Another permalyn question

[frogwalking]

How is permalyn applied to the stock?  Can it be hand rubbed (multiple coats) to a smooth finish?

[kutter]

When I used it I applied it with a cloth path dampened with it. It went on very smoothly but nothing you could back track over very much as it starts to set up rather quickly and it'll show it if you do.
I liked the Sealer better as it is thinner (just thinned out Finish i'd guess) and you can do just that with it,,keep going over the previously covered areas (up to a point).
Application by hand or fingers always lead to marks in the finish for me. Not a big deal if you're going to repeat the coatings and level the finish in between. Just a little more work that you can avoid by the other method.

Actually I've stopped using the stuff altogether 'cause it sets up in the container once it's opened so fast.
I like it, but 3/4 of it goes to waste.

[B Shipman]

I've used it for 30 years simply because it's a best finish in terms of sealing and protection. The disadvantage, and it's a big one, is that every little defect shows up, things you would never see with an oil finish.
The principle trick is to get as much finish as you can into the wood on the first coat. I usually use half a can on the first coat. Keep slopping it on top to bottom until it largely ceases to take up more or the stuff gets too sticky. The reason is that very little is taken up after the first coat. This also minimizes the number of subsequent coats. Rub once built up with 4-0 steel wool or pumice and water. Rub down final coat with rottenstone and mineral oil with a toothbrush. Clean and buff with an old tea shirt.

[flehto]

I use only the LMF sealer and let it soak in as said previously, but when complsetely dry, then apply 3 finger rubbed in coats of Wahkon Bay Trucoat w' a complete dry between coats. The reason for the Trucoat.....very low sheen finish which takes some rubbing w/ a fluffy towel to bring out any shine.....Fred

[sdilts]

Bill,

When you apply the heavy coat until it ceases to soak in, do you let it dry completely then rub it down with steel wool or just wipe off the excess then let it dry and then rub it down with steel wool?

[flehto]

After the soaking coat {s}, most of the LMF sealer is wiped off.  Then after a complete dry, the entire stock is rubbed down w/ 0000 steel wool. No sealer is left  on the surface. Then I apply the Wahkon Bay Trucoat as previously mentioned. Even after 3 very thin, finger rubbed in coats of Trucoat, very little finish is on the surface.....that's how I've finished the last dozen or so LRs......Fred

[frogwalking]

Where do you buy the Trucoat?

[B Shipman]

sdilts. at the end of the sealing , just put on a last coat evenly with a piece of tea shirt.

Fred's  idea is a good one and works. Trucoat and similar products buff out easily but though they shed water nicely, they don't offer much protection from humidity. But the Permalyn provides that.

However, Permalyn is a composite product with properties of a spar varnish and a polyurethane. It both air dries and cross links.
(Which is why you don't use old cans with a skin even if you can thin it. It's not the same stuff.) If you catch it early after a day or two, it's easy to buff. If you wait, it gets hard as a rock, and it hard to work with like a spar varnish.

[flehto]

Mike Lea now has the Wahkon Bay products.....don't have any info on his business because I'm still using the "old stuff"......Fred

[54Bucks]

 Perhaps this question should be it's own topic, but........... can permalyn as a sealer be used on walnut to achieve the old deep/dark/oiled look, used with some other type of top coat?

[frogwalking]

I could not find  Mike Lea, but Stonwall Creek has it for sale.