Woodworking Supplies Catalog Information

Product Information: Catalog Q-Z

Removers & Bleaches

Oxalic Acid is a very helpful bleaching product. Use with caution. Behlen's Furniture Refinisher easily and safely removes shellac, varnish or lacquered finishes. Useful for antiques. Fire Fly Remover removes all finishes with little effort. Washes or scrapes off, quick acting. Non-flammable semi-paste needs no neutralizing and doesn't raise the grain. Be sure to protect hands and eyes. PDE Paint Remover washes away tough old paints like milk paints, latex, casein and oil. No toxic fumes, no fire hazard. Mix powder with water; resulting paste can dissolve up to 8 paint layers in 1 application.

Resins

Resins is a category reserved for those finishers involved In the manufacture of their own varnishes and particularly, Musical Instrument finishes. A few are described here. Copals are a large group of resins some of which are very hard (African) used in oleoresinous varnishes, medium hard such as Kauri and softer copals such as Manila. Alcohol soluble. Congo Copal is the standard used in commercial varnishes, which are thick, dark and hard. Damar is a resin from the Dipterocarpaceae trees of the Far East. Available as brittle, transparent, odorless lumps for varnish making. Dragon's Blood is a dark red resin obtained from the species Daemonorops or Dracaena. This alcohol soluble resin is used to tint varnishes. Received its unusual name from medieval manuscript illumination pigment. Elemi Is a resin used primarily to modify varnish consistency. Gum Benzoin (Benjamin) is a dark balsamic resin from the Styrax tree in Asia. It has a distinctive aroma (due to a 1% vanilla component) and was used inside drawers and carcasses for that aroma. Also used in varnishes. Helps achieve a high gloss in French Polishing. Gum Sandarac is a resin from the Cypress Family, Tetraclinas articulata. This alcohol soluble resin provided a clear hard "white" Varnish, particularly useful in coating metals. Propolis, Bee's glue is useful in some varnish making.
Products subject to availability.

Rubbing Materials

Rubbing Materials are helpful in a variety of ways. They are most useful when rubbing out a finish to give that smooth look and feel to wood. One of the most common methods of rubbing is to use Paraffin Oil and Pumice (4F) on a Felt Pad. Pumice will rub down a finish. Rottenstone and paraffin oil on a felt block will polish the surface. Deluxing Compound is a combination of waxes and buffing materials which produce a smooth, hard, mirror-like finish. Recommended for lacquer, varnish, acrylic, or enamel. No silicones. Rubbing Compound is a semi-paste extra-fine abrasive for rubbing down the final coat of lacquer, varnish, or shellac. Removes minor imperfections. Can be tinted with Fresco Colors. Finish Rub is helpful for buffing out surface scratches and restoring the luster on dull finishes. Wool-Lube is a lubricant for preparing furniture before waxing and polishing. Superior for removing pack marks, soiling, or fingerprints. Water soluble, no silicone and fast clean up. Apply with steel wool, nylon pad or sandpaper. Cork Blocks are very useful as a convenient base to wrap sandpaper around.

Stains

Oil is combined with certain colored pigments to make stains. These tend to mask the natural grain of the wood, are light-fast, easy to use, quick drying, and non-grain raising. Heavy Bodied Glazing Stains are specially formulated for extended workability, and easy application. Can combine with any Behlen Master Color. Has the ability to create a faux, marbleized, or multicolored customized finish. Can be used on most surfaces. Not for use on bare wood, use only after sealing. Rag, brush or spray on. Shading & Glazing Stains are a unique formula of highly concentrated colorants, combining resins and a medium viscosity base. Creates unique toning effects over almost any sealed surface. Allows for great adhesion between the sealing and finishing coats. Can be intermixed to create custom colors, which are compatible with almost any type of lacquer, varnish or urethane finish. Master-Gel Stains combine the best pigment and penetrating dyes into a unique, easy to apply gel that produces excellent color and enhancement of grain. New or old wood. Master-Gel Finish is formulated to finish over surfaces that are bare or colored with dye or stain. Finish is easy to apply, quick drying, extremely hard durable finish. Apply with lint-free cloth. The Behlen 15 Min Wood Stains are semi-transparent pigment based stains. Non-grain raising and fade resistant. 15 min drying time before sealer coat. Brush, spray or rag application. No lapping. Color strength easily controlled. Will not bleed through. Takes any finish.

