Deft has never been top of the pile. Check out Mohawk and their offerings.

 

Another option might be the Watco line....if you have a Menard's nearby they carry it (or at least they used to, I haven't bought any in quite a while).

 

My neighbor next door is also a Kenny we say it,s a ken thing,in this case choosing and using a finish no longer made,I will search advise given thanks

 

Kenny - Do you by chance have a can of the finish that you can take a photo of for reference of which item you are talking about?

I will edit the topic of your thread to give you better exposure. I'm sure there are others (who have not responded) who would like to know the options as well. I know I do.
I started using Deft Brushing Lacquer and other Deft finishes back in the early '80s. Lots have changed since then (thanks to the EPA).

 

I'm finishing up my sixth gallon of Watco Lacquer in Satin. Been working on replacing my interior doors, casing and baseboards. Also built-in about 15' of floor to ceiling bookcases with full backs... All wood stained and coated with two heavy coats of lacquer. All work has been done flat (horizontal), applied with a brush or 4" microfiber roller. Flows out very smooth...

Met my needs. 🤷‍♂️

 

John I am ashamed to say I do not know to post pictures If I did I would give my tutorial of my woodmaster sander.I don't mind trying to take care of the earth but it seems common sense has been lost both public and government.Can Watco finish be sprayed?

 

I spray it, works fine. Lacquer can be thinned as needed to be sprayed. For the pictures, if you click on the button down elow that's called "attached image" it opens a box, then you drag and drop you image into that box.

 

When I started woodworking in the late 1970s, Deft was the finish we used. Until today, I did not realize that Deft sold multiple kinds of finishes back then. I just knew it as "Deft". Now I wonder which type we were using. My roommate (and woodworking mentor) bought it.

 

I've seen Deft brushing lacquer on the shelf at the local Lowe's recently, in gallon and other size cans. In fact, I have a gallon can in the garage. Mostly used up. It can be sprayed if thinned properly. It's almost solely the way I apply it, to get a flat surface. I always get runs and such using a brush.

 

Modified my earlier comment, by flat I meant horizontal. I do get runs when brushing vertical surfaces too..

 

Kenny - check your profile for "Conversations". I sent you a PM that may help.

 

Take a look at all my stuff I have shown here on Lumberjocks for the past few years and you will see what Rustoleum 2 X looks like as a finish. I get mine at walmart for it is right around the corner.
The clear comes in Gloss, semigloss, satin, matte and ultra matte.

satin,
I think I used satin over these water base colors. This was back a few years so I can't remember if I used kids water colors or water base paints in the 2 oz bottles from Hobby Lobby, either one gives about the same results. My air brush sprayed on the colors.
An advantage over clear Lacquer is the smell is not as bad. It dries maybe quicker and I can recoat quicker and I have used Lacquer since 1954 right after my high school let me go. Use to when using clear lacquer and had applied a water base color I wanted until the next day to apply the lacquer because the finish would turn into a
milky clear crap that would to waste a few hours to remedy of catching moisture under to lacquer.. Now I wait just an hour or so to coat the water base paint.
Jess Littlefield
halfacre

 

"Deft Clearwood Lacquer" product is still listed as available by my distributor. I.E. your supply issue might not be what you think?
More information is needed to provide help: Where are you located?

Many large cities/counties have been forced by EPA VOC regulations to limit/stop retail sale of lacquer in large containers. Here is AZ, can only buy quarts of "high VOC" solvent based finishes in many box stores. But I can visit an adjacent county to buy gallon sizes, or visit an industrial/commercial distributor and buy all kinds of non-exempt solvent finishes. Another EPA rule example: In California; you can not find any finishes at retail unless they contain exempt solvents (mainly acetone, alcohol).

Regarding alternatives:
Watco lacquer has aleady been mentioned.
Sherwin Williams Hi-Bld lacquer is similar nitrocellulose lacquer, and is easy to find.
Lenamr DuraLaq is similar nitrocellulose lacquer. BM sold Lenmar to Gemini Coatings, and it has become harder to find.
Mohwak offers nitro lacquer as well.

