# Tinted Lacquer for Cabinets ?'s



## Sailor (Jun 17, 2009)

So I have built an island for my kitchen and it's pretty much ready to paint. It's made of Birch ply, Poplar and MDF for the doors. I'm think I'm wanting to use lacquer to paint it. I've been told by painters and read online that it's a good tough finish and it dries pretty quick. 
I'm going to paint it white.

I have never painted with lacquer before nor have I purchase any so I know nothing about it. I think I plan on getting the paint from Sherwin Williams, since Lowe's paint is frowned upon by some.

What type to I need to ask for and how do I ask???

Is there a primer needed? If so, will a regular water based primer work or does it need to be lacquer based? (if there is such a thing)

How long should I wait between coats? (I've read that lacquer can be dry in 20 min…)

Should I sand between the coats of lacquer?

How many coats of primer/lacquer do you thinnk I'll need.

I'm going to assume that the MDF doors can be treated the same way that the birch.poplar cabinets are. (although I will seal the edges of the MDF before painting)

Thanks to you all!


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## levan (Mar 30, 2010)

Just a couple more questions, to help clarify.
Do you plan on spraying or brushing? 
Which will work best for you solvent or water based?


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## Sailor (Jun 17, 2009)

Spraying, sorry should have mention that…..

I think I'd prefer water based for the easier cleanup. But if ones better than the other by a large margin then I'd be willing to go solvent based.


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## Cosmicsniper (Oct 2, 2009)

Lots of confusion here. A tinted lacquer would seem to imply a dye-tinted (or mixed with a lacquer "toner") lacquer, yet you use the word "lacquer paint." They are different things.

EDIT: And, BTW, white doesn't play well for all "lacquer" products, so that may play a big role into what type you have to choose.


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## Earlextech (Jan 13, 2011)

Just ask for a sprayable, white lacquer. Get yourself a small amount of retarder, this will slow down the drying process if you need it. It should dry in about 20 minutes but if it dries too fast it will result in orange peel, in that case add some retarder to it.
If you have a Woodcraft/Rockler store nearby you can get waterborne finishes from them easily. I've been spraying waterborne for about 25 years.


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## Cosmicsniper (Oct 2, 2009)

Lol..I guess he could just do that, Sam.


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## Sailor (Jun 17, 2009)

I just called it lacquer paint because I don't know what the proper name for it is, and it sounds the best to me. lol

So do I not need any primer?

Just white sprayable lacquer and little retarder?

What's a little retarder? Quart? 
Does it come in a paint can or in a bottle?

I'm going into this pretty much blind….


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## Earlextech (Jan 13, 2011)

4oz - 8oz of retarder is more than enough - prime with a thinned coat of the same lacquer. The fewer different chemicals you use the less problems you open yourself up to.


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## fge (Sep 8, 2008)

All of our paint jobs are done with lacquer. We use a solvent based by ML Campbell. We treat it just like clear coat finishes, using a sand sealer step as the primer then top coat.


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## Sailor (Jun 17, 2009)

I walking into Sherwin Williams and told the guy I needed some tinted lacquer to paint my cabinets. He looked at me like I was silly and asked me if I had ever painted with lacquer before. I said, no. He went on about how it's really really easy to mess it up with lacquer and I said I built the cabinets myself so if I needed to I could rebuild them. (I didn't figure I'd mess them up but I just said this so he would sell it to me)

He was still pretty determined not to sell me the lacquer so I asked what my other options were and he ended up selling me some Pro Classic water based I think it was. He said it was still a tough finish and would hold up and do good for my cabinets.

Was he right? Is it to difficult?

Did he sell me some good paint for my cabinets?


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## Cosmicsniper (Oct 2, 2009)

Wow, sounds to me he just sold you latex paint. I would not use it…bad choice for cabinets.

I would find a different salesman. Many people would disagree with his assessment as to its difficulty.


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## Earlextech (Jan 13, 2011)

I have had this exact issue with SW my entire career which is why I've spent my money at Benjamin Moore. ProClassic is a great paint but latex is still not an acceptable finish for cabinetry. It's also obvious to anyone that has sprayed lacquer that this guy has not. Lacquer is easy, personally I use waterborne. Maybe you should look into General Finishes at Woodcraft and Rockler stores.
It's just as important to have someone you can talk to at your finish supplier as it is your tool supplier. Go any place else because this is not the guy.


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## sgv (Mar 21, 2013)

First off GREAT choice in SW, ask for water white conversion varnish (It is a post cat Lacquer that can be tinted) if you want it to be a semi transparent you will have to get some BAC wiping stain and ad a little to it in till you get desired effect if you want white get Lacquer under coater then spray wit a clear lacquer. if you have any problems send me a e-mail I work for SW


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## sgv (Mar 21, 2013)

I sell Lacquer to cab shops every day and make custom tints the guys you talked to at SW where trying to up sell you. we are all not like those guys!!!!!!! sorry for the bad apples


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