Removing paste wax and adding more shellac?
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- This topic has 4 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 4 years, 9 months ago by David Gill.
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28 May 2019 at 5:05 pm #576011
Is it possible to remove paste wax applied to a surface finished with shellac, and then applying more coats of shellac to finish the surface some more?
If yes, then:
- How do I remove the paste wax? With mineral spirits?
- Can I then just sand down the shellac lightly followed by applying another coat?
17 July 2019 at 11:38 am #590717Hi
I have the same question, where I can I have used a scraper to get back to the wood. I am going to buy a bottle of Methylated spirit to see if that can remove the wax and Shellac finish.17 July 2019 at 1:42 pm #590747I had to do a similar thing a while back on a piece with 3 coats of shellac followed by paste wax.
I used white spirit (mineral spirits in the USA I think) to soften the wax and then keep wiping with clean rags / paper towels and more white spirit until all the wax is removed.
The white spirit will not affect the shellac.
Bill
17 July 2019 at 4:18 pm #590804In the end I followed Bill’s approach and it worked well. I did not want to remove the shellac, just the paste wax so that I could apply additional coats. So I used mineral spirits to wipe off the paste wax, I sanded using 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper until I cut through the upper most layer of the shellac and then reapplied more shellac.
If you want to remove all shellac – which I also did on another time, I found that the best way was with a scraper card followed by sanding with 150 grit dry sandpaper once you reach the bare wood. I would not use methylated spirits as it would just create a gooey mess.
17 July 2019 at 5:35 pm #590837I tried using the Methylated spirit which did not appear to have any effect I assume that I must have already removed the wax and if there was any Shellac left the Methylated spirit was not effecting it I thought that the Methylated spirit should have disolved the Shellac as that is what is used to make Shellac from flakes
David
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