I can speak of high-end marine varnishes - which would easily be my preference if going the varnish route. I think you will find good marine varnishes more durable and harder than those sold for furniture applications. I agree with most things said below about varnish - only one coat a day. Big consideration is that each coat needs to be sanded before applying the next coat. It goes on real thin - so count on at least six coats - if not a dozen. Most any varnish I have used is expensive - around $40 per quart and you need a good $40 natural bristle brush. Good varnish should work well in almost any weather conditions - certainly out on the water I have applied varnishes during high-humidity conditions and have had good luck - although high-humidity does slow the drying process down. I would do a piano in varnish...................for maybe $5,000! Terry Farrell ----- Original Message ----- From: <bases-loaded@juno.com> To: <pianotech@ptg.org> Sent: Tuesday, January 01, 2002 8:38 AM Subject: Re: Polyurethane Finishes on pianos > > On Mon, 31 Dec 2001 19:32:09 -0500 "sid blum" <sid@sover.net> writes: > > I would be grateful for anyone's comments on varnish. > > Sid, there are so many configuations of varnish, it is impossible to > answer your query with alot of detail. However..... > > Generally speaking, the advantages of using varnish are that it is > durable and very flattering to the wood. It is low-tech, meaning a > brush or rag are used to apply it, and it is relatively inexpensive. And > there are a multitude of choices readily available at any decent > hardware/paint retailer. > > The disadvantages would include slow drying times, meaning it is > difficult to keep dust and debris out of the coats as they are drying, as > well as the time to complete the job is significantly increased when > compared to spray finishes. Also, difficulties arise in application when > there is excessive humidity, so summer jobs in my climate would be risky. > The stuff just doesn't dry well if the humidity levels are high. > Mark Potter > bases-loaded@juno.com
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