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Re: Naked pictures of my Paramour

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Thanks to the tip from Doc B. and a little head scratching, I think I've got the HV secondary and diode bridge squared away. I moved the T-15 attacment of the bleeder resistor to the lower hole and the Orange HV wire on T-14 also to the lower hole. Then there was plenty of room for the cap's prongs.
Hope this helps other Paramour builders. Pictures of the details are posted on my site:
Merry Pranks Website.

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OT: Many questions for you on cabinet finishing (long) - Steve Culton 11:52:29 08/13/02 (9)
Hey Till E.,
First, congrats on your Paramours. Impressive. That's going to be my next project. But right now, I'm in the middle of Straight 8's. I've read a lot of your posts on finishing cabinets (specifically tung oil, which I like), and I have a few questions to ask you. Hope you don't mind.
The Straight 8 cabinets will be finished in two-ply cherry veneer, with cherry quarter-rounds and a cherry rounded-over "lid" that will sit on top of the cabinets.
As much as I'd like to keep the finish the natural cherry, it's just not going to match with existing furniture and audio cabinetry in the room. (WAF) So it seems like I'll need to find a stain to match. Then tung oil over the stain.
As part of my veneering practice, I have a sheet of mdf with the veneer over it. I chose a few sample stains (all either too light of too dark), and am in the process of doing a tung oil practice run over it. So far so good! I also tried a 1-1-1 mix of tung oil, boiled linseed oil, and poly. Wasn't too psyched about that.
I read somewhere that you recommended a "wash coat of tinted shellac" over cherry. (watch out, here come the questions) How would that be applied (brush or cloth?) Would I sand first? What do you tint the shellac with, or does it come tinted? I'm wondering if this tinted shellac would serve the same as stain, or would you apply shellac AND stain? What about sanding sealer? Is it appropriate for anything I'm doing?
If I sound confused, I am. Would appreciate any feedback you could give me.
I've put a million hours into my Straight 8's, and I want them to come out perfect.
*S*
- Re: OT: A few answers on cabinet finishing (long) - Till E. 14:06:37 08/13/02 (7)
  I hope Doc doesn't mind the bandwidth, but I imagine others might want this info for their speaker cabinets. Also, this info comes from many sources over a lifetime but the best single source is a book by a well known Conservator , Jeff Jewitt, called "Hand Applied Finishes".
  All commercial staining is done in layers. Try to duplicate a finish color with a can of stain, can't be done.
  So you mix stains, add dye stain to oils and varnishes and tint with shades of shellac.
  Cherry gets "blotchy", i.e., too much stain here, not enough there as much or more than Pine. And it's more susceptible to improper sanding and scraping.
  So the first thing you do is sand up through ALL the grits, 100, 150 and 220 Garnet paper using a wooden (hard) sanding block with a thin cork padding. If the block, or the pad on your random orbital sander (not advised) is soft, you will gouge the wood, which only shows up after you apply finish!
  You sand in straight lines back and forth 2 or 3 times each pass and wipe the sanding dust from the work as you go with a soft cloth, also slap the sandpaper, actually slap it which clears it of much of the dust. That will keep larger pieces of grit from scratching where you just passed with smaller grit. Give a little extra attention to the area near where panels meet.
  After you sand with 220, wet, don't drown the piece with distilled water that doesn't have minerals to stain the work. This will raise the grain for final sanding, with 320 grit and will highlight trouble areas.
  Okay, now we discuss the oil. One uses "boiled" linseed oil here because of it's properties. That means your finish wil not be Tung oil. You can try Tung oil, it may work. Like a lot of technique that's decades old, there may be no reason why Tung won't work as well as linseed. But you should experiment. I never have.
  So you wipe on enough Linseed oil with a lint-free rag (handi-wipes)to wet but not flood the work. Let it dry 48 hours and then lightly sand with 320. Wipe off the dust with a tack rag.
  Now you need 'garnet colored' shellac flakes. You buy them at Woodcraft or Constantines or Garrett-Wade. Mix them in a 2 pound cut which is 2 lbs of shellac to a gallon of denatured alcohol. If this darkens the wood enough, use blond shellac or varnish or even polyurethane (not water-based)for a topcoat.Or put on more coats of Garnet to further darken.This process will begin with a light honey color but will quickly darken into a rich reddish tone.
  Cherry will continue to darken atmospherically for months, even years.
  If you need to reach a certain color, put a 'dye stain'(from the same sources as the shellac) on the raw wood. Mix 'honey amber' or other light gold-brown dye stain in several times the recommended amount of distilled water. Seal in this stain with a 1lb cut of shellac. Then use a 'gel'stain to finish toning the wood. Wipe on/wipe off to control the intensity.After a few days, a topcoat of garnet shellac will enhance and darken the tone.
