Spar Varnish On Solid Body - How To

[mpeg2]

I'm in the process of building two solidbodies out of Padauk. Padauk is fairly sensitive to sun (UV) exposure - going from an orange red after sanding to a deeper red after finish and then with sun exposure, changing to a rather uninteresting dark brown. My normal finish is Tru Oil, which does very little to retard UV color change.

After doing some web research, I tried Teak Oil (which was supposed to have some UV resistance) and found that the color change still happened.

I'm a few days into an experiment with Spar Varnish (leaving a partially coated sample in the back window of my car) - it's looking like Spar Varnish is significantly retarding the color change (if not stopping it).

The problem is that Spar Varnish is a brush on type of finish - I've always used oils. Any suggestions on how to get a good finish with this??

Thanks,

Rich

[Miro]

Hmm, they are not bad. I use something similar to finish my guitars, my varnish has one of the polyurethane compounds, so, big shine... for me it gets a mirror surface by applying dense coats that dry in 3 hours (~25°C, no umidity in air). Apply 3 coats, fine sand the final coat and buff it!

[n8rofwyo]

Minwax has a spar varnish in the rattle cans. I used it on a neck a year ago, and I believe I got it from the local lumber yard( not a national chain I'm sorry to say - Bloedorn Lumber). You may be able to have your local hardware store order you a case or so. I found it to be fast drying, easy to recoat, seems to hold a shine, and only had to wait a week to buff it out. It does add a slight tint of yellow though, so beware.

All in all pretty good stuff IMO.

Nate Robinson

[MrMuckle]

Mpeg2, seems as though you have your personal messaging disable, so I'll ask here if you're still around. How did that spar varnish work out for you? Is the color of the Padauk still intact? How hard is that finish? Rock hard or semi-hard?

[mpeg2]

Sorry: Been away for a while. Color is still good (not much change). The finish is pretty hard - I wiped it on - it was a bit thicker than I'd like, but OK.

Rich

Mpeg2, seems as though you have your personal messaging disable, so I'll ask here if you're still around. How did that spar varnish work out for you? Is the color of the Padauk still intact? How hard is that finish? Rock hard or semi-hard?