Best Brush For Varnish

[Little Dorrit]

I have some Epifanes varnish and wanted to ask what recommendations there are for brushes to get the best finish?

 

[BabaYaga]

I use any decent brush to apply the varnish to the wood and then a disposable foam brush/jenny brush for tipping.

 

[Alpha22]

Badger hair is supposed to be the best..... a few on eBay.... try this one... £353

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Milwaukee...6c2284&pid=100338&rk=2&rkt=19&sd=391245175219

Less expensive versions are available......

Boat paint UK have a few ranges that look very good... https://www.boatpaint.co.uk/acatalog/Redtree-Badger-Premium-Quality-Brush.html

 

[Little Dorrit]

Badger hair is supposed to be the best..... a few on eBay.... try this one... £353

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Milwaukee...6c2284&pid=100338&rk=2&rkt=19&sd=391245175219

Less expensive versions are available......

Ok best value brush that gives a good finish.

 

[Daydream believer]

Badger hair is supposed to be the best..... a few on eBay....

Best to first stun the badger before dipping in the varnish as they tend to struggle & flick the stuff everywhere

 

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

"Cinghiale" are excellent value for money. Be sure to mark it clearly with a bold "V" and reserve it exclusively for varnish. DO NOT use acetone for cleaning (curdles the varnish that remains in the bristles).
For cleaning I use straight diesel; it leaves the bristles nice and soft. I am currently using Epifanes Rapidclear.

 

[PhillM]

I've used expensive and cheap. Cannot honestly discerne any difference to the finish, except for bristles that may fall out. Quality of sandpaper and tack rags is more important.

 

[johnalison]

I've used expensive and cheap. Cannot honestly discerne any difference to the finish, except for bristles that may fall out. Quality of sandpaper and tack rags is more important.

Yes, I think that the methods used and the skill of the operator are more important than the equipment used. I'm currently using foam brushes to finish, with Epifanes and usually get a mirror finish, but I've got all winter to do just one tiller only.

 

[ghostlymoron]

That's with 20% off! [AQUOTE=Alpha22;5666891]Badger hair is supposed to be the best..... a few on eBay.... try this one... £353

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Milwaukee...6c2284&pid=100338&rk=2&rkt=19&sd=391245175219

Less expensive versions are available......

Boat paint UK have a few ranges that look very good... https://www.boatpaint.co.uk/acatalog/Redtree-Badger-Premium-Quality-Brush.html[/QUOTE]

 

[ghostlymoron]

Dust is my problem when varnishing. All goes well until the last then - boof - an unsightly blemissh appears. I need a proper paint booth with extraction.

 

[PotatoNavigator]

I quite like Purdy brushes for vanishing, any of these three:

http://www.purdy.com/products/brushes?N=1052971413

Not too expensive, but enough that you'll want to look after it. I store mine in a brush mate, it works well.

 

[jwilson]

I use cheap synthetic bristle ones, Trago in Falmouth set of 5 for about £4. These are the ones with very fine beige bristles with whitish tips. NOT the ones with black 'no-loss' bristles - they are rubbish for finish. When new they paint really well: after maybe 5 cleanings and re-uses they deteriorate. They may lose a bristle or two at first - just don't leave it in the finish. Last year did some varnish with them and got a very good finish indeed - indistinguishable from the factory finish on the boat. Currently using these for glossed doors in the house. Skill is needed for any brush, but some cheap ones are so rubbish no-one could get a good finish.

I have used expensive brushes in the past, but sooner or later the phone rings and you have to do something urgently. By the time you get back the brush is beyond salvage. At about a pound for typically 5 uses you can treat the cheap ones as disposable.

 

[Little Dorrit]

I quite like Purdy brushes for vanishing, any of these three:

http://www.purdy.com/products/brushes?N=1052971413

Not too expensive, but enough that you'll want to look after it. I store mine in a brush mate, it works well.

Thanks, great advice and backs up my own research. I have just purchased a 1.5" White China Bristle Purdey Brush...I'll need to look after it!!

 

[dave_gibsea]

Yo don;t need a paint booth you need a tack rag and to sprinkle water around to kee the dist down - bust - hamilton's perfection every time

 

[Poignard]

Yo don;t need a paint booth you need a tack rag and to sprinkle water around to kee the dist down - bust - hamilton's perfection every time

and then some prat drives through the yard at high speed or a complete cretin starts grinding off his antifouling on a nearby boat!
Best go off to a quiet anchorage and do your varnishing.

 

[TQA]

Having seen the excellent results possible with applying two pack polyurethane [white] with a foam brush what is the panels opinion on using a foam brush to apply Epithanes varnish.

Is there a downside?

Other than having old timers wave their Badgers at me.

 

[Poignard]

Having seen the excellent results possible with applying two pack polyurethane [white] with a foam brush what is the panels opinion on using a foam brush to apply Epithanes varnish.

Is there a downside?

Other than having old timers wave their Badgers at me.

A brush is better for getting into crevices and corners, otherwise the foam brushes are fine. I buy them from Flints Theatrical Chandlers. Last time I bought some they had the best price.

 

[PotatoNavigator]

Yes, two pack varnish is a thousand million pounds a tin, which will seem worth it right up until you spend three weeks swearing and shouting trying to get it off because its cracked and let water in.

Having seen the excellent results possible with applying two pack polyurethane [white] with a foam brush what is the panels opinion on using a foam brush to apply Epithanes varnish.

Is there a downside?

Other than having old timers wave their Badgers at me.

 

[Woodlouse]

I go to B&Q and buy two Harris brushes when varnishing. The size depends on what I'm doing but the price is generally £7 each. I then use one brush to do all the build up coats and keep it in pot of thinners when not in use. Then when it's time to do the top coat I throw it away and use the new one.

Expensive varnish brushes are a con. There is an enormous difference in finish between a £1 brush and a £7 brush, but the difference between that and a £100 brush is so slight it is only noticeable by a very few tedious people and bullshitters who think they know it all.

 

[TQA]

You can pay HOW MUCH for a brush. !00 squids.

Just had to go and lie down.