Hi, today I am going to refinish a mahogany bowl and lid I turned many years ago. First, I sanded it down to the bare wood... no finish left over from last time.
I applied a thin coat of boiled linseed oil and let it dry over night. In the flash photo below it looks done but we're just getting started!
I did a quick sanding with 400 grit sandpaper and then used a dry tack cloth to remove the dust. Then I applied a thin layer of shellac. I used the stuff already mixed in the can. The picture below is how it looks just after I applied the shellac...
After an hour or when the shellac is completely dry, I sanded again with 400 grit paper and then applied another coat of shellac.
After another hour or when the shellac is completely dry, I sanded again with 400 grit paper and then applied another coat of shellac. The more coats of shellac the better the finish will look. As you can see the figure in the wood is showing up nice in the light!
After an hour or when the shellac is completely dry, I sanded again with 400 grit paper and then applied another coat of shellac. I put five coats of shellac all together over the boiled linseed oil. Now we apply the wax. Just when you think you're done, you're not!
So, I sanded again, using 400 grit paper then applied a thin layer of wax.
I like to let the wax dry over night, so its nice and dry. Then I ... you guessed it... sand and wax again!
Ok, its looking good, it has a good even coat of shellac and wax and I think its done, finally! Well, that's the process, it takes time but the result will last a long time and it makes the wood look great!
Thanks for reading this post, please feel free to leave any comments or suggestions!
Hey, its been a while since my last post. The weather is getting better, its been in the 50's for the past few days. We even had a 70 degree day, wahoo!! Spring is around the corner!
Today we're going to make a large pine kids crown. It measures 12 1/2 deep by 14 1/2 high by 14 1/4 inches wide and weighs about 5 pounds. The balls (crown points) are 2 3/4 in diameter.
First, we cut the five blanks for the face/point pieces... (nothing too fancy so far)...
Here you can see how I marked the curves, so I can make the rough cut on the band saw.
In the next two pictures, the blank is in the jig. This is how I obtained the layout lines.
The top view while in the jig, this view gives you an idea on how all of the blanks end up the same.
I use a french cleat to hang the crown off the back. By using the cleat itself (when setting the table saw fence for the grooves in the sides), I get the correct distance, so that the cleat fits between the back and the wall without gaps.
The blanks are not blanks anymore. Here they are with all the necessary cuts. The angled and beveled sides with the biscuit slots, the groove in the two back sides, and the dowel screw hole in the top (you cannot see those in this picture, but believe me they are there).
I cut the back to size and started a dry fit...
Using a band clamp, I check to make sure all the sides are tightly fit together. Always dry fit before gluing! You don't want any surprises with glue on all the parts. It kind of ruins your whole day... :)
The back is rough cut high, so that I can transfer the angle from the side.(Hey, my thumb looks alot better now!) I mark the side then cut the 45 degree angle on the table saw.
The points, here I screw in the dowel screws in all five. I use vise grips to hold the dowel screw and turn them in as far as they can go without over tightening...to tight and you'll strip them.
The crown all glued and clamped...
The back view showing the french cleat, the lower piece is screwed into the wall. Then the crown is hung from the upper piece.
After I did a quick sand, I screwed in the points. And here is the finished crown...
I hope you liked this post!
Feel free to leave comments or suggestions for a project you would like to see built.
