George’s Secret Finishing Recipe

Finishing is an aspect of woodworking that can be challenging for many of us. Choosing the wrong finishing products, and applying them using an approach that isn’t ideal for the product, can diminish the quality of even the best project. George has used a wide range of finishing approaches over his years in the craft, and in recent years he has developed his favorite approach for finishing furniture projects. The finishing approach that George uses includes the following:

HVLP application. George has found that an HVLP system works as an efficient way to apply finish in his shop environment, and HVLP has proven to be an efficient approach for finishing. It is fast, forgiving, and a wide range of products can be applied using the same finishing techniques.

Base coat. First, a seal coat is applied. The offers a number of key benefits. First, it will seal the wood and prepare it for a high quality top coat. Also, it will enable you to add any number of top coat finishing products that might not adhere properly to bare wood. Further, it will prevent a water based top coat from raising the grain on your project, which would require additional sanding.

Top coat. After you’ve applied your seal coat, you continue the finishing process with a good quality top coat. George has chosen a high-quality water-based product because it produces less fumes in his shop, provides great protection, and cleanup is a breeze.

This finishing approach works great for George, and provides a good model for you to work with. The finishing approach is also flexible in that you can substitute other top coat finishing products into the mix to suit your tastes or project requirements. Once you’ve mastered this technique, come back for more finishing videos.