what type of finish on a table top

[Kbeitz]

A torch held 6" above the epoxy will remove the air bubbles very nicely.
You need to do this within the first 20 min.

[landscraper]

I really really really wish people knew how to treat wood furniture... But it is a lost cause.  As much as I wish I could use oil finishes on most projects... I can't.  Put a traditional oil finish on your dining table and you will become the table nazi.  Everyone that comes over for dinner will get a lecture on not leaving a cold drink on the table.  Your kids and grandkids will get a lecture every day.  You will wake up in the middle of the night with cold sweats and the gnawing thought that your wife left a glass of ice water on the table...again.

Tablecloths, placemats, coasters and trivets ;D  At my grandmothers house on Sunday afternoon us kids set and cleared the table, and the credenza held all the various arcane items used to ward off water and heat rings on her dining room table.  Woe unto he who placed an iced tea glass upon the bare wood!

[rooster 58]

     A few years ago, I built a bar for friends just down the road.The sides and bar rail were poplar. The bar top had a sheet copper finish on top of mdf. After the bar rail was on, we used a pour on epoxy finish. It looks awesome ;) The sides and bottom we were able to facilitate with a brush, and the drips on the bottom edge of the inside bar top were removed with a plastic scraper and then sanded after drying. Also, we removed air bubbles with  a hand held torch as stated in another reply.
      You have to make sure you have the proper temperature for a day or so before pouring, I think we used 74 degrees. And make sure you mix the finish EXACTLY as stated in the directions with CLEAN pails and stirs ;)

[Kbeitz]

I found out that its very important to work with only about 1/2 gal at a time.
You cant work fast enough to get more than that done working by your self.

[Kbeitz]

Last coat...



 

[Randy88]

kbeitz, how many coats did you put on, and how did you go about it.   I was thinking by the way you described it, you did sections at a time and only one coat per section, please elaborate some more.     Also how thick is you overall finished layer and how thick did you put each layer on?

I'm used to standard finish's and we just keep adding layers till things look nice and smooth, sanding between layers are we go.

[tule peak timber]

Kbeitz, Pretty looking top! I'm just getting ready to do my new kitchen and your photo is inspirational. Thanks to all the responses on this thread.  Rob

[Kbeitz]

The first counter I did was one coat of varnish to seal the wood so you don't get bubbles.
Then one coat of two part epoxy. I went by the instructions on how much to use per sq feet.
The second counter had deeper groves in the tung and grove so I used two coats of varnish
hoping that it would help seal the cracks. But after putting one coat of epoxy I could see that
I had a problem. The stuff kept going into the cracks and i keep trying to keep it level.
Thats something you don't do. Whatever you have good or bad after 20 min. quit while your ahead.
I dint and messed it up. So I tried to fix my problem the next day by touching up the bad spots.
that was my second mistake. So after everything got hard I sanded everything and gave the whole
thing a second coat... Then it turned out great. I'm still learning but I'm very happy with what i did.

[Randy88]

kbeitz, thank you for the explanation on how you did it.   

We're working on several projects now, that we might try the epoxy on the backs of them, so when we screw up and make mistakes, nobody will ever see them, just to try to figure out what not to do on a larger scale project.     

[Kbeitz]

kbeitz, thank you for the explanation on how you did it.   

We're working on several projects now, that we might try the epoxy on the backs of them, so when we screw up and make mistakes, nobody will ever see them, just to try to figure out what not to do on a larger scale project.   

If your doing a larger project I would get some help spreading the epoxy.
lots of good videos on ytube.

[tule peak timber]

On this white oak table we rubbed oil, then a pigmented glaze ,this morning.  Rob

  

 

[Blackgreyhounds]

If it were me, I'd go with Waterlox Original Medium Sheen (Sealer & Finish) wiped on 3-6 coats followed by a good carnuba wax applied with super fine steel wool (000000 or finer).  This will be very pretty and very waterproof with pretty darn good durability and easy to refinish if needed.  Heck, the stuff was created to finish floors.  Or, if durability was the absolute primary concern, then I'd go with a good quality spar varnish. This will be good enough for anything a typical dining table should encounter.  Also, in general, you want to finish the top and bottom of any table the same so you do not get excessive warpage due to differential moisture transfer.  This probably is not so true with the super thick epoxies, since a single thin coat on the bottom would effectively prevent any moisture movement. (?)

[Blackgreyhounds]

[johnnyllama]

Over the last 40+ years I've used a lot of different finishes ranging from oils and shellacs to lacquers and conversion varnishes. In recent years I've started using with some sucsess both EmTech waterbased conversion varnish and ML Campbell's Aqualente products, but for table tops and bartops I have started using Campbell's 2k poly called Polarion. It is a 2 part, spray only, so you need the proper equipment but it's about as good as you'll get for a table top finish with a wide range of sheens available. It's made for commercial bartop use so it's extremely durable.
I've used pour on epoxy but personaly don't care for that "plastic" wet look. Just my preference. I have had some luck with epoxy when after a week or so of cure time, I sanded up from 400 grit through 1000 and then wetsanded and buffed to give a more satin sheen which to me looked much better, just a lot more work.
Here's some shots of a recent counter finished with Polarion, made from Sapele.

  

  

 

[beenthere]

Just ran across this, which may be of interest. Looks to be some in-depth primer on finishes.
Flawless Finishing

johnny
That finish on those projects looks great!!
The sanding you do is a key to a good finish. Any coating applied will not cover up a poor sanding job, no matter how good the coating is that is used.

[tule peak timber]

The Campbell product looks interesting. In the last couple of days I've tried several different products- no silver bullitt yet. Different epoxys, spar varnish, poly's.....Still looking. Rob