Fresh-mixed shellac is an excellent film finish, and we go through a lot of it in our shop. Here is how I mix it up for general use as a furniture finish (i.e. not as a barrier for urine, smoke or sap).
- We use Tiger Flakes from Tools for Working Wood. There are lots of good shellac suppliers out there. But once I settled on Tiger Flakes, I stuck with Tiger Flakes. I like consistency and predictability with my finishes.
- I use pure-grain alcohol: Everclear from the liquor store. Hardware store alcohols (which have water, methanol and/or other chemicals) don’t dissolve shellac as well. And they can be poisonous. If you can’t buy Everclear, I recommend you visit Kentucky! (Other woodworkers I know buy ethanol through medical supply catalogs and report that it’s not too much of a pain.)
- I mix up shellac in a “one-pound cut” or even a little weaker. That is one pound of shellac per 1 gallon of Everclear. There’s a handy chart here that helps you through the math for smaller portions. While many prefer a “two-pound cut,” I prefer to apply more thin coats than a few thick coats. You can, of course, easily thin down a thick shellac.
- I use a magnetic stirring gizmo. This $30 gadget allows me to pour the ingredients in a plastic beaker, drop in a magnetic stirbar and walk away. In about an hour it mixes the shellac completely. Some people prefer to pulverize their shellac with a grinder used for coffee beans. That works, too. I prefer the magnetic stirrer because I can pour an entire pound of shellac into an entire gallon of alcohol and walk away. No pulverizing small batches of shellac. But that’s just personal preference.
- Then I filter the shellac through a paint filter or cheesecloth. Amazingly, the Tiger Flakes never contain any bug parts, so there’s nothing really to filter out. But I do it anyway just to be sure.
- Then I label and date each glass jar of shellac. We use it so quickly, however, I’ve never had any expire.
— Christopher Schwarz
For a little more money you can buy a heated magnetic stirrer. This is handy when working with hide glue.
Chemist here. If you get a magnetic stirrer that heats as well as stirs, you should be a little bit cautious when you first start using it. Some of the heater/stir plates can get very HOT. Hot enough to melt plastic or go way past the flash point of solvents like ethanol (Everclear/drinking alcohol) or isopropanol/ rubbing alcohol. You don’t want to start a solvent fire because the stir plate temp went up to 400 degrees C the first time you used it.
Agree. That’s why mine is not heated.
I’m curious about Shellac in relation to https://blog.lostartpress.com/2020/01/23/our-shop-finish-recipe and if you have a preference for one over the other? Or when and why you would choose to use one over the other?
There are lots of factors, including what the customer wants. If the work is historical (this shellac is for some Campaign furniture) then the choice is pretty clear. Shellac is the most common historical film finish.
Some customers want more gloss (so we recommend shellac). Some want a more matte finish (so we recommend oil/varnish or oil/wax). Some want lower maintenance (shellac). Other prefer something completely flat (soap). Others have special requirements that require lacquer or something more exotic.
If you are working only for yourself, I’d pick a finish and get good at that one. Then maybe pick a second finish and practice with that. That’s the path to consistent and predictable results.
That’s the path to most things, in my experience, whether it’s finishing, sharpening, cutting dovetails, etc. Pick a simple system known to work, practice and practice, and practise. Experiment only after getting really good at it — but by that time, you likely won’t see the appeal of experimenting.
Thank you for this, now that you have the mix, any preferences on how you apply the finish?
We either pad it on or spray it.
Chrtis: after my bone marrow transplant, I have made a great effort to eliminate high VOC solvents from the shop. As you mentioned, DNA is a poison because of the methanol in it. Everclear is also a poison but is a socially acceptable one. These alcohols were easily metabolized to aldehydes which are very reactive to proteins and nucleic acids. I use 99% isopropanol. This has one more carbon than ethanol, so evaporates just a bit more slowly. It is sold in pharmacies and grocery stores (I get it from bulkapothecary.com) and is generally regarded as safe (GRAS)–note the use on babies butts! The advantage of isopropanol is that the solubility of shellac in it is no different at the levels we use (0.5 to 2 lb cut), and because of the lower volatility, the flow out of brush marks is very improved. A friend in Arizona emailed me yesterday saying that he is still able to shellac, though only in the am!
