This is The Easiest Clear Coat for Wood, a beginners guide to the easiest finish you will ever apply to your woodworking projects. If you want the easy button, this is it.
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Clear Coats for Wood Projects
As the final step to any woodworking project, you need to apply a clear coat of finish that protects your project from normal wear and tear. This is a necessary step, and one that can sometimes be a little stressful.
There you are, you finally finished your woodworking project that may have been quite a bit of effort for you, and now you have one last giant hurdle to get over. It can definitely be stressful, it doesn’t have to be.
Instead of worrying about your finish, all you need to do is use the easiest clear coat for wood that has ever been created. It’s a one product application, and it will actually give you a professional look as a beginning wood finisher.
It’s also an inexpensive product, and that makes it even better.
See Also: 10 Step Guide to Wood Finishing
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The Problem With Wood Finishing
Before we go into the finish itself, the big problem with wood finishing is that there are just so many options, and the education about wood finishing is very clouded.
There are so many different opinions, and wood finishing has been enveloped in this mystique of difficulty that is really not deserved, and totally unnecessary. Finishing is just like any other thing, you just need to spend some time learning about it.
On top of that, you need to find a couple of products that go on really easily, and that make the process fun for beginners. There are actually several different finishes that are super easy to work with, and that’s a great place to start for a beginner.
See Also: 14 Easy Tips for Using Wiping Varnish
The Easiest Clear Coat to Apply
Of all the different finishes that you could possibly choose for your woodworking projects, easiest clear coat that you can apply to a piece of wood is definitely tru-oil.
This is a great little fish, because it goes on like an oil but sits on the surface like a varnish. You get all of the beauty of an oil finish with all of the protection of a varnish.
Also, the directions actually tell you to apply the product with your fingers, which means it goes on incredibly easy when you actually use a small cloth like I recommend.
You can get tru oil from a number of different places, but I recommend just buying it on Amazon and skipping all the driving. You’ll have it at your house in a couple of days, and you’ll really like working with this stuff.
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True oil makes a professional finisher out of anyone and only with a couple of small practice sessions. Literally, if you can wipe the stuff on the surface and then wipe it smooth, that’s pretty much all you’ll need to do.
See Also: How to Finish Wood with Tru-Oil
Tips for Applying Tru-Oil
Here are some tips that you can use for applying tru-oil that will make this process easier than it already is:
- Apply thin coats, almost like you are wiping all of the oil off the surface.
- Work in sections and don’t apply more oil than you can spread in the section you are working.
- A little oil goes a long way.
- This finish builds with each coat, so keep on adding layers.
- Make sure each layer is totally dry before applying the next.
- You can handle the piece typically in a few days to a couple weeks after the final coat, which is the time for a full cure.
Your Action Assignment
Now that you know all about the easiest finish for wood that you can ever use, it’s time to get out into the shop and finish some stuff.
Test your finish on scraps, and you will really like the way that they turn out. Sand some random scraps down to 220, wipe them smooth, and then apply some tru-oil and let them dry.
Check out the pieces when you’re done, and you’ll be very excited to have mastered this easy clear coat in just a couple practice sessions.
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If you have any questions on using super easy clear coats as and wood finishes, please post a question I’ll be glad to answer them. Happy building.
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