Quote:
Originally Posted by charles Tauber
Soooo, we seem to have come full circle. It would seem that traditional varnish isn't necessarily any "healthier" for you than modern finishes and traditional violin varnish isn't, practically, much different than floor/furniture varnishes.
The best of the lot, health-wise, it seems, continues to be shellac in alcohol. But, it still has the usual limitations of a shellac finish.
It would seem that one ought to use the finish that gives one the desired result and that one can live with applying, while taking the necessary precautions, be they respirators, adequate ventilation or explosion-proof equipment.
A while back, I bought an expensive bottle of violin varnish, but haven't yet tried it. I'll give it a try soon.
Thanks, all, for the information.
|
Turpentine is not classified as a carcinogen.
https://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/s...erm+@DOCNO+204
Floor finishes are an ok alternate to laquer , they certainly are durable. I'm not a big fan of their Uv degradation based on the solids suspension. Or frankly most formulas over about 50 years will start to dramatically degrade and "white/yellow" out, they loose transparency.
There are SEVRAL varnish recipes out there that incorporate a myriad of "sap" ingredients form many various trees.
Spirit varnishes can be based off wax free shellac and make excellent varnish system...My main go to system is sugar, wax free shellac and Joes ontop. Spirit varnish alone also makes for a good finish
Virtually 99% of the shellac that comes into this country in any form is coming from RPM corp who owns most all the lac forests, zinnser one of their coatings divisions makes a product called "seal coat" this is an excellent base coat that works well with any top coat, it makes a good ground for urethanes an other products. Shellac when used properly is a MUCH more durable product than it is given credit for, it does not make a super durable top coat, unless it is modified into "hard shellac" {add drano.sodium hydroxide} but as a base coat it works very well for grain celebration and vapor protections, it rates as high as many epoxy sealers as far as holding back vapor {excluding smiths CPES}
Dura seal, a sherwin williams company, for pro floor guys, makes a product called "quick coat" this is sold as a floor stain, it's base is alkyd and or polyester, as a stain it is intended to wiped on and then off, however it can be brushed on and allowed to lay up like a varnish, color coats will burn through, so one must be careful, but the clear color can be used as a varnish, it is fairly durable and alkyds unlike urethane remains more stable in uv, more transparent. I like to use these stains for "bursts" ontop of size coats as they are very easy to control and dry and may be recoated the following day.
Theres a million ways to skin a cat, but the bottom line is what ever you use cover your *** and wear proper protection of every kind for any products that have volatile solvents, including denatured alc. and if a coating has a water base that does not mean that it is "safe", proper care needs to be used with those products also.
My system uses sugar water, everclear/shellac, and pure turp, it's about as low toxic as it gets, Joes research and products I believe in, therefore they have an established track record of super longevity, so when I combine low toxicity, ease of use and final product I think it's a combo thats hard to beat.
I generally go for a more hand rubbed look, but like I say they can be buffed out, they might not be for everyone, but I sure like the system and the over look.
Another factor is that by living in Ca, as a lic contactor, I have a slightly higher bar to meet in that I can get into serious trouble if I'm caught spraying without the proper setup and doing it in an un permitted area. Just the other day a cabinet guy in a shop area got busted by the fire dept for spraying in his shop improperly without a hooded spraybooth setup. So it's kinda my way of mitigating the environazi environment.