  Experiment with both the dye stains, the gel stains and especially, putting 'Japan' colors or artists colors in the Tung oil.
  The object isn't to do this or that finish but to create the color you want. This process has evolved over centuries and I mention Jewitt's book because it condenses, not codifies the technique.
  Gel stain may be put right on the raw cherry and if handles properly, will give you the color without blotching, But it's tricky. The in=between sealer coats of shellac and/or linseed oil make things easier. You can also build colors. Honey amber then shellac then burnt umber, etc. That is how commercial furniture is stained.
  Just don't mix oil and water based products. Try not to use polyurethane, it isn't repairable and isn't needed unless you plan to serve dinner on the speakers. Shellac is highly scratch and chemical proof but susceptible to alcohol. Tung and linseed oil are tougher.
  Hope this helps.
  - Great Stuff! - Garland 18:40:13 08/13/02 (0)
    Bill,
    This ought to go into the published archives if ever they're compiled. Maybe an article in Valve!?! I want to second you advice about the power sanders. I've used them over the years in my Modelmaking profession and with all my careful experience I still find it nearly impossible to not gouge out the surface of the wood. You can't tell the damage your doing until the finish is applied! So to all the DIYers, heed this advice and use large sanding blocks. Try not to skip grits; it won't save you time. I even go down to 400 grit and on small pieces, down to 600!
    Garland
  - You are a steely-eyed missile man! (Coupla more questions) - Steve Culton 17:40:35 08/13/02 (5)
    Many thaks for your detailed response.
    I'm definitely going to experiment before I slay the cabinet dragon.
    Questions: What exactly is a tack rag? I've been using a simple lint-free rag to wipe down b/w sanding coats.
    Using the method where I apply the garnet shellac, how long would I let it dry before applying another coat?
    If I do the dye stain method, when I do the second step (that is, sealing the stain with a 1lb cut of shellac) would I still use the garnet colored flakes? Or the dye stain?
    Thanks for bearing with me. Much to experiment with!
    The more I learn, the less I know. ;-)
    - Tweaking isn't just for electronics..... - Till E. 18:18:57 08/13/02 (4)
      I've got a recipe for making tack rags somewhere but they're about 79 centavos at paint stores so why bother. It's just a rag made sticky with varnish and driers to pick up dust.
      Dry times vary with heat and humidity. I'd go 24 hours in the summer. Shellac, among it's many virtues is very quick drying.
      Ouch, that reminds me. You can't brush on shellac the way you're used to. It dries so fast is will actually stick to your brush if you go back over it, although less so with a 1 lb or even 2 lbn cut.Just let it run off the brush onto the work, it will flow out. The real method is "padding" which involves soaking a handi-wipe in shellac, rolling it into a ball, putting the ball inside a "pouch" you make out of another handi-wipe, putting a few drops of mimeral oil on the wipe and then rubbing what comes through the rag onto the work in a circular motion. You should feel slight friction as you go. Too much friction, add some oil. Too easy, the ball is too wet.
      If you get good at that, and you will, you have mastered the centuries old technique called "French Polishing".
      Dye stain then shellac, then either dye stain OR more shellac. The garnet shellac darkens and makes the color more amber. If you need a color change, then a different dye stain, but always shellac after. You'll note that the shellac coat after dye is more dilute; 1 lb to 1 gallon than the color coat which is 2 lbs to 1 gallon. Finish coates can run as heavy as 5lbs to a gallon! You just want to seal in the stain, not add too much shellac color. For that matter, shellac runs the gamut from "water white", then blonde, then, I think, button to garnet and then there's a really dark one. It has to do with purity and how many times they filter the carapace of the bug, the Lac Bug.Garrett Wade has a table in their catalog. So you could use lighter as well as thinner shellac. Whew!
      Try artists colors from the craft store diluted in mineral spirits just to see what happens when you put green over(already sealed) brown to make, yes it's true, a warm orange.
      When you wrote 2 ply veneer you meant NBS or at least paper backed, right? And I assume you mean to use contact cement? I ask because the cleaner for the cement, lacquer thinner is a solvent for the finish so be careful. And also be careful sanding edges of the veneer so you don't go through!
      And as I always recommend: go to Borders, spend 3 dollars on some coffee and read the wonderful woodworking books published by Taunton Press.
      Merry Pranks Website.
      - Got my work cut out for me - Steve Culton 06:55:41 08/14/02 (3)
        
        In Reply to: Tweaking isn't just for electronics..... posted by Till E. on August 13, 2002 at 18:18:57:
        
        Thanks for the clarification on tack rags.
        When you say a Handi Wipe, is that a brand name? Where I come from, a handy wipe is a very thin wipe coated in soap and fragrance that they give you at BBQ joints to get the smell and sauce of your hands. I take it that's NOT what you mean...
        The veneer is two ply NBS cherry, and I has already been applied using DAP Weldwood (solvent based) contact cement. I take it you mean to go lightly on applying the shellac?
        Never veneered before, but they came out great. I just need to attach the top cherry plate and 1/4 rounds.
        I'll let you know how things go, as they go.
        And again, I cannot thank you enough for sharing your time and expertise.
        Steve
        
        Handi-Wipes Rule!......the grocery store - Till E. 10:02:44 08/14/02 (2)
        
        In Reply to: Got my work cut out for me posted by Steve Culton on August 14, 2002 at 06:55:41:
        
        I know real men don't buy tools at the grocery store, but, Handi-
        wipes, by First Brands Inc., those blue or pink and white striped paper towels are the bomb for applying finishes and waxing.
        Absolutely lint free!
        
        Is an all cork sanding block OK? - Steve Culton 11:40:10 08/14/02 (1)
        
        In Reply to: Handi-Wipes Rule!......the grocery store posted by Till E. on August 14, 2002 at 10:02:44:
        
        That's all they had at Woodcraft (had felt, too)...and I'd say it was on the small side (4"x2"x1"?). Is that cool or do I need something bigger? I have a Norton rubber sanding block that I think is 5 or 6" wide.
        Thnaks in advance.
        
        Re: Is an all cork sanding block OK? - Till E. 12:59:58 08/14/02 (0)
        
        In Reply to: Is an all cork sanding block OK? posted by Steve Culton on August 14, 2002 at 11:40:10:
        
        All cork better than the others. Nix the rubber. Must be Hard! Try talking dirty to it.
        4X2X1 is fine if you must buy something off the shelf:-)
        Real DIY'ers take a 4" long piece of 2x4, chamfer (angle) what will become the top sides to make it more comfortable to hold, and glue an 1/8" thick piece of cork to the bottom. Get the cork at the artsy-craftsy store, along with Japan colors, artists colors, gilding, cool spray paint you won't see at Home Depot, latches, catches and artsy-craftsy females that might understand a guy who shops there.
        The 4X2X1 size almost exactly fits the 9X11 sandpapers. You fold the sheet in half, good side to good side like closing a book, make a tight crease and then tear it on the edge of your bench. It will tear clean. Now do the same for the halves and you will have 4 pieces that fit right around the block so you can get a grip on them.
- P.S. - Steve Culton 11:54:01 08/13/02 (0)
  FYI, for my tung oil application practice, I've been using your recipe found on "The last word on tung oil"

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