When I've had bad shellac it just takes forever to dry. If you put on a coat and it's still gummy 10 minutes later, it's time to toss it (or just use it to seal the end-grain of rough lumber). 2 years might be pushing it, though the Zinnser SealCoat seems to last longer than their heavier-cut shellac.

I buy the quart cans of SealCoat or mix mine from flakes so I don't have to worry about using up the full gallon.

 

That's the thing, the drying really slows down. If I question whether shellac is good, I'll put a drop on a piece of glass (or non pourous surface, so none of it gets absorbed) and see if it sets up in 20 minutes or so.

 

Soooo, if the shellac is bad even thinning it with alcohol won't speed up the drying?
For me that would mean a sticky texture to the wood.
Then I'm fine (for now.)
Thanks for the feedback…now gotta go shellac some coin displays.

 

Why do you wipe off the excess?
Thin it for a sealer and let it dry.
As far as when it goes bad, like everyone says. It should dry in 10 minutes, 20 at most.

I thin seal coat, I don't use it straight. I always build slowly.

 

If it's bad, it's not a solvable problem…it's only use is to start a fire.

 

When shellac goes bad it won't dry.

The zinsser shellac and sealcoat (dewaxed shellac; I love that stuff) have a shelf life of 3 years from the date of manufacture. Don't store it in a hot environment; it decreases the shelf life. Using sealcoat, you shouldn't need to thin it since it's a 2lb cut, but if desired 50/50 with dna works fine.

Since sealcoat isn't available locally for me any more, I had to buy a 2 gallon pack from homedepot. When it gets here I stir it and transfer it into quart plastic jars and only bring one down to the shop at a time; the rest are stored in the pantry in the house.

Re: application; I spray it and sometimes wipe it on. If you have to wipe excess off, you're applying it incorrectly. Shellac doesn't like to be applied thickly.

 

woodchuckerNJ,
I wipe the excess off because most of my projects are polished with the Beall System.

 

I just put it on, thin coats, when dry (20 min or so), light scuff with 330 grit, and keep going until I like how it built up… Finish with a light scuff 400+ grit.

Yep, if it doesn't dry, it's over & out.

 

Joe, that's the same process I use for applying sealcoat, though I don't hit it with 400 if a waterborne clear coat is going over it.

 

The ONLY thing I usually put over shellac is wax… nothing more…
Shellac is a rugged hard finish that holds up good… IMHO.

I love Shellac…

 

Joe, while I agree shellac is a hard finish, it's not very rugged to anything exposed to moisture or even sunlight.

I love it too, but for different reasons (fast drying, great sealing properties, works great as a toner, etc.).

 

Interesting questions, and lotsa good answers. I'm learning as well.

 

I use Zinsser and have never had a can go bad to the point where I stopped using it. The can I'm using now is several years old at least and still dries just fine, I added a little fresh DNA to it.

 

I sprayed an old can of Zinsser Bulls Eye Shellac Sealer & Finish on some small ornaments. The product is two or three years old, stored in the garage, (Indiana). Didn't dry well on the ornaments. After 6 hours, I stacked them up and had to use a knife to gently pry them apart from one another. I'm thinking this is too old to use now; glad to hear that so many have good luck with shellac, but I'm giving up on this can.