Personally I prefer using Acrylic Lacquer or pre-cat Acrylic Lacquer instead of nitro, as it yellows less over time. The same folks above have these acrylic lacquer products as well.

PS - I only spray lacquer finishes.

As with all finish suggestions, YMMV

 

"Deft Clearwood Lacquer" product is still listed as available by my distributor. I.E. your supply issue might not be what you think?
More information is needed to provide help: Where are you located?

Many large cities/counties have been forced by EPA VOC regulations to limit/stop retail sale of lacquer in large containers. Here is AZ, can only buy quarts of "high VOC" solvent based finishes in many box stores. But I can visit an adjacent county to buy gallon sizes, or visit an industrial/commercial distributor and buy all kinds of non-exempt solvent finishes. Another EPA rule example: In California; you can not find any finishes at retail unless they contain exempt solvents (mainly acetone, alcohol).

Regarding alternatives:
Watco lacquer has aleady been mentioned.
Sherwin Williams Hi-Bld lacquer is similar nitrocellulose lacquer, and is easy to find.
Lenamr DuraLaq is similar nitrocellulose lacquer. BM sold Lenmar to Gemini Coatings, and it has become harder to find.
Mohwak offers nitro lacquer as well.

Personally I prefer using Acrylic Lacquer or pre-cat Acrylic Lacquer instead of nitro, as it yellows less over time. The same folks above have these acrylic lacquer products as well.

PS - I only spray lacquer finishes.

As with all finish suggestions, YMMV

My local paint supply had two cabinets they had stained and clear coated. The first was with lacquer - said the neighbors strongly complained about the smell. The second was with a poly-acrylic, water based poly. Could not tell a difference between the two. The new finishes are really good. My reason for using lacquer is because that's what I'd used 40 yrs ago when working as a painter on new custom homes. Purely an emotional decision.

Though the fact that lacquer works well in freezing temperatures did keep my projects moving through the winter...

 

I live in a rural area in mi. no industrial suppliers nearby,is there a online source I could buy from

 

Buy what specifically? Amazon will ship you Watco Lacquer. 🤷‍♂️

 

Automotive stores , qt of clear coat is the best you can do. I used deft fo 30 years . Last 10 using clear coat . Did the epoxy resin thing back in 80-90’s as well .
On live edge CALIFORNIA Buckeye tables use to get spider cracks after couple years of use. And could tell where drink were set. Now with the clear coat automotive no more.

 

There are so many better options out there. From chemcraft, mlcampbell, to becker acroma and many more. Go to some paint stores and talk to them about pre and post catalyzed finishes

 

Anytime you have a burl dimple live edge , resending is almost impossible, so laquer is a godsend. Scuff the flat , spay the one part clear coat and it will melt into the rough spots you could not sand, looks absolutely like glass and cold sweating glasses set on does not affect finish over time like I did find with my deft over the years. It is fairly economical , think about $17 qt, , @ O’rilleys

 

I live in a rural area in mi. no industrial suppliers nearby

Did even try to find any OEM listed? 🤔
Anytime someone uses the "Am too rural" excuse in USA, it is rarely true.

Lived and worked in Michigan just over a decade ago; hard for me to believe any "rural" area in Michigan does not have industrial finishing suppliers nearby.
The central rural zone along SR27 are less than 1 hour from a commercial finish distributor on cities on east/west or north coasts of lower Michigan. Even if you are located in wilderness of UP, there are finish suppliers within 90 minutes, which is same travel time you spend to buy other supplies for your home.

If you expand your allowable finish type beyond nitro lacquer, there are thousands of sources available .

Automotive stores , qt of clear coat is the best you can do.

+1 Automotive clear coat can be used on wood.
Rural is very poor excuse with automotive finishes as well. Automotive refinishing suppliers are found in most every major town that sells vehicles.
There are many OEM selling old school automotive acrylic lacquer. Many Autozone, O'Rielly, and WALMART stores carry Duplic-color acrylic lacquer clear coat for auto restoration work.