Thanks Bill – good to know!
I’ve never heard of tiger flakes. Is this a marketing term for orange shellac? I also never heard of everclear, why have you stopped using denatured alcohol? Is this a recent change?
I stopped using denatured alcohol when we found that Everclear worked better at dissolving the flakes.
Wow, I too have been having issues with the flakes not fully dissolving. So now I know it is definitely the alcohol. I had my suspicions but I wasn’t sure. I’ll see if it is possible to get everclear in Australia. Thanks for your reply and post. Very helpful indeed.
Salko, pure grain alcohols aren’t available here in Australia. You can, however, find isopropanol at commercial cleaners’ suppliers.
The other issue is that all of the solvents are hydroscopic – they will absorb water, particularly in humid conditions, and to such a degree it affects both the dissolving of your flakes, and the durability of the finish. Don’t leave your solvent containers less than full – as you use it, decant into smaller airtight containers. Or use it all up quickly like the folk at LAP.
I switched to grain alcohol a while ago, but more because I didn’t want poisons leeching into my skin from the DNA. I heard that luthier preferref it too and figured they’d know best.
A stirrer was a great investment, it sure beat walking around the house shaking a Mason jar all day :p
I’ve never filtered my mixes though, I’m going to have to give that a try.
What proof is the Everclear in Kentucky? Here in California there’s something called Everclear that’s 151 proof. That seems low to me since there’s 24.5% of stuff that isn’t alcohol in there.
190 proof is the “standard” Everclear Grain Alcohol. Different states have laws around the maximum proof that is available to purchase.
On Mary May’s twitch channel she recently invited wood finisher Michael Mascelli who talked about how he works with a variety of finishes. Much of this lecture involved shellac and shellac tinting. I found it very informative:
https://www.twitch.tv/marymaywoodcarver/clip/DistinctGorgeousGullMoreCowbell
I certainly don’t use enough shellac to justify it, but I think I NEED one of those mixers now. I loved those things in chemistry class, I’ve always thought one would be useful in the kitchen, though I have no specific use case as of yet.
The magnetic stirrer is really interesting. I have been using the BTC “non-Tiger Flakes” shellac, which for a hobbyist seems quite good, too. In MI we can’t get the 190 proof Everclear, so I’ve tried the Kleen Strip, Kleen Strip Green, and Behlens DNA since those are what are readily available. The Behlens costs more but does seem to dissolve a little better… though there are of course other factors, no way is this a careful test.
What I have found with this usage is it takes a good 24 hours of sitting there to dissolve nicely… unless I want to stir vigorously for quite a while. I bet a magnetic stirrer would be awesome for that.
I can’t get “real” Everclear in NC. Good thing I bought some when I was in KY. I use the Everclear for shellac, and Kleen Strip Green DNA for general use. I’ll look into the isopropanol, like Bill suggested earlier.
I have always used the pre-mixed shellac and had good luck with it. My question is: is making it yourself that much better? I have thought that the store bought stuff was fine. Am I missing something here ?
With store bought premixed shellac you don’t know how long it’s been sitting on the shelves for, and since shellac has a 6 months use by date it’s a good idea to mix your own batch by how much you will need. Doing it this way you will always have fresh shellac .
Since I bought the mixer that Chris advised the dissolve problem has gone.
If your state or locality doesn’t have Everclear or other pure grain alcohols in liquor stores, or only permits it at an insufficient proof, you can often order culinary grade alcohol online. I did this recently for a shellac i knew was going to come into contact with food (well, spices), and it worked amazingly well. I used a brand of 200 proof alcohol called Culinary Solvent and can recommend it.
You will pay more than DNA because by US law it has to be taxed as consumable even though it’s still illegal to consume, but worth it for me to know there’s nothing harmful whatsoever. It’s possible they still won’t be allowed to ship to your state, or will require you to get a permit to do so, since we have crazy alcohol laws in this country, but worth a look.
Gives a new meaning to ” I’m throwing a few things in the blender so I can get shellaced”.
Assuming isopropanol is the same as isopropyl alcohol, the purest I’ve found in the grocery or drug stores (in NC anyways) is 91%. And it is quite scarce now with covid near me. I haven’t ventured to a liquor store in years, so not sure of the availability of pure grain everclear due to covid, but I suspect a similar availability issue. I know that many hand sanitizers at public places use pure ethanol – which I believe to be the same as everclear.
