How To Apply A Clear Natural Finish To Softwoods - Wood Finish Recipe 4 | Rockler Skill Builders

How to Apply a Natural Finish on Softwoods:
Examples: Pine, Cedar, Poplar, etc.

How to apply this finish:
1. Sand the project up through the grits until at least 220-grit
a. It is a good idea to sand pieces that will be hard to reach before assembly.
2. Wipe the project with mineral spirits to check for glue splotches
3. Apply a sealer coat (Zinsser Sealcoat) of a shellac-based finish by wiping: flooding the surface with finish and wiping it off.
4. If you have any nail holes, cracks or defects in the wood, fill them now with a wood filler putty that matches the color of the oiled wood (sand smooth)
5. Apply at least two coats of a wipe-on polyurethane
6. Optional: After the finish has cured for 72 hours, apply a coat of high-quality paste wax and then polish it off.

Supply Checklist:
- Sandpaper: 80-grit through 220grit (320- and 400-grit recommended)
- Mineral Spirits
- Synthetic Finishing Pads
- Wonderfill Wood Filler
- Zinsser Sealcoat
- Urethane Top Coat
- Liberon Wax
- Shop towels or clean rags

[AroundtheHouse]

This video was pretty basic but changed everything. I didn’t realize the proper way to sand and it has helped so much. Thank you!

[FreedomRyder]

Thank you. Incredible. Have a white wood barn door. Trying to figure out how to finish it. Will try this. 👍

[Speeglelookingglass]

Great information! I appreciate your taking the time to help others. Thank you. God Bless you.

[craigniven]

Thank you for a great, informative video. Straight to the point and packed with useful tips.

[timcruse]

Would you use the same process to soft Woods that are exposed to the elements (weather)?

[ML-zbgq]

This was exactly what I needed! Thanks for sharing!

[chucknorrissaurus]

Thank you so much for this video! I'm building my own book shelves and your tutorial was both concise and informative giving me all the tools I needed to finish the job. Cheers!

[Michael-Makes-Stuff]

Great video! Thanks for making this and sharing! 👍🏼

[april__marie]

This was wonderful 😩 easy to understand and detailed. Thank you!

[manuelsoto]

Great video. I color matched filler with saw dust but I didn’t apply the shellac first. Damn!!!

[mozdickson]

bit more safety caution on disposing or retaining rags with solvents on would improve this - --- many fires have started through that spontaneous combustion!

[MAGAMAN]

General finishes Arm-R-Seal is a great finish!

[transeeyou]

can i know the reasons why u need to sand before varnishing? is it just to make the surface soft or is it also for the varnish to grip?

[pimpmychaircom]

keep getting told by workers that the varnish is making our newly stripped cabinets look dark. yours (behind you) look like ours before finish. perfect

[leigh]

We are renovating our garage attic and we installed knotty wood pine planks. I'd like to put a sealant on it to bring out the beautiful grain. I tried a matte water based Polycrylic to a sample board but no change whatsoever. We will not be going to the lengths you showed in your awesome video but would love to know your thoughts about what to use to help it's beauty show through. Thank you in advance!

[Trikarman]

Thank you for this enlightening video! I really like blonde wood(aspen, birch, maple) but I hate the fact that it darkens over time. I read a comment of yours that whether you apply a sealer and finish or not, it won't make a difference. It will darken over time. Isn't there any solution whatsoever to this problem?
I'm asking because I have an aspen TV-stand which darkened over the years considerably. I sanded it and I really like how it looks now but I don't know what to do. Should I just leave it untreated(so it will be much easier to sand) and lightly sand it when it starts to darken again? Or is there a product that can actually stop the process of wood darkening? Sorry for the long post and thank you in advance!

[quatermass]

Hello.Thanks for the tutorial. What is the little sponge item you are using? Is it sponge or cloth?

[akikaki]

Did you add the shellac with sand paper?

[cosmicfxx]

Silly question ... but why not just use polyurethane... why the shellac?

[jessicag]

1:48 Are mineral spirit and Zinder shellac coat both natural?