The rocking horse is a great project for new and experienced woodworkers alike so its perfect for our charity build. If you would like to build along, I suggest downloading the plan today while it is still free. You can also download full-size patterns here.

The second and final video in this series covers finishing and assembly. As with any project, you should always ask yourself if it might be better to pre-finish the parts. Since the rocking horse would be incredibly difficult to finish after assembly and all of our parts are screwed together, pre-finishing was a no-brainer.

I’ll show you some cool tricks for coloring the horses mane as well as how to effectively plug the counter-sink holes (after finishing). Here are some of the tools I used:

Tapered Plug Cutter
General Finishes Gel Stain
BullsEye Shellac

How the Charity Works

For each person who completes a rocking horse (one per person), I am donating $1 to Livestrong. We also have numerous corporate and individual sponsors who are matching my donation. With their help and yours, we are trying to reach our goal of $10,000! If you don’t want to build along you can always donate directly. And if you’re interested in becoming a sponsor, please feel free to contact me. 100% of proceeds benefit Livestrong.

When you finish your rocking horse, simply send me a picture and your build will count toward our final tally. All pictures must be submitted by November 14th.

Our Sponsors

Special thanks to our individual sponsors: Erik Gilling, Joseph Buscemi, and Jason Small.

• How to make a shellac solution
• The “cut” – proper ratio of shellac flakes to alcohol
• How to construct polishing pads
• Preparation of the wood surface
• Pore filling
• Bodying
• Burnishing
• Effect of moisture on shellac

Now there’s nothing particularly unique about Vijay’s French Polishing technique. It looks fairly standard to me. And although French Polishing is in the title, that’s just a small part of what I personally gleaned from this DVD. For instance, Vijay points out that shellac is misunderstood and has a bit of a undeserved negative reputation in the world of finishing. I am sure you folks have heard many times that shellac has poor water and alcohol resistance. You’ll be doing a double-take when you see the results of Vijay’s tests where he exposes a French polished surface to water and alcohol for several hours with little to no effect on the finish. I love a woodworker who puts his money where his mouth is!

If you have any interest at all in shellac or French polishing, this DVD is a “required viewing”. As someone who has used shellac for years as a sealer and general problem-solver, I am beginning to think it deserves a serious upgrade in my finishing hierarchy.

Its worth noting that Vijay just had an article published in the Nov./Dec. issue of Fine Woodworking: Shellac’s Amazing Journey. And on Wednesday, October 6th at 9pm Eastern, we’ll be having a live Guild interview with the man himself! We’ll discuss his adventures with shellac and get down to the nitty gritty on durability, longevity, and application. Join the Guild today to participate in the interview.

Check out this preview of the DVD:

I have heard countless times that you should never put polyurethane over waxed shellac. From books to magazine articles to forums to DVD’s, the message is always the same. Even the back of the shellac can itself says not to use polyurethane. Now I have always taken the “better safe than sorry” route, simply avoiding regular waxed shellac. But there have been so many occasions where I have heard of people accidentally using waxed shellac under polyurethane with no detrimental effects. And frankly, I have never heard a first hand account of a terrible finishing disaster using this combination of supposedly incompatible finishes. So what’s the deal?

To answer that question, I decided to do a little experiment for myself. I wanted to see if I could find any evidence of a weakened bond between polyurethane and waxed shellac, when the shellac is used in the typical manner as a sealer. My test is simple and completely non-scientific. There are just too many variables at play to answer this question with any real degree of certainty. But my results gave me enough confidence to say that if you are using the finish as a sealer coat (2lb cut or less), I see no reason not to use whatever shellac you have on hand, even if it has wax in it.

This is a topic that I will continue to watch. And hopefully we’ll hear from some folks who have had experiences, good and bad, with this finish combination.

**EDIT** It was immediately suggested that I do a Scotch Tape lift test. I still had the samples in the shop so I jumped in and did a few more tests. Using both duct tape and Scotch tape over a grid work of slices made with an X-acto knife, no lifting of the finish was observed on any of the boards. I even put tape over the area where the epoxy drops were and no lifting was observed there either. These finishes are holding on for dear life!

