fookgub Posted September 13, 2007 Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 I bought some Bulls Eye clear shellac last week, and I've been planning to use it for sealer and translucent color coats on a couple guitars I'm working on. I was a little surprised when I opened the can and the shellac was an opaque amber color. Is this normal? Shellac on the left, alcohol on the right. This is how it looked straight out of the can: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted September 13, 2007 Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 Not quite sure about the color, but I haven't heard anything good about canned shellac, aside from the sealcoat from that same brand. The Zinsser Sanding sealer(sealcoat) is one of or the only straight shellac in a can. I read some on canned shellac and I believe it ends up being cut too thick and many other issues. The sealcoat stuff is going well so far and really makes the wood look nice. I haven't gone as far as doing a french polish or anything with it, but I have layered on a few nice coats to see and it looks very nice. It's tinted but it's clear I believe. Maybe I'll get some pics later for you, but seriously if you want the ease of shellac in the can, buy the other stuff, same brand same can, except its more of a red label on the yellow can and it is a worlds difference from other stuff from everything I've read and heard. Not sure of the difference, aside from the fact that the sanding sealer is just straight shellac, whereas other canned shellacs have other stuff in them to preserve them. The sanding sealer has a self life of 3 years which is amazing for any shellac I believe, I believe they are trying to get or have gotten a patent on the forumla. Anyhow, I would definitely not mess with the stuff you have and go buy the Seal Coat sanding sealer from the same brand. Well worth it. Let me know if you do and what you think of the difference. BTW-I was worried that no one would carry the Seal Coat, but I found my can at Lowes surprisingly and Rockler also had it in stock. Best of luck. J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted September 13, 2007 Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 Should be translucent/clear. I mix my own from flakes (easy to do). Yours looks like it has wax in it (bad if you want to use it as a seal under other finishes), which should settle out if you leave it alone for a good long while. That, or get Zinnser's Seal Coat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted September 13, 2007 Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 Do you think it will properly settle out Mattia? I was curious if it would or not. I haven't done so, but thats the basis for dewaxing a shellac isn't it, mix with alcohol for desire cut, let it settle down for 24hr or more and pour/filter the clean stuff into another container and do this until wax free if necessary. But, I'm curious if that stuff has some additive to make it so it doesn't separate and settle. I'd assume that if it does settle, it would require vigorous shaking before each use to remix the shellac and wax. I have no clue if the can says to stir/shake before each use, so maybe fookgub can say. For some reason I don't see it separating/ dewaxing for some reason, but I'm wrong all the time, so don't mind me. J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fookgub Posted September 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 Do you think it will properly settle out Mattia? I was curious if it would or not. I haven't done so, but thats the basis for dewaxing a shellac isn't it, mix with alcohol for desire cut, let it settle down for 24hr or more and pour/filter the clean stuff into another container and do this until wax free if necessary. But, I'm curious if that stuff has some additive to make it so it doesn't separate and settle. I'd assume that if it does settle, it would require vigorous shaking before each use to remix the shellac and wax. I have no clue if the can says to stir/shake before each use, so maybe fookgub can say. For some reason I don't see it separating/ dewaxing for some reason, but I'm wrong all the time, so don't mind me. J Thanks for the advice. I assumed this stuff would be de-waxed, but I guess it's not. After letting it sit overnight, it hasn't settled at all, either. I'm going to go buy a can of SealCoat instead. On a side note, is it advisable to use the Seal Coat for my color coats? I'm planning a translucent red for one guitar and a sunburst on the other one, and I will be clearing it with Sherwin-Williams conversion varnish. The reason I don't want to do my color coats with the SW stuff is that westhemann said he had problems with the varnish taking too long to cure when he added dye. Also, I've never done a sunburst before, and I want to use something that is reversible and easy to work with for the color coats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted September 14, 2007 Report Share Posted September 14, 2007 Add some additional alcohol to your shellac, then let it sit for a week or better, it'll settle out sooner or later, then siphon off the pure shellac from the top. To get it really see-thru 100% sweet-n-pure, I'll dewax twice sometimes. It certainly is not an overnight thing, and no, there are no additives in it, it just takes a long time to happen, more time than most impatient people have to wait. Not saying -you- are impatient, but a lot of people are these days, and that won't happen here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fookgub Posted September 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 Add some additional alcohol to your shellac, then let it sit for a week or better, it'll settle out sooner or later, then siphon off the pure shellac from the top. To get it really see-thru 100% sweet-n-pure, I'll dewax twice sometimes. It certainly is not an overnight thing, and no, there are no additives in it, it just takes a long time to happen, more time than most impatient people have to wait. Not saying -you- are impatient, but a lot of people are these days, and that won't happen here. Always nice to have your advice, Drak. I'm going to let my shellac sit for a while and see what happens. I sprayed a sealer coat yesterday with SealCoat, but I don't think I want to use it for color coats. The 2# cut seems too thin, and I don't think the amber color of the shellac is going to help me get the red I'm after. Is there any clear shellac, or is it all amber? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oz tradie Posted September 15, 2007 Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 I know damn well that what we get in Australia isn't a patch on what's available elsewhere in the world but I use a white de-waxed shellac for sealing. There's gotta be something similar in the outer educated world!!!!! clicky cheers, Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted September 15, 2007 Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 Looks like the same stuff. I just looked at a pic of that white shellac and its the same color as the seal coat. Even though the sealer is that color, I don't notice any color change upon application. The seal coat makes the wood looks the same color as it does when I wipe down with Naptha. So, I'd imagine the sealcoat and your white shellac are very close to being the same thing, just a plain shellac stripped down, no wax, no color. The stuff works like a charm and its easy to work with. I can't wait to get an acoustic going as I'm now itchin' to do a french polish(from flakes obviously). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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