"easiest" clear finish with a UV block?

[Bob Hoover Ross]

By "easiest" I mean...well, everything: Easiest to apply (especially), easiest to acquire, easiest to use in terms of the demands it makes on tools or infrastructure...

iow, I don't have a paint booth or a spray gun or experience (!) or even necessarily a well-ventilated space to work in; I live in a NYC apartment building. So a water-based wipe-on finish would probably be preferable just because that sounds to me like it makes the least demands on the refinishing job or on the refinisher (have I mentioned that I am completely inexperienced at doing any decent finish application?)

...but I need a finish with an effective UV block, because this is going on a Padouk body that I don't want to oxidize too badly.

Prefer a satin finish, in case that makes a difference. Prefer something that doesn't require a lot of sanding, but that's not a dealbreaker. Stinky chemical smells or dangerous outgassing definitely is a dealbreaker. Bonus points if someone can confirm that MinWax Wipe-On Poly contains UV block, just because I happen to have a can of that from another bass finishing project of mine.

Any suggestions? Thanks.

 

[bagman67]

Regrettably, your Minwax wipe-on poly won't do the trick.  A quick look at the Minwax website suggests you can use their Helmsman spar urethane product for this purpose.


https://www.minwax.com/how-to-finish-wood/guide-to-clear-finishes/


Dunno if the smell is more than you can deal with in your living situation, however.


https://www.minwax.com/wood-products/clear-protective-finishes/interior-exterior/minwax-water-based-helmsman-spar-urethane




Old Masters Ascend Exterior is a water-borne product that might be easier on your lungs and so forth, but I have no experience with it.  I reckon you could apply it using a Preval spray unit.


https://myoldmasters.com/product/ascend-exterior
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Preval-9-oz-Complete-Spray-Gun-267/202533738


Krylon has a UV_resistant clear, but I suspect your aversion to stinky volatile chemicals may run against you here.


https://www.krylon.com/products/uvresistant-clear-coating/

 

[jay4321]

Regarding Minwax wipe-on poly, remember you have both an oil-based and water based version of that. Both are easy to use, both can yellow although the oil based is much darker out of f the can.

Anyway my answer is “General Finishes High Performance” satin version. It will say water based and have an eagle on the can. It will definitely do the trick.

What I don’t know is how it might interact with the very oily nature of that wood, a dewaxed shellac underneath might be best but not sure. I don’t have any experience with finishing that wood. I would certainly wipe it down with alcohol like 3 times before applying anything direct. And allow extra time to dry.

Really I’d think you could buff out that wood to a satin without anything on it, with a few sandpaper pieces and then micromesh or something. That’s pretty easy

 

[Bob Hoover Ross]

Really I’d think you could buff out that wood to a satin without anything on it, with a few sandpaper pieces and then micromesh or something. That’s pretty easy

Yeah, my original intent was to do nothing...or, at the very least, just some modest ultra-fine grit sanding as you suggest. But the Padouk body I got is such a lovely shade of orange that now I'm rethinking a finish just for the UV block.

 

[BroccoliRob]

I'm bout to edward james almost blow your mind, get some wicked strong spf90 at a Walgreens and blend/thin it with some shellac and then apply it and spray a clear over top after it dries BOOM tough actin tinactin

 

[Bob Hoover Ross]

A quick look at the Minwax website suggests you can use their Helmsman spar urethane product for this purpose.

Yeah, I ran my query by the "tech support" at MinWax and they confirmed that suggestion, so I bought some. Will start the finishing process this week.

 

[Bob Hoover Ross]

Will start the finishing process this week.

Or, um, this week, yeah, that's what I meant!

Did the headstock today. Three coats. The more I do this, the more I've come to accept that I am just not cut out to apply finishes to wood products. Well, too late now, I still have to do the body. And then there's that other unfinished bass I've been threatening to do a wipe-on polyurethane finish on for, uh, going on six years now. Kill me now.

 

[Space_cowboy]

Nobody is good at it the first time. You'd be surprised how much finish sanding is the key to a smooth finish. I haven't seen your projects current state but something tells me you'll just need to work up through the grits to get a high gloss. I typically pick up an assortment on ebay for about $10. Start at 400 grit and very gently sand until you've removed all the imperfections and work up through 3000 grit. Then polish with an automotive scratch remover. It actually helps if the finish is thick. I've attached a picture of my last build. I spent days building up a thick enough coat of poly to be able to finish sand to a smooth glossy finish. Keep the faith my friend.

 

[Rick]

I use the spar varnish on my back door.  The first year I put on 12 coats.  Every September after that I put 3 coats on the outside, and 1 on the inside. While it's got UV protection, it ambers up the wood.  My back door is Mahogany, and it looks great.  Dont' see why it wouldn't work for a guitar.

 

[Bob Hoover Ross]

Nobody is good at it the first time. ...[snip]... Keep the faith my friend.

Thanks. That helps.

you'll just need to work up through the grits to get a high gloss.

Well, the good thing -- I think -- is that I'm not trying for a high gloss. I intentionally chose the satin finish Helmsman Spar so that I wouldn't have to get bogged down in all the super-fine polishing. (Well, that and also because I generally prefer a satin finish to a gloss finish on most unpainted woods.) I'm hoping with satin I can get away with less meticulous sanding...though just in case, I do already have a vast assortment of papers from 400 up to 2000 grit.