Shellac recommendations

[Randy Anderson]

Kent, out of curiosity I did a bit of online reading this morning and from what I can tell the ingredients added to the ethanol (alcohol) to make it toxic, smell bad, taste bad, induce vomiting, etc can vary by country and mfg so that it can still be used as a solvent or fuel but not a cheap source for drinking. What they add varies but the point is the same. Per the Klean Strip SDS sheet they add Methanol (methyl alcohol / wood alcohol) and Methyl Isobutyl. They don't list percentages due to trade secret needs.

As Roger and others have pointed out, there are denatured alcohol products out there that are marketed specifically for mixing with shellac. I read a few other SDS sheets and what they add varies. Mohawk adds butanol and isopropanol. Again, no percentages due to trade secrets.

The net of all of this for me is that what I buy and use has been working just fine. Dissolves the shellac quickly and I see others online using it that know a lot more about it than I do. They all have to add something to it in order to sell it. Are some additives better/worse for shellac? No idea.

 

[Holmes Anderson]

I love the ease of application and quick dry time of shellac, but have only used canned, off the shelf mixes. Been considering dissolving my own flakes and could use some recommendations.

Any fellow shellac users have a go-to brand or color of flake that they prefer over the canned stuff? Is there a significant benefit from dissolving your own or is it a high effort / low return endeavor?

I used shellac for many years but now prefer hardwax oil. Shellac.net is a good source. Dissolving your own shellac will yield a better product than the ready-to-use canned shellac like Zinser. Button lac is more durable than flakes and the blonde shellacs are less durable than the darker shellacs in my experience. Kusmi #1 button lac is excellent.

 

[Paul Paukstelis]

As a clarification (or a reminder for those that might have taken organic chemistry a long time ago) alcohol refers to a hydroxyl (OH) bonded to a carbon. There are many. many things that can be called alcohols because of this. Ethanol is just one of these.

As Randy points out, denaturing is just a means to deter ingestion by adding other things to it.

Many/most "lab" grade ethanols (even when listed 200 proof) are denatured with toluene. It is a bit nasty, but it is volatile and used in relatively low concentrations.

 

[Russell Nugent]

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This is all very interesting; that company is supplying the conservation trade, and it was in a national museum wood conservation lab I was taught to NOT use isopropyl or methanol. Isopropyl and isopropanol is the same thing. We used laboratory grade ethanol only, but that is not available to me now (Canada, eh?). 95% and 99% isopropyl IS readily available, and I have both. The only way to now is to try, so that is on the list for the weekend.

My local hardware store has this bio-fuel; supposed to be 100% ethanol and isopropyl (safety sheet says may contain from 1-20% isopropyl). Not cheap though; may be an option. Before, I would have steered clear because of the isopropyl content. https://e-nrg.com/ca/en/

I use bioflame for thinning my pr3mixed shellac. Haven't tried dissolving any flakes but it's worked fine for thinning.

 

[Mark Jundanian]

As a clarification (or a reminder for those that might have taken organic chemistry a long time ago) alcohol refers to a hydroxyl (OH) bonded to a carbon. There are many. many things that can be called alcohols because of this. Ethanol is just one of these.

As Randy points out, denaturing is just a means to deter ingestion by adding other things to it.

Many/most "lab" grade ethanols (even when listed 200 proof) are denatured with toluene. It is a bit nasty, but it is volatile and used in relatively low concentrations.

I would add that ethanol readily mixes with water. But once the two combine they cannot be separated by distillation. The best you can do is 95% ethanol & 5% water. This is because the boiling point of the 95/5 mix is lower than either the boiling point for ethanol or for water. I believe the toluene is added to drive off that residual water to make absolute ethanol (100%).
What I wonder is if typical store bought DNA contains that 5% water? If plain DNA is wiped on wood is there a little bit of grain rsised?

 

[Roger Wiegand]

Ethanol that is exposed to the atmosphere, eg in a container that you open and close or in a plastic bottle that water vapor can penetrate, will eventually equilibrate to 95% ethanol and 5% water. To maintain ethanol at 100% you need to resort to re-distillation, desiccants, molecular sieves, or dry boxes and hermetically sealed containers. Fortunately 95% ethanol works for almost all purposes at a tenth the price of absolute ethanol.

 

[Adrian Wilson]

I made up a small quantity of orange shellac today using 99% Isopropyl. Finished a small project with it. Seemed to work fine, I can't tell a difference between that and ethanol. Never too old to learn something new.

 

[Gary Hack]

I suggest you buy several samples and experiment for yourself. A go to color is a personal preference. Flakes can go bad just like the canned stuff. In some states, denatured alcohol is hard to get and the cheap stuff can have a high water content. Flakes really have no special benefit. Jeff has a strong following. https://homesteadfinishingproducts.com/about-us/

-Easy to tell is the flakes have gone bad... The finish won't harden. I've had some 4 years old that harden reliable.
- strongly suggest you order a magnetic stirrer
Cheapest ones seem to work well and I have 6 years plus on mine . Easy to find on Amazon etc.