recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

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JurgenV
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recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by JurgenV » Fri Apr 30, 2021 6:07 am

For my last few guitars I used hard shellac as finish and I really liked the result. As I don´t have access to a spray booth the hard shellac had been the perfekt solution to get a high gloss finish which is also more durable than the standard shellac. At the moment it seems to be difficult if not impossible to get a new bottle of hard shellac in Germany. There´s an importer for Europe in the Netherlands but it looks like he doesn´t have any on stock.
Does anyone know an alternative except of tru-oil from Birchwood Casey. It needs to be applied by wiping and it should be resistant to water and it must allow polishing with a buffer. Non toxic would be nice too :)
AND it need to be available in Europe :D

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Mark McLean
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Re: recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by Mark McLean » Fri Apr 30, 2021 10:20 am

Hard wax oil products designed for flooring are an option. There are gloss and satin versions. Application is very easy by rubbing, brushing or roller and they are non-toxic. Another advantage is that the finish is repairable with sanding or recoating. There are many brands and some are European, some on sale in Australia seem to come from Germany.
A possible disadvantage of hardwax oil is it doesn’t build on the surface as much as shellac or nitro or polyurethane, so it won’t produce a glassy french polish type of look. Even the gloss versions are not super glossy so it may not be a suitable option if you want that look. I like it for a hand rubbed satin finish and I have never gone for a full gloss.
I found this video helpful to explain how it differs from oil finishes or polyurethane, and it demonstrates application and results of HWO versus shellac and poly and danish oil.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=s9ggA1JvjrE

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kiwigeo
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Re: recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by kiwigeo » Fri Apr 30, 2021 7:42 pm

Martin

JurgenV
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Re: recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by JurgenV » Sat May 01, 2021 4:39 pm

Thanks Martin.
I wrote him via the contact form on his web site. Let´s see if he can help.

In the meantime I found the following web shop offering a hardener for shellac to "formulate hard shellac polish" but it´s again just in Australia and does not export because it´s flammable.

https://www.thewoodworks.com.au/shop/co ... ish-detail

It seems nobody in Europe is selling something similar

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kiwigeo
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Re: recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by kiwigeo » Sat May 01, 2021 6:43 pm

Re Robert at Shines....if you give him a call you'll get a much quicker response....and usually Robert will give you lots of useful advice while he's yakking with you :) Robert will discuss what your needs are and he can twig the mix accordingly.

JurgenV wrote:
Sat May 01, 2021 4:39 pm
Thanks Martin.
I wrote him via the contact form on his web site. Let´s see if he can help.

In the meantime I found the following web shop offering a hardener for shellac to "formulate hard shellac polish" but it´s again just in Australia and does not export because it´s flammable.

https://www.thewoodworks.com.au/shop/co ... ish-detail

It seems nobody in Europe is selling something similar
Martin

JurgenV
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Re: recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by JurgenV » Sat May 01, 2021 7:41 pm

:) you remember the part of me being from Germany? The phone call is a bit expensive if I´m not using something like Whatsapp. But otherwise you´re right it would be very valuable knowledge to aquire

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lamanoditrento
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Re: recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by lamanoditrento » Thu May 06, 2021 8:36 am

JurgenV wrote:
Sat May 01, 2021 7:41 pm
:) you remember the part of me being from Germany? The phone call is a bit expensive if I´m not using something like Whatsapp. But otherwise you´re right it would be very valuable knowledge to aquire
International calls must be different in Germany. Most telcoms here offer copious amounts of free international minutes. I had thought with the advent of sykpe etc that was the same elsewhere.
Trent

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lamanoditrento
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Re: recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by lamanoditrento » Thu May 06, 2021 8:57 am

Also, you could try Royal-lac, pretty much the same thing
Trent

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sebastiaan56
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Re: recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by sebastiaan56 » Thu May 13, 2021 7:40 pm

There are a number of recipes floating around that use additives to the shellac to achieve the same durability as Hard Shellac. Specifically additions of Mastic and Sandarac. DelCamp forum has a few recipes. They work well.
make mine fifths........

Semmens Guitars
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Re: recommendation for hard shellac alternative?

Post by Semmens Guitars » Thu May 20, 2021 5:20 pm

I have just tried Solarez recently and I like it a lot. Brush on with a foam pad, let is settle for 5 mins, spend 2 mins in the sun and then start sanding. Its not Shellac but its easy to apply and you can buff it to a high gloss.

Thin it out by placing a cup in a warm water bath and it thins out to make sure you don't put too much on a top.

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