Just realized I've been using the wrong kind of shellac for about a year

Tbh, I was finishing a walnut table and the shine kept going cloudy after a few hours, which made no sense. My wife walked in, sniffed the air, and said 'that smells like the stuff we polish the piano with', and it hit me I'd been using button polish instead of a proper dewaxed blonde. Anyone else ever grab the wrong can from the shelf for way too long?

4 comments

4 Comments

owens.ben2mo ago

Yeah I read an article about how the wax in button polish can cause that exact clouding over time. It's a super common mix-up because the cans look almost the same. Really makes you double check the label now.

simon7172mo ago

Actually the wax is in the shoe polish, not the button polish. Button polish is just shellac and alcohol, it dries clear and hard. The clouding happens when someone uses regular shoe polish with wax on buttons, the wax stays soft and traps dirt. So you're right about the mix up, but it's the other can that has the wax.

ryanh561mo ago

Oh man, that explains so much. I totally grabbed the wrong can last time I tried to fix up an old coat. Made a huge cloudy mess and couldn't figure out why. It's wild how such a small mix-up can ruin the whole finish. You guys just saved my next project from the same fate.

william_carter1mo ago

My buddy spent months restoring an antique dresser and couldn't figure out why the finish felt gummy. He kept adding more coats, thinking it just needed to cure. Turns out he was using a paste wax from a similar looking tin, not the shellac he thought was on his shelf. The whole piece had to be stripped back to bare wood. He still groans about it whenever we talk shop.