# Dipping finishes



## cabbie (Dec 29, 2012)

Jocks-
I'm hoping that someone out there has an answer for this problem-I sure could use it!
I'm about to start production on about a thousand small items for next Christmas, to sell at craft shows. I'm interested in finishing the items bby dipping them in a fairly fast-drying finish material. 
What's best-lacquer?? Shellac?? Or-???
These items will be lightly used during the holiday season, indoors only, then put away until next year. I'd like to use something to get a semi-gloss or gloss finish. I need to avoid drips, runs, etc., but would like to be able to dip, shake off the excess, and hang to dry on some sort of yet-to-be-designed hook system.
Anyone out there ever tried anything like this? What did you use and how did you do it?
I'm not set up for spraying, and here in SoCal it would be a challenge to spray anything in quantity without violating some ordinance or other.
All suggestions and past experience would be welcomed.
Thanks!
Cabbie from Altadena


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## John Smith_inFL (Dec 15, 2017)

I did a quick google search of "dipping wood finish" and several
items popped up that might suit your needs. also some videos on YouTube.
I think that your first priority would be to construct the dipping and drying rack
to the size that you can do in one day. no need to overload yourself.
while you are waiting on the flood of suggested coatings, you could be building your hooks with tacks and a
4'x8' - 2"x2" wood frame covered with chicken wire. floral wire hooks, old newspapers to catch the drips, etc.
then decide on what kind of finish you will use. Lacquer, Shellac, Oil, etc.
a carpet tack in one end of the part held by the floral wire would make quick work of the "dip-n-hang" process.
and being in Calif, you may be limited to a waterborne coating. (good luck with that part of it).
sounds like a fun project for the winter months.

*hang a rack similar to this from the ceiling with something to cover the floor to catch the drips.*










*the standard 3/4" carpet tack can hold a lot of weight for its size. very sharp point can easily
be pushed into the part and the floral wire attached as the hook to hang from the chicken wire frame.*










.


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## cabbie (Dec 29, 2012)

Great ideas, John-thanks!


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## Nick424 (Aug 24, 2016)

I recently made some wooden nickel "challange coins" for the son of a church member. The children drew some pictures and my wife made a design for the other side. I bought round stickers shrunk the drawings, and printed and placed them on the wooden nickels after spray painting them gold. After seeing the prototype he wanted one for each member of his group, 300 soldiers. Then his dad thought one with the 371st logo would be nice too.
I wanted them to be durable so that meant bartop epoxy. I bought straight pins, and holding them with pliers about 1/8 inch back was able to push them into the wood. Then I used the pliers to bend a hook on the far end to hang on a line streched across the shop. The first ones I just dipped and hung, with a lot of drops on the floor, on plastic of course. The second set I used a foam brush to lightly remove excess material. I was able to dip about 75 before it got to thick to use. All the "coins" had to have the drip sanded off of the bottom, but a light rubbing on a wood block closed up the pin hole on top. I am traveling so I can't show you a sample but if you want to see one let me know and I will get a picture when I get back.


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## gwilki (May 14, 2014)

I did some ornaments, finishing them by dipping in a water based poly. Mine were easier than some because the ornaments came to a point on one end. I made that end the lower end for the dipping process and stuck a small finishing nail into that end. The "top" had a bent wire in it to hang from. When I dipped them, the drip on the bottom was on the small finishing nail. I removed it and there was no drip on the ornament itself.

I doubt this would work if your pieces are wide at the bottom and top since there would be no one place when the drip would form.


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## cabbie (Dec 29, 2012)

Gwilki-
Did your water based poly dip raise the grain of the parts that were dipped? I like the finishing nail idea-I just have to figure out where on my part I can hide the nail hole!
Cabbie


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## gwilki (May 14, 2014)

Cabbie: It did raise the grain a bit, but with 2 coats, the ornaments looked good. I was lucky in that the very small nail hole on the "bottom" of the ornament was actually the top of the ornament when hanging on the tree. I used the nail hole for the final wire hanger.


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## Finn (May 26, 2010)

I make ceder coasters by the hundreds and have dipped them in thinned (with naptha) poly. I set them on a bed of nails to dry. I find that even though I do this I need to wipe them anyway to remove the drips on the bottom or underside. Now I just wipe the poly on. It takes three coats, in the soft wood that cedar is. Dipping seems to not speed things up at all. Just wipe them. In fact wiping a bit more on the end grain is better than dipping alone is.


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