Step By Step Process Of Applying Lacquer To Wood Using Brush
If you are looking to provide your piece of wood furniture & any other wood item a very nice clear coat that is long-lasting as well as attractive, then applying lacquer to wood is one of the best options. Applying lacquer will make sure that your wood piece lasts for a longer period of time and always has a gentle sheen or soft glow to it. However, you should know how to apply lacquer to wood, otherwise, it is best to consult a professional. If you are applying lacquer too heavily, it will gum as well as look uneven. On the other hand, if you apply lacquer too lightly, then it will not provide you the true finish that you are looking for. In order to get the best possible results when applying a lacquer to a wood, then go through the below-mentioned step by step process carefully & achieve the desired result:
- Mix Lacquer Thinner To Your Lacquer: First of all, take a bowl & mix lacquer thinner to your lacquer (half & half mixture) & put on a sealant coat. It is important to have a good- quality brush, making sure not to purchase a brush that has soft bristles as well as holds a lot of lacquer.
- One Stroke At A Time: Make one stroke at a time, slowly and evenly through the entire piece you are working on. Prevent multiple coats of the initial sealant coat, due to the reason that this will create too many brush strokes.
- Sand The Wood Using 320-grit Sandpaper: Now, rough up the wood gently, delicately or softly with the help of a piece of 320 grit sandpaper. Using a tack-cloth, get rid of all the residue that will remain from sanding. Then, dampen your brush with lacquer first before starting to apply it on the wood.
- Dip The Brush Into The Lacquer: Then, soak or rinse the brush into the lacquer and allow the brush soak up as much lacquer as possible. One of the things to keep in mind while applying lacquer properly using a brush is to keep the brush lying on the same side all the way through the piece of wood, making sure not to go back and forth, sort of turning over the brush from one side to the other.
- Go From One End To The Other In One Stroke: You need to have the brush full enough in order to make sure that you don't have to refill the brush in the middle of one swipe through the wood, you should be able to go from one end to the other in only one stroke.
- Allow The First Coat To Dry Before Applying Another Coat: During the process of drying your first coat, you will be enticed to fill in areas that are looking like you didn't cover well enough, do not give in to the temptation. Allow these to be, and move ahead and do another top coat, after the other coat dries.
- Don't Clean Your Brush Between Coats: Don't clean your brush, in a thorough manner, betwixt coats, however, soak it into lacquer thinner some, before wiping it onto a towel. It will be fine to use it again without fully cleaning it.
- Remove Residue Before Each Next Coat: Use the 320 grit sandpaper betwixt each coat, and use the tack-cloth when it comes to getting rid of residue before each next coat. Apply as many coats as you want, which is however entirely dependent on how dark you want your wood to be. You should use steel wool and/or pumice stone in order to "sand" the finished wood. These things work better when it comes to getting out imperfections that sandpaper just can't get. They also create a nice shine & lustre on the finished piece of wood.