problem when it comes to any sort of work with wood is knowing about different types of finish, what finishes work well together & what doesn't

I have a project I would like to do that will have a vcarving which will be painted, I know there are different techniques for this sort of thing from reading lots of different posts on the forum but most seem to have a final coat of lacquer after painting. I would really like to use something like Danish oil as a final finish but don't think it would soak in properly if I had used a sanding sealer prior to machining to prevent paint bleeding.
So could someone tell me the best way to go about this job from start to finish please.

Martin,

I'm having luck with applying Danish Oil before vcarving then applying more Danish Oil (or shellac) after vcarving to seal the carving then apply paint, surface sand and apply final finish (shellac, poly or just leaving the Danish Oil as final finish).

Thanks, will give that a try on a test piece, wasn't sure if the danish oil would prevent the paint bleed or not, how long do you leave it for to allow the danish oil to fully dry before painting?

I flood the piece with Danish Oil for at least 20 minutes checking to make sure I don't have dry areas, if so I apply more and let set a little longer. I then paper towel the project dry and use a air compressor to remove extra oil from the vcarve and dry again. I let it set at least over night before I apply a paint. I'm not sure if you have to wait that long, but it works.

If I'm trying to get a carving done quicker, after vcarving I use Bulls Eye shellac which dries in about 15 minutes. After a couple of coats to make sure I have everything covered I'll paint the same evening. Sand and finish.

Thanks will give that a try, quite cold in Scotland most of the time so I tend to leave things longer to dry than others might

I can build a cnc machine, set it up & maintain it but finishing wood well seems to be a bit more of a challenge

I would be concerned at the ability of the Danish oil to truly seal the end grain exposed in the v carving.

My kick at the cat: finish piece with Danish oil, then after that coat is dry, seal the piece with shellac one or two coats. Then v-carve, and paint the letters. When dry, sand off the surface and resell with shellac or varnish.

Angie

zeeway wrote:I would be concerned at the ability of the Danish oil to truly seal the end grain exposed in the v carving.

My kick at the cat: finish piece with Danish oil, then after that coat is dry, seal the piece with shellac one or two coats. Then v-carve, and paint the letters. When dry, sand off the surface and resell with shellac or varnish.

Angie

Angie, I've used this method also and it works fine, but in your instructions you missed a step (or at least I think you did), after vcarving do you paint the letters or apply a coat or two of shellac to the carving first then paint? Seems if you don't seal the carving the paint will bleed.

I like danish oil, but have noticed that top coats may not dry properly, so i tend to use it on raw wood only. But my favorite sealer and finish is General Finishes arm-a-seal. Unlike most poly's it does not turn your wood an ugly amber.

COWBOY1296 wrote:I like danish oil, but have noticed that top coats may not dry properly, so i tend to use it on raw wood only. But my favorite sealer and finish is General Finishes arm-a-seal. Unlike most poly's it does not turn your wood an ugly amber.

I haven't had any problems with top coats not drying properly COWBOY1296 but then all this is quite new to me so don't have a lot of experience, I have however noticed that top coats can sometimes take quite a while to dry properly, I had put this down to the general Scottish weather but maybe there is another reason.
I have noticed on odd occasions a sort of tacky (ish) feel for a couple of days & had to leave stuff before buffing it, that was one of the reasons I asked how long before carving & painting highpockets left it

Oh meant to say. thanks for the advice all, will go away & do a little bit of experimenting before I set about the proper project

With Danish Oil there is no "top coat" it maybe the last coat, but no matter one coat or four don't leave any extra oil on the surface, wipe it dry or you'll get a sticky surface that will take for ever to dry and give you poor results.

Martin, with you being in a very wet climate, you'll need to let things dry even longer. I live near the gulf coast in a very humid area so I move my projects to a room in the house to dry with the AC on. I have a very understanding wife

One more thing on Danish Oil, during the drying process, from time to time wipe the surface down even after your initial wipe down. Wood will sometime expel excess oil causing a oil film on the surface, which can cause a sticky mess.

highpockets wrote: Wood will sometime expel excess oil causing a oil film on the surface, which can cause a sticky mess.

And don't ship something that is finished in Danish oil by air until it is thoroughly cured. The lowered air pressure can also cause the oil to be expelled.
(Don't ask.)

FixitMike wrote:

highpockets wrote: Wood will sometime expel excess oil causing a oil film on the surface, which can cause a sticky mess.

And don't ship something that is finished in Danish oil by air until it is thoroughly cured. The lowered air pressure can also cause the oil to be expelled.
(Don't ask.)

LOL!!! Had not thought about that one. I was getting ready to ship a ring box, that's now on hold until next week. Thanks Mike.

I use Shellac to seal before applying a paint mask. After V-Carving I will again seal with shellac.

Shellac is a DNA solvent base and is also a natural plant based sealer. It dries very quickly and seals very well.

Paint will not wick into the grain and will allow paint to adhere very well.

It is a good base for just about anything.

Lacquer is also a very good and fast dry sealer.

Mike, the UK is a bit on the small side for Air shipping so think I will be OK

Leo, most of what I have read the process involves either shellac or laqueur as a sealer but I really wanted to use danish oil as a finish & don't think that is going to work. The oil is not going to be able to penetrate through the sealer into the wood & it won't cure if it is just sat on the surface of another coating.