HelenAnn

This is meant to be funny- Chicken- you are almost thereit can get ugly before it gets pretty just slow down. You are doing it right.

miriam

It does take a lot of time and patience to get them to look right. Read and re-read do it step by step. I would practice on some old junk machine before I tackled something I love.

barny

I don't think Glenn says to use alcohol in shellac. After cleaning with Naptha, then denatured alcohol with oil, then use oil and Shellac, following more times with less oil with Shellac. He said he gets down to not very much at all of oil. Mostly Shellac. Just my understanding. Barny If I'm wrong someone tell me.

ArchaicArcane

That's the way I read it too.
Shellac flakes are dissolved in alcohol, so it's almost like diluting the shellac into something that's more stripper than protection.

miriam

After you have cleaned it with Naptha and put it away for the day, you use the linseed oil and denatured alcohol. After that you wet your finger with the denatured alcohol, then wet it with shellac - not very much at a time. You are just letting the old shellac merge into the new and reworking all of it to a new finish. It isn't like you are painting it on or anything - ideally, you are just re-working the old shellac that is already on the machine. Some machines have more damage than others and will require more work. If you use straight denatured alcohol you are stripping the old finish off the machine. If you put some on the rag and add shellac you are thinning the shellac and it will flow best if it has had the linseed oil on first.

miriam

You have it right.

Glenn

You are right no alcohol in shellac. After naptha use alcohol and linseed oil to prep the surface and get rid of the loose shellac. Then polish with shellac and oil. I don't know where the shellac and alcohol combination came from. It will take some time to blend the old with the new. Maybe I need to do another tutorial but I went and reread this one and it reads ok. If I need to make changes please let me know. This will get rid of most of the scratches in the finish but will not get rid of the deep ones in the japanned finish. You can get rid of the deep ones by filling them in with shellac but will take many coats with a small brush to do this and then the leveling the area with very fine wet or dry sandpaper. I don't recommend you go this far you can get yourself in trouble with this one. The goal is to make the machine pretty again. If you want the machine to look like they day it left the show room you will have to have it stripped, japanned and new decals. This could run several hundred dollars. Not to mention having the shinny bits re plated. This is something the homeowner can do with a little practice and time. So please read the instructions carefully. Feel free to ask questions if you run into problems.
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miriam

I'm thinking I said denatured alcohol and shellac - it was me - I had it wrong.

Jennigma

Holidays and obligations got in the way of me getting started with the Franklin, but I'm hoping to get back into that project when I get home from family visits.

I purchased shellac flakes, because I didn't like the solvents and additives in the pre-made mixtures I found. I was assuming I would dissolve the flakes in alcohol as instructed on the bag, and then use that mixture for the described process. Should I be dissolving them in something else instead? I might be able to get them to dissolve into the linseed oil if I heat the mixture, but I think that would be an awfully thick paste.

Glenn

You must dissolve the flakes in denatured alcohol only. They will not dissolve in linseed oil. The qt can of shellac that is sold at Lowes or Home Depot is no more dangerous than the flakes in alcohol. Please don't change the instructions because you don't like the chemicals in these products. The tech will not work if you change up the chemicals. If you a concerned about the chemicals here don't do it. Make sure you shellac flakes are the clear(shellac flakes that have been bleached clear or the finish wil be amber in color. For ease of use just get the qt can of clear and you can't go wrong. I can't help you if you don't follow the procedures as described.