Moonshine shellac finish may be my next course of action. If I can find corn and yeast.
I get the isopropyl alcohol (isopropanol) from a website called bulkapothecary.com. The iPrOH in stores is generally 70% (antibacterial concentration). The stuff I get is 99%, but only until you open the bottle. Then it pulls in moisture. It may go down to 95% (as does ethanol). I buy it in pint containers, opened as needed. The cost is very cheap as there is no use tax, etc.
What do you considered as expired shellac? In my limited searches this morning I’ve seen times from 6 months to 1 year.
If it won’t dry quickly and provide a hard coat, it’s expired. So I do a quick test if there’s something unlabeled or questionable.
We have had shellac last longer than six months when it was stored in a cool, dark place and well-sealed from the atmosphere. Truthfully, it gets used up so quickly here I haven’t messed with anything much older. Sorry.
From my experience, flakes I mix seem to get wonky at six months. Cans of Zinsser amber and clear have expiration dates which seem accurate. Some stuff on shelves has already expired. But the expiration is not written clearly, but in code. Easy to read If you go online to see how the code is written. I haven’t used those types for a long time, and have forgotten.
I do use a lot of Zinsser Sealcoat. It’s a 2 lb cut of dewaxed shellac, and they’ve processed it somehow that it greatly extends the shelf life. They don’t put an expiry code on it. I used a long forgotten can last year (after testing it as Chris said), and it was fine after 2 years.
Shellac is also great for playing with Lockwood Alcohol Soluble Dyes also available from TFWW here: https://toolsforworkingwood.com/store/dept/CLWA
It’s like using stains, except you can layer the colors and they blend into each other with each successive coat. You can mix it up and apply with a brush, spray or french polish (which is what I like to do). You can mix multiple colors at once or layer it one at a time. For general furniture work, I would recommend starting with a Yellow, a Red and a Brown. They also have other fun colors like Blues, Greens. The black is nice for ebonizing parts. Remember, a little goes a LOOOONG way. One thing I really like is how layering the colors creates an almost holographic effect where you see different colors from different angles.
Here’s a link to 2 projects I used them on.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1EBhmJIuxI7JQpV7QA88gBCv5BMLPu5QM?usp=sharing
My first project was on some common pine boards that I antiqued (first time using lockwood dyes, french polishing, and antiquing). The other project was a step stool made from home center cabinet grade maple veneer plywood using some blues and reds.
Bottom line, this is so much easier and way more fun and looks so much better than traditional oil based stains.
Shellac has been my go to finish now for a few years. I love the look that garnet shellac makes on cherry. Given how dark a two pound cut is, you’d expect it to be much darker that it is. For me, it is an easy way to get the desired color on cherry without having to stain or dye the wood.
Besides easier mixing, are there any other benefits to using PGA over DNA?
……..(Though, I suppose having good DNA sure helps being in the PGA)
I pulverize well using an old coffee grinder, and pour the powder into whatever alcohol I have in a strong-shoulder graduated glass Mason jar. Screw on the lid, shake well, and park in a sunny place. Inside of 20 minutes I have warm totally liquified shellac. Warm shellac penetrates and dries like you wouldn’t believe.
I bought a bulk bunch of different tints years ago, and used a vaccuum bag sealer to divide up the flakes and store them dry and out of light. Twenty years on I still have perfect flakes whenever I open a bag. As long as you keep the lid tight on the Mason jar and out of sunlight there seems to be no use-by date on already mixed. I always solar warm my Mason bottle before applying, padded warm shellac dries instantly.
No one has mentioned Belkhol (sp.?) which Behlen made but they went out of busiiness. I understand Mohawk took it over and sells the same stuff as shellac solvent. Anyone ever use it?
Chris I want to thank you for the link to the mixer. I no longer have issues with the shellac not fully dissolving. Thanks to the mixer within a couple of hours like you said the flakes fully dissolve. Money well spent for a change.
Has any one tired using a magnetic stirrer to mix powdered milk paint?
I’m wondering if it puts too much air in the mixture.