Top Coats - Finishes

We are often asked, "What is the best finish?" Any response to that question can be dangerous territory. The best finish depends on the specific project itself, its intended uses, and to some degree, the experience of the finisher. Thus we recommend a finish dependent upon that criteria. We have developed favorites here and are willing to share our experiences and techniques with you, as well as those of our Seminar Instructors. We, in turn, ask for feedback on your experiences as well. Becoming an experienced finisher does take some practice - and some mistakes. Learning can be a humbling process. Quality of the finish is paramount, whatever the use. Quality materials with proven track records are certainly an important facet, and combined with experience, make for good finishes. Beginners can have good experiences with finishing, often a very frustrating part of woodworking and good advice at the start can be a big help. A caution - select the finish appropriate to the period of the piece. Good luck!
Crackle Finishes See under Crackle.
Lacquers are synthetic finishes which are highly resistant to strong alcohols, water, moderate heat and abrasion impact abuse. Qualalacq is Behlen's top of the line clear nitrocellulose lacquer. Extremely hard. Use only with Qualalacq Thinner and Sanding Sealer. Fisheye Flowout is useful to eliminate "fisheyes", or cratering due to silicones. Flattener reduces the gloss of lacquer. Retarder may be added to prevent blushing; especially helpful in high humidity. Brushing Lacquer is especially formulated for brushing. Heavy-bodied, hi-gloss, free-flowing and extremely durable, tends to be more difficult to lay down. French Lac is a light amber padding topcoat. In a ready to use formula (needs no additional oils or reducers). Very helpful in spot repair finish and/or developing a complete surface. All these are Behlen products.

Oil Finishes finishes are made from a variety of natural and synthetic products; each oil has its own attributes. Danish Oil is a polymerized finish which combines penetrating oils with resins to produce a natural oil finish on new wood. Acts as its own sealer. Water spots, burns, scratches easy to buff out. Salad Bowl Oil is a superb finish for wooden cups, bowls, spoons, butcher blocks, etc. The dry film contains only ingredients approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in contact with food after 72 hours drying time. Non-toxic. See Stains. Teak Oil is recommended for oily woods such as teak, zebrawood, rosewoods. Penetrates and dries hard. Tung Oil also known as China Wood Oil and Nut Oil, is pure, unmodified, unadulterated Tung Oil. The most water, caustic acid, heat and mildew resistant of all the oil finishes. Most durable. Rag application. New wood only; also used to manufacture varnishes. Above products are Behlen. Waterlox is a clear penetrating sealer and medium gloss finish coat. Specially processed polymerized Tung Oil, a phenolic resin tung oil varnish. Easy to apply. Three coats recommended. Excellent for turners.

Shellac comes from Lac, a sticky resinous secretion from Tachardia lacca, small insects which gather on branches and twigs of the acacia and soapberry trees in the Far East. Twig harvesting provides "stick-lac", a very dirty substance which is ground into "Seed-lac". Seed-lac is then melted and formed into flakes called shellac (originally shell-lac). There are several grades varying in depth of color and amounts of intrinsic wax content. Shellac flakes can be dissolved easily in Behkol Solvent , a specially formulated solvent for shellac. Denatured alcohol also works well. If you develop problems with dissolving your shellac, the problem Is probably with the alcohol. A one pound cut means that one pound of dry shellac flakes have been dissolved into one gallon of Behkol, or solvent. A five pound cut is 5 lbs of shellac flakes dissolved into 1 gal. of solvent. Buttonlac is a low refined grade, dark brown in color, useful on antiques and reproductions. AC Garnet is the next higher grade; it is not as dark and is more orange in color. Orange as well as Orange Lemon #1 is the most popular for an "antique" color in antique restoration. Used as a sealer coat in naturally oily/resinous woods. Superfine Orange shellac Is no longer stocked by Olde Mill since Its qualities are very similar to our Lemon Orange In color and manipulation qualities. Super Blonde / DeWaxed Extra Light is the highest grade of orange flakes. Approximately 99% pure shellac resin. Extremely clear bodied. DeWaxed Extra Dark Shellac is the darkest dewaxed shellac available. Wax containing shellacs usually are more sensitive against water than wax free grades, a little known fact. This shellac gives a rich dark color, without the wax. Works very well. DeWaxed Orange Shellac is excellent for a medium orange colored dewaxed shellac. We strongly recommend that you mix your own shellac for several reasons: freshness (mixed shellac often has a very short shelf life), you can control the cut and the quality of the components used. Shellac is a old time-honored finish and while it may have some drawbacks in modern situations, it is still a fantastic finish, deserving of your consideration.