The newer 2K urethane are almost bullet proof, and can used on wood; providing film is only 1-2 coats thick. Have used FinishOne, UPol, and SpeedKote automotive 2K urethane on wooden truck beds and running boards with no issues after a decade of use. If insist to buy online: try autobodytoolmart.com for auto clear coats. They carry Duplicolor and Upol.

Note that shipping flammable solvent based finishes is expensive. There are some retail exemptions for quart size containers, but not gallons. Hazmat packaging and fees can add $20-30 to each shipment. This is why water based finishes are easier to find online. If decide to use WB wood finish, I suggest Renner. Can search forum for more information on Renner if interested.

Best luck.

 

Use General Finishes "Arm R Seal ". It's a polyurethane mix with oil. The only thing wrong with it is that once you use it... you won't want to use anything else. 🙂

 

General Finishes Arm-R-Seal is not "clear". It "ambers" your wood like any drying oil finish. The OP is asking about Deft Clear Wood Finish.

The rest of this post is about Arm-R-Seal, which is not applicable to the OP's request.

Arm-R-Seal is very popular among my woodworking friends and others around here. It combines an ambering oil finish with urethane. I noticed that it is urethane, not polyurethane, but do not know if that makes a difference.

For us in California, Arm-R-Seal disappeared from shelves in most woodworking stores at the same time other solvents were banned. One independent local store still sells it. I asked, and the loophole is that it is banned for structural use where you cannot remove the object from the house structure - built-in cabinets, doorways, etc. You can still purchase and use Arm-R-Seal for moveable items like furniture or items you hang on the wall with a nail or screw. So they can legally sell it, and they do. (If you live in So Cal, you can buy it at Austin Hardwoods in old Santa Ana. Even if you are not looking for Arm-R-Seal, it is worth your time to visit there anyway.)

We used Arm-R-Seal once on a hanging wall shelf project. We brushed it on, 2 coats gloss, 1 coat satin. With practice and improved "wipe-on finishing" skills, we could do better, but it turned out okay. It takes a long time to apply, because you must wait between coats. After the final coat, it takes 30 days for a full cure. I learned that "light use" is okay after 7 days. It was somewhere on their website.

 

I find its clear for the most part. It's truly a wiping varnish. Ambering depends on the wood. I wipe on. First coat I let it sit for 10 minutes. And wipe off. It dries about 30 - 60 minutes between coats. It's pretty much dry in a few days but true it's fully cured in a month. Refine link: Arm-R-Seal Urethane Topcoat | General Finishes
[/QUOTE]

Over time it will continue to turn darker (the wood may do so as well) as a result of the oil that's in the formula. It's not just the oil mixed in with the varnish, but also the oil used when the base varnish was cooked.

 

I have been occupied helping a neighbor,back now.From this point on I will be using some type of lacquer I had terrible spraying results with polyurethane.There is a painters supply about an hour away checked there web sight and they have a wood finish side .cabinetmaker007, I will check out products you reccommend.It is one thing making something with wood but then the finishing world.Everyday is a goodday some better than others

 

John here is the picture of the Deft clear wood finish you requested

 

Yeap - that's what I've used since 1980. Although there's been a few changes since the "original" formula, it is still a good product.
Is this the same product you've used in the past that you need a suitable replacement for ??
(excellent job on the photo, BTW).

 

I switched from poly to Deft I watched a Charles Neal video he recommended Deft so that was good for me.My wife helped me with the photo when I feel more comfortable reviews will be forthcoming

 

I have been using Deft lacquer for year, even before the EPA got involved. When they switched to the brushing lacquer I was told that it is the same lacquer, just thicker with less VOCs to pass the new rules from the EPA. I use it all the time with an HVLP sprayer, I just cut it 50% with acetone and it sprayed fine.

 

It appears that PPG merged the Deft brand into their ProLuxe series. Right on the can it says it's the same Deft formula. It is available at Ace Hardware.

 

Proluxe Semi-Gloss Clear Oil-Based Brushing Lacquer 1 qt - Ace Hardware

I have not used the "new" one yet, but may be trying it out soon.