Products used in this episode:

Zinsser Bullseye® SealCoat™ This is the only sanding sealer you will ever need! It gives depth and beauty to wood grain, and won’t raise or swell the wood grain. 100% wax-free formula dries in minutes and sands easily. Zinsser Bullseye® SealCoat™

Bulls Eye® Shellac Trusted by generations of woodworkers, shellac is a traditional, quick-drying finish that is ideal for antiques and fine furniture. It is durable, non-yellowing and imparts a warm glow to all wood surfaces. Bulls Eye® Shellac

Minwax® Fast-Drying Polyurethane Among the most durable of protective coatings, Minwax® Fast-Drying Polyurethane offers long-lasting beauty on both finished and unfinished wood. Minwax® Fast-Drying Polyurethane

Now if you read just about any finishing book, you’ll come across one of those handy charts that compares the key properties of different finishes (usually abrasion, heat, and moisture resistance). These charts can be incredibly helpful, but nothing is more eye opening than a simple, practical, home-brewed test! Am I crazy for disliking the oil & wax finish??? To answer that question, I decided to make up a few sample boards and run a little experiment of my own.

I took 4 scrap pieces of baltic birch plywood and finished each one with different materials. My assumption is that if you are considering oil & wax as a finish, you are probably a fan of that “close to the wood” look. So the film finishes were applied very lightly in an effort to keep everything consistent. Here’s how I treated the samples:

BLO (boiled linseed oil) Only – I sanded the board to 320 (for oils, I like to go a little higher than usual to help promote even absorption). I flooded the board with BLO and let it soak in for an hour. I then wiped off the excess with a clean cotton rag and let the board dry in the warm Arizona air for the entire day and overnight. The next day, I repeated the application process. I did this for a total of three applications.

BLO/Wax – I treated this board exactly as above, only after waiting about 4 days after the final oil application, I applied two coats of paste wax and buffed it to a very pleasant sheen.

BLO/Shellac – I gave this board the same BLO treatment, but instead of wax after 4 days, I gave it two coats of Bullseye SealCoat (2lb cut).

Varnish Only – Sanded to 180. This board received three light coats of Arm-R-Seal satin with sanding in between.

When it was all said and done, each board (with the exception of the BLO-only), had a nice, natural-looking satin appearance. The BLO-only board was dull, as one would expect.

So now for my not-so-scientific test. I wanted to simulate a spill of some kind. In this case, I used a fairly concentrated solution of Transtint Dark Mission Brown in water. I placed a quarter-sized puddle of dye on each board, and let it soak. Let’s pretend this is soda, coffee, wine, or maybe even some delicious hot cocoa (we ARE entering the holiday season you know). After 5 minutes, I wiped away the excess dye and then scrubbed the surface with a damp rag. Here are the results:

The BLO-only sample looks………well……it looks like a bird took a poo on it. The dye seeped into the grain and through capillary action, traveled well beyond the original location of the dye. A stain like this would be very difficult to repair. And if the project is made from plywood, you’ll most likely burn through the veneer before you completely clean up that stain.

The BLO/wax board clearly fared better. The wax does a decent job of preventing complete absorption of the dye and the spread was fairly limited when compared to the BLO-only board.

The BLO/shellac proved to be reasonably protective. A small amount of staining is present but it doesn’t seem like the dye penetrated far enough to travel through the grain. The staining is generally limited to the shellac film, and never really touches the wood. This would be a very easy repair.

And finally, we have the varnished board. Boring right? Honestly, there just isn’t anything to look at. The varnish completely blocked the dye from absorbing into the wood fibers.

Really there was nothing surprising here. Film finishes simply protect the wood better than non-film finishes. But deciding what finish to use on your next project depends on a number of factors, and protection from spills is only one of them. So try to pick the finish that suits the project at hand as well as your personal tastes.

What is my take on this? Personally, I am a big fan of the wiping varnish finish. Just take a look at my DVD, *wink wink*. You can apply just a coat or two to get that close to the wood look and feel, or you can slap on six or seven coats for the ultimate in protection. If you like the deep amber hue that BLO brings to the party, why not start with a single coat of BLO, and finish by top-coating with your favorite varnish? Or maybe compromise and use a Danish Oil or even a home-brewed oil/varnish blend. But when it comes to my projects, the time it takes to produce a BLO finish, coupled with the overall lack of protection, puts it smack dab at the bottom of my preferred finishes list.