Sticklac, fresh off the tree!

Sticklac on log, as unprocessed as shellac can be!

Shellac Buttons

dewaxed extradark

Variety of shellacs, with varying wax content and significant color variation.

Varnishes are composed from a variety of resins and applied by brush or cloth. They are resistant to alcohol, hot/cold water, weather, detergents and wear abrasion. Behlen's Woodworkers Varnish has combined the best of the old (natural oil, varnish resins) and the new (urethane resins). Creates a fast, drying, durable, brush-on varnish finish. Available in Gloss for a high gloss sheen and Satin for a hand rubbed effect. Table-Top Varnish is the hardest of the hard finishes. A natural resin oil varnish. Maximum resistance to water alcohol, chemicals, detergents, etc. Creates a hard, gloss abrasion resistant film with versatile toughness. Sets free of dust in 30 min. Dries in 4 hours. Restoration Varnish (Spar) is a water-white clear-drying natural resin oil spar varnish for interior and exterior use. Tough, durable, elastic and waterproof. Not affected by salt water. Sets out of dust in 1-2 hr. Dry in 4 hours. Japan Drier shortens the cure time of oil based products. The availability of a great quality natural resin varnish has significantly decreased in the last few years. Violin Varnish Is a prepared mixture of Super Blonde Shellac, gum mastic and gum snadarac. It produces a tough, hard, elastic, water resistent film. Highly recommended for musical Instruments. A superior spirit (alcohol) based varnish. bekhol Is the solvent of choice.

Touch-Up Supplies

Touch-Up Items are a variety of products designed to enable a repair to an already finished piece without necessitating a complete refinishing job. Use these appropriately. Burn-In Sticks are made from shellacs and resins. Will not lift out, take any topcoat, leveled with Abrasol and a Felt Block. Burn-In Balm and W.C. Acrylic (See Aerosols) are also helpful. Scratch Removers are quick ways to permanently seal scratches and spots. Fill Sticks are wax pencils to fill in scars, scratches, gouges and abrasions. Furniture Powders are helpful for coloring those minor repairs. Touch Up Markers are a valve type marker which seals, stains and finishes in one step. May be used with all types of finishes. All Behlen Products. Electric Burn-In Knives have a high temperature element core with extra flexible neoprene power cord. Cordless Burn-In Knife is cordless, self igniting, and butane powered. Can be used for all types of burn-in repairs. Manual Burn-In Knives have a super stainless steel curved rigid blade that is 3 1/4" inch long.

Waxes and Polishes

Waxes have been used for centuries to preserve and protect wood. There are many commercial formulas available, and some you can make yourself. Regency Wax , made in the USA, is a superior Micro-crystalline Wax. Excellent moisture resistance as well as inhibiting to finger printing. Small amounts last a long time. Use on any solid surface. Behlen's Blue Label Paste Wax is a superb balanced blend of waxes and Pure Gum Spirits Turpentine. Water-proof and long lasting. Unexcelled on wood. Hand buff for a high luster. Oz Polish is an easy one-step cream polish. Non-flammable, non-abrasive, greaseless, quick drying, no silicones. Also available now in a convenient pump. Excellent product! George Frank's Water Wax ingredients are also available for you to make your own wax. Carnauba Wax , also known as Brazil Wax from the Brazilian Wax Palm Tree which contributes hardness and polish-ability and Candelillia Wax , from the leaves of a Mexican plant, are combined with Triethanolamine and Stearic Acid to enable emulsification of the water and waxes. It produces a superior wax that reproduces that dry antique shine, functional as well as beautiful. The specifics of manufacturing of this wax is described in George Frank's excellent book on finishing "Adventures in Wood Finishing" (still available at Olde Mill). Beeswax (white and yellow) and Turpentine are also old recipe wax ingredients. Slideez is a very helpful gadget that can be used for making sticky drawer bottoms slide more easily.

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