Spray Painting

The most common finishing that we do is in 30% gloss (i.e. satin) acid catalysed 2 pack lacquer. This is an excellent general purpose finish, suitable for doors, wall paneling, office furniture, kitchens etc. It has a silky smooth finish, with soft luster and will resist water, alcohol, moderate heat, and solvents, as well as withstand moderate abrasion.

Prior to application, we ensure that the surface to be polished is hard sanded flat, and then we seal. We always machine sand the sealer flat before top coating with satin acid cat.

Our stained finishes use the same processes as described above, plus one or two staining processes. Usually a stain is applied to the timber before sealing and then, prior to top coating, a shading stain is used to bring the colour exactly into line.

For stain colours we always work to a sample. We do not work from colour charts, and we cannot work from vague formulas (such as 1 part jarrah stain plus 2 parts…, etc.) which will give a different colour depending on the application method, the operator, the type of timber, and even the weather. We are always happy to work with our clients to formulate the right stain for the job and to spray out samples.When timber has been stained prior to sealing, we have to be careful how hard we sand the sealer, in case we cut through into the colour coat underneath. Stained finishes will usually be a little more open grained than if we had finished the same piece in a clear finish for this reason.

The term fully choked refers to a finish where all the pores of the grain have been filled in and the surface of the lacquer finish is completely flat. This is strongly recommended for surfaces such as table tops, where otherwise dirt or moisture could collect in the open pores and eventually lead to a break down of the integrity of the surface membrane. Some designers believe that a fully choked finish is a sign of a high quality job. This is not necessarily true in all cases.

Some timbers such as rock maple would normally be fully choked with our standard 30% acid cat finish, because the grain structure is so tight, while timbers such as Tassie oak and jarrah would still be slightly open. These would require one or two extra coats of sealer, and extra sanding, before they become fully choked.Timbers such as wenge, American oak and some new age veneers have much larger pores, and may require grain filling or other methods before we can achieve a fully choked finish.

Our most common pigmented finish (paint) is a satin acid catalysed 2 pack finish. Similar to the clear finish described above, it has a silky smooth finish, with soft luster, and will resist water, alcohol, moderate heat and solvents, as well as withstand moderate abrasion.
The usual way we paint panels is to paint over melamine board. We mask out the backs of doors, and only paint the face and edges, leaving the backs white. Painting directly on to melamine gives a good, hard, flat substrate to paint over.

Any edges or routered grooves that need undercoating are first checked to ensure that they are sanded flat and don’t have machine marks in them. After undercoating, all surfaces are sprayed with a guide coat, a light coat of thin black paint, before sanding. The guide coat is slowly sanded off, the highest points of the undercoat first, and gradually down until the surface is completely flat and all the guide coat has disappeared.

The panels are then blown off, and wiped down with a tack cloth before top coating. The operator wears a full body paper suit, including hood, to ensure no dust contaminates the job.

We have our own computerised tint system for pigmented finishes if we don’t already have the formula on file, so long as we have a colour chip we can match the colour.

Similar to the satin paint finishes described above except care of preparation is more critical.
To increase the gloss level, sometimes the surface will be cut and polished, sanded back with 1500 grit wet and dry paper and then buffed through several grades of compound.

The gloss level becomes critical when you see a large amount of reflected light in the surface. With kitchen doors and bathroom vanities, for instance, a finish off the gun will be acceptable but a boardroom table, especially next to windows, will always require buffing as you always see reflections from the surface and you want to achieve a high definition of image.

Similar to automotive metallic finishes, can be either satin or gloss, in a range of colours. Still finished in acid cat.

Textured acid cat finishes have fine granules mixed into the paint to give the feel of a slightly rough surface similar to stippled board or some vinyl wrapped finishes. It can give a finish similar to computer boxes.

We do a range of specialty finishes, which include real metal finishes, such as pitted bronze, cast aluminium and brushed steel, and realistic marble and granite finishes. If you have a special application, we can usually tailor a finish to suit your requirements.

Although we are not set up for high volume work, we would be pleased to price any specialty veneer laying, including marquetry and inlay work. We have samples of our work that should impress.