Now one other thing that I must mention is repairability. Unfortunately, varnishes are not as easy to repair as other finishes. Shellac, lacquer, and BLO can all be sanded down and re-coated with excellent results. But with varnish, sanding too much can result in witness lines if you burn through one layer and expose the one beneath. So if you are repairing a varnished surface, you really have to take it easy. Fortunately, the increased durability of a varnished surface means you are a lot less likely to damage it.

So like many things in woodworking, its a balance and a compromise. But ultimately, its your project and your shop, and you are the boss. So choose whatever finish tickles your fancy. But if you want a truly durable surface, you should definitely give a film finish strong consideration. And of course, clean spills quickly and encourage the use of coasters!!

And this was my response:
“You just can’t underestimate the importance of spousal support in something like this. I know far too many people who have to work against the grain just to get a new tool. That doesn’t seem like much fun, lol.”

“As for a sanding sealer, I usually just use shellac. Typically a 1 lb cut. There are two ways to do this. I either buy pre-mixed shellac (Bullseye SealCoat), and dilute it from 2lb cut to 1lb cut. Or I simply but dry shellac flakes and mix my own using denatured alcohol. So its not a true sanding sealer by definition, but it accomplishes the same thing. Oh and just a word about true sanding sealers. In general, they contain material that can interfere with finish adhesion to a small extent. The stuff that makes it easy to sand is the same stuff that can weaken the bond of the finish to the surface. So in general, I stay away from commercial sanding sealers. Shellac on the other hand, provides a great base for just about any finish. Hope that helps.”

And here was my response:
The only problem with Danish oil in this application is the fact that most Danish oil contains a high amount of oil. That oil will have difficulty curing on top of a pre-sealed surface (from the shellac). The General Finishes products are mostly varnish, if not all varnish (Arm-R-Seal). So what you are really looking for is a simple wipe-on varnish to put over top of the shellac. Minwax sells a decent one that is widely available. A few light coats should do the trick.
You might also consider using a different coloring agent. Even though I do occasionally use a dilute shellac/dye solution for coloring, its only for certain situations. In most cases, I do my staining with water-based dyes or gel stains. Neither of these really seals the surface and you should have no problem following up with a Danish oil if you use them. So really, the sky is the limit for your combinations of coloring agents and topcoats. But to directly answer your question, you want to avoid putting oil/varnish blends on top of sealed surfaces.

I’m finishing some maple kitchen doors. I have a Fuji Mini-Mite 3x to apply the finish. I first applied a 1.5 to 2 pound cut of shellac and now I’m spraying the oil based stain. The problem is that I get what I think is called orange peel. Basically I can see the stain dots in the doors. Definitely the stain is not applied uniformly. Here is what I’ve tried so far:

– Applied a thinner cut of shellac thinking perhaps the shellac was too thick. Initially I used a 2.5 to 3 pound cut.
– Sanded the shellac coat more aggressively using 220 grit.
– Adjusted the hell out of the gun. I adjusted the air pressure, fluid control, fan size and any combination of these three knobs with no success.
– I bought a #3 air cap thinking that the #4 was too big for the viscosity of the stain. No success here either.
– Thinned down the stain to 3 parts stain and 1 part solvent. This helped a little bit but still the result is not what it should be.
I’d appreciate any pointers you can give me because this thing is driving me crazy.

And this is my response:

Hey Jorge. Take a deep breath brother! I don’t think the problem is in the gun or your technique. Its in the materials. The shellac, even at 1.5-2lb cut, might be a little excessive in this case. Traditional oil-based stains rely on absorption into the wood to work properly. By sealing with 1.5-2 lb cut of shellac, you essentially created a barrier on the surface of the wood. So now the stain just pools, much like trying to use a marker on a glossy surface.

So here are a few recommendations. If you need to seal the wood first (which is not a bad idea for a blotch-prone wood like maple), just use a 1/2lb cut of dewaxed shellac. After it dries, sand it very lightly with 220 grit. This usually results in a surface that is only partially sealed and will still allow the some stain to absorb. So you can then spray on the oil stain, and wipe off the excess. Do not let it pool up. You may even skip the spray at this stage because all you really need to do is wipe the stain on. Now to be honest, I might even be a little hesitant to do this. I just don’t trust traditional oil stains over even partially-sealed surfaces. So for more predictable results, you may want to switch to a gel stain. The gel formulation does not rely so heavily on absorption and will give you a much better distribution and intensity of color, without any blotching. Once the stain dries, you can then apply the top coat.

Now going back to the shellac surface. Lets say you had that heavier coat on and you still wanted to add color. How would you do it? Well, you could always add some dye to the shellac itself. That’s a great way to bring some base color to the party. You could also add dye to lacquer (if lacquer is your top coat). I like to make very light dye mixtures (using both shellac and lacquer) that are mostly thinner and dye. But I like to add a little of the finish itself to the mix as that helps bind the dye to the surface. Basically, this is what is known as a “toner”. Hopefully that gives you enough to chew on. Good luck!

I have a table top that I stained with oil based stain and I want to use Endro Precat Lacquer but the directions say that I have to use a pre-cat sealer. Can I use a 1LB cut shellac as a seal coat or do I have to buy the special pre-cat sealer?

And here is my response:
Hey Ron. It is nearly always a safer bet going with the sealer recommended by the manufacturer. But, that doesn’t mean you have to. It also doesn’t mean you will get bad results using shellac as a sealer. Shellac really is like a universal binder. I like to think of it as a “clean slate”. A nice light coat of dewaxed shellac is a suitable sealer coat for pretty much any finish. I have used shellac as a sealer for pre-cat lacquer many times with great results.

Just to be safe, it’s always a good idea when trying some new combination, to test adhesion. Get a sample board, give it the sealer coat, then try the enduro finish. Let it completely dry and test for adhesion. You can do a few things for this. Try scraping it off with your fingernail. Then try putting tape on the surface and see if the top layer comes up when you pull the tape off. If either happens, the finish did not adhere properly and the shellac isn’t a good option for that topcoat. I have yet to see that happen though. Good luck!

I have a couple questions on shellac. I want to use it as a wipe finish for the inside of drawers. How much should I dilute a 3lb cut? Or a 2lb cut? haha i’m a little confused how you get a 2lb or a 3lb cut. I also heard Charles Niel say that you need dewaxed shellac, How important is this? P.S. i really liked your finishing video, thanks!

And my response:

Hey Austin. Shellac is a good choice for the inside of a drawer. Dewaxed or waxy shellac will work just fine, if its the only finish you plan on applying. If you are going to coat the shellac with a polyurethane (which doesn’t make much sense for the inside of a drawer), you probably want to avoid waxy shellac because of adhesion issues. But most woodworkers just stock dewaxed shellac since it is the safest bet in all applications. As for the dilutions, that can get a little confusing. If you are mixing from flakes, you might want to invest in a cheap kitchen scale. Measuring by weight is definitely the most accurate way to go. But to tell you the truth, I just do approximations and I find it easier in many cases to start with Bullseye Sealcoat (2lb cut). That stuff is good to go right out of the can. But if you have trouble applying it (gets sticky too fast), just dilute it a bit with denatured alcohol until it stays wet longer. Now if you buy the Bullseye Shellac (not SealCoat), you are dealing with a 3lb cut WITH wax in it. So you probably want to dilute it down with alcohol so that its closer to a 2 lb cut. This is where things can be a little tricky. Because of the fact that the “pound cuts” actually represent a unit of weight/volume, it not a trivial affair if you want exact formulations. So if you want to be a little pickier than I tend to be, check out this article from FineWoodworking.com: Mixing Shellac

Also, check out this great video from our buddy Charles Neil.

I get quite a few questions about water-based finishes and how to make them look more like oil-based. Its a common problem since water-based finishes are “water-white”, which means they don’t impart any color to the wood. This can be great in certain situations, but not so great when you want your project to have that warm glow to it. In this episode, I use dye, shellac, and boiled linseed oil to try to spice up our water-based finish. I also packed in a bunch of related tips and tricks as I went through each process.

Related Links:
Hock Shellac Flakes
Charles Neil’s Shellac Video

As requested, here is a hi-res photo of the test boards: