1 minute ago, Stick486 said:

It's reverse engineered Formby's...

Most of the manufacturers, unfortunately, have eliminated the MC from their formulas. The Formby's used to be a really good system. Now the reviews are not so great because of the formula changes.

 

MC is one of my favorites to use, it is just so hard to get your hands on it in today's world for the non-professional that doesn't have a reliable source.

23 minutes ago, schnewj said:

MC is one of my favorites to use, it is just so hard to get your hands on it in today's world for the non-professional that doesn't have a reliable source.

this is all I have on plan ''B''...

Effective Alternatives to - for MEC.pdf

 

this was plan ''A''...

 

 

Disclaimer: I have never used this on wood.  It will take paint off auto body...

 

http://www.kleanstrip.com/product/aircraft-paint-remover

 

The SDS says it is 60-100% MC

 

http://www.kleanstrip.com/uploads/documents/GAR343_SDS-3404.18.pdf

 

It is some serious stuff, but still available over the counter.

Shopping for "furniture strippers", I have narrowed down my research to two products.  My local

favorite paint store sells "Jasco", which I understand has some MC.  The alternative is "Formby's

Refinisher", which I see gets some good reviews.  Anyone use either of these two products ?

Thanks

On 4/8/2019 at 12:09 AM, Stick486 said:

@kmealy ...

can you help???

When I was doing refinishing of doors and cabinets I got the PC detail sander -- absolute piece of junk and reading reviews I was not the only one.    I ended up buying a Fein $ and it worked slightly better but still not super satisfactory.  

 

My recommendation:

- Use a stripper, don't try to "sand off the old finish"

- Get a detail scraper

- Buy some detail sanders, commonly called "tadpoles"

- Hand sand edges

On 4/15/2019 at 2:57 PM, dmypub said:

Shopping for "furniture strippers", I have narrowed down my research to two products.  My local

favorite paint store sells "Jasco", which I understand has some MC.  The alternative is "Formby's

Refinisher", which I see gets some good reviews.  Anyone use either of these two products ?

Thanks

Last I looked, Formby's was just a variant of Lacquer Thinner.    You want a paste that you can brush on and let it work instead of having to scrub.

Lowes and Sherwin-Williams have caved and no longer sell MC strippers. https://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/alternative-paint-strippers/   Most of this happened because of a few rare cases of people using MC in a bathtub - poor ventilation and heavier than air vapors collecting in the tub with their heads in it.

On 4/13/2019 at 8:25 PM, dmypub said:

Been out on medical leave the last several days, but I'm finally back on this.   Thank you for your responses.

 

So my house was built 35 years ago and I have no idea if my cabinet doors have been replaced sometime. The

existing doors (look like red oak) have a "golden oak" finish.   It took me one hour to sand the finished door -

hoping I can cut this time down somehow. I have 30 doors to refinish. I put "WATCO Danish Oil" stain on the

door I finished. I'm not worrying bout being super perfectionist - I'll be happy with a rustic look.  Here's a side

by side picture of a finished and an existing door.  Will lacquer and synthetic steel wool speed up my process still ?

Otherwise I just throw the rotary sander on the door and take off the flat areas.  The struggle is with the irregular

surfaces.  Thanks !

Danish oil has minimal moisture resistance.   You need a film-forming top coat, preferably one with a KCMA rating : 

 

4 Finish Tests

These tests create, in accelerated form, the cumulative effects of years of normal kitchen conditions of pre-finished cabinets. Cabinet finishes are inspected to ensure that stringent standards of appearance are also met.

1. To test the ability of the finish to withstand high heat, a cabinet door is placed in a hotbox at 120 degrees Fahrenheit and 70 percent relative humidity for 24 hours. After this test the finish must show no appreciable discoloration and no evidence of blistering, checks or other film failures.
2. To test the ability of the finish to withstand hot and cold cycles for prolonged periods, a cabinet door is placed in a hotbox at 120 degrees Fahrenheit and 70 percent relative humidity for one hour, removed and allowed to return to room temperature and humidity conditions, and then placed in a coldbox for one hour at -5 degrees Fahrenheit. The cycle is repeated five times. The finish must then show no appreciable discoloration and no evidence of blistering, cold checking or other film failure.
3. To test the ability of the finish to withstand substances typically found in the kitchen and bath, exterior exposed surfaces of doors, front frames, drawer fronts and end panels are subjected to vinegar, lemon, orange and grape juices, tomato catsup, coffee, olive oil and 100-proof alcohol for 24 hours and to mustard for one hour. After this test, the finish must show no appreciable discoloration, stain or whitening that will not disperse with ordinary polishing and no indication of blistering, checks or other film failure.
4. To test the ability of the finish to withstand long periods of exposure to a detergent and water solution, a cabinet door edge is subjected to exposure to a standardized detergent formula for 24 hours. The door edge must then show no delamination or swelling and no appreciable discoloration or evidence of blistering, checking, whitening, or other film failure.

Edited May 15, 20197 yr by kmealy

On 4/13/2019 at 8:25 PM, dmypub said:

Been out on medical leave the last several days, but I'm finally back on this.   Thank you for your responses.

 

So my house was built 35 years ago and I have no idea if my cabinet doors have been replaced sometime. The

existing doors (look like red oak) have a "golden oak" finish.   It took me one hour to sand the finished door -

hoping I can cut this time down somehow. I have 30 doors to refinish. I put "WATCO Danish Oil" stain on the

door I finished. I'm not worrying bout being super perfectionist - I'll be happy with a rustic look.  Here's a side

by side picture of a finished and an existing door.  Will lacquer and synthetic steel wool speed up my process still ?

Otherwise I just throw the rotary sander on the door and take off the flat areas.  The struggle is with the irregular

surfaces.  Thanks !

Danish oil has minimal moisture resistance.   You need a film-forming top coat, preferably one with a KCMA rating : 

+1 for the Sandvic scraper. I

A piece of foam rubbed on the profile to get the reverse shape for the sand paper will work.

Or you could get some assistance sanding with this kit.

https://www.rockler.com/rockler-contour-sanding-grips-2

 

Or this one:

 

https://www.rockler.com/rockler-angled-contour-sanding-grips

 

 

The best I could come up with was Formby's.  I put a coat on, let it dry, added another coat,

then came back the next day with my rotary sander.  This worked for me.   I never found any

detail sanders I liked.  I didn't want to spend my entire summer detail sanding my cabinet

doors so I lowered my expectations - I don't care if the cabinets aren't perfectly polished.

Also, the stain I chose was pretty forgiving - areas where I didn't completely sand the

existing finish off just came out looking a bit darker, but I decided I don't care as long as

the area was pretty small.