Excellent video Marc! As a longtime Minwax woodworker, you've convinced me to branch out a bit. Another note on the Bloxygen, having a can around is an easy solution, but there's other alternatives that most shops already have on hand. Welding gas from either Mig or Tig is straight argon or an argon/CO2 mix. Propane is also heavier than air, and a quick burst from an unlit torch does the same thing. You can also make your own CO2 dirt cheap with a little baking soda and vinegar - let it bubble a bit in a separate container, and then pour the invisible gas into the can.

Excellent work Marc! Thank you all for the support.

You must be a psychic fortune teller, Marc. As I was watching your video, I was asking myself how easily would the damage be to repair, and then you went and showed exactly that. Bravo, sir. You are still the master.

Huge thank you fir this video, Marc. Totally love how thorough your test program was and the way you presented the results was clear and precise. Simply outstanding.

Thank you for the practical advice. Your extra efforts to find “real world” damages saved me some valuable time.

This video was LOTS more informational than I thought it was going to be. Excelllent!

Well done! I've questioned myself so many times when using this type of product. I appreciate the work you do and the videos you share. Thank you!

Beautiful comparison. Thank you very much! I especially love the focus on the needs of the project as opposed to biased fanaticism.

I used the ARm R Seal on a cherry wall shelf with 2 drawers. I loved the way that it brought out the characteristics of the grain and gum pockets without bloching. The reflection was also really cool. I loved it. Usually I shellac everything.

What an EXCELLENT, practical evaluation of wipe-on finishes! And your commentary was clear and informative... THANK YOU!

Really appreciate all your skills, tests, info, and humor.

Well done Marc. You've gone above and beyond on this one. Especially loved the torture tests. BRAVISSIMO!

That's a lot of tests and a lot of effort. Thanks for this video Marc.

Hi Marc, I just watched this. Still very relevant despite the time that has elapsed. You are good at what you do and I'm glad you can support your family doing it.

Thank you for your help with choosing a good finish. I don't do fine woodworking projects but the stuff that I do I want to look good. Thank you for your time. I did get the help I needed to select a good finish. One of my old timer friends once told me that if you put the lid on tight and store the can upside down the content doesn't seal off the top. But the harden layer when upright and open is then on the bottom of the can.

This is a very thorough, clear and amazing demonstration. I'm a beginner and your video really is a significant help to my knowledge about finishes. Thank you!

Great video Mark! I have always been told G.F. was the best and you just proved it. You are a great source of woodworking knowledge, please keep it up!

Wow, tons of really useful info in this one. Arm-R-Seal has been my go-to for a while, but it really seems like the differences are pretty small. Thanks, Marc!

I've always been a fan of Arm R Seal semi gloss, simple shellac and wax, or oil and wax. This was a good video comparison Mark.

I always love your tests and shootouts! I think I trust your opinion and viewpoint on these things more than anybody else when it comes to woodworking.

@woodwhisperer

7 жыл бұрын

+Make Something Thanks David!

@LumberZack

7 жыл бұрын

The Wood Whisperer this would make a great annual series follow up. It would be great to see how these hold up year after year. Especially clarity, yellowing and if the finishes hold together.

Been looking at which finish to use and found this video again. I have watched it a few times now, depending on what I am wanting to do I keep coming back to it for info. Thank you for making a great, informative video.

I know this is NOT relative to your "Wiping Varnish Shootout" video, but recently, while searching for info on Poly over Shellac, I found your 2010 waxed/dewaxed under poly video and it was exactly what I was looking for. And now I feel I can comfortably put a poly coat OVER my dewaxed spray-on shellac. THANKS, very much!

The first gallon of Arm R Seal I ever got skimmed up within a few months between projects. It was in the plastic gallon container with screw on lid. I couldn't believe it. I think I will go back to the Arm R Seal now that I know about the Bloxygen. Thanks Marc.

Awesome video! I'm new to woodworking and have no experience with wood finishes, but learned a lot from this video! Thanks

That was very well done. Great follow-through on the topic, all the way to repairability.

@CynicalDad81

6 жыл бұрын

speedrrracer that was the perfect climax to the shootout!

Thanks Marc! This was probably the best explanation and comparison test of four great finishes.

This was awesome.....I always thought the General Finishes Top Coat would be more expensive. Thanks for the tip on Bloxygen. I don't work with wood that much but in the future I can probably avoid buying new over and over. Thanks again for keeping in in the "Tip Loop".

Another good and informative video. But believe it or not, I got the most usefulness out of the in-video ad for Bloxygen. Really cool-looking stuff. I'll definitely have to pick some up.

Science man, freaking science. I love it. Great comparison Marc. Thanks for taking the time to put this out.

Good one Marc, thank you for taking the time to do a head to head.

Very happy to see this video out! Thanks for continuing to provide good, quality content.

Excellent, excellent, excellent! You are very well spoken and you could probably talk about anything and make it interesting. Thanks!

Thank you for taking the time with this! Tremendous help.

What a great video. Well edited, information dense, yet perfectly easy to follow, and good comparison of products. I learned a lot in very little time. Even the Bloxygen ad was well explained and made me want to buy the product. I built a dresser and bookshelf from red oak plywood, which I finished with Minwax. I built a night stand with the left over plywood, which I will try finishing with Arm-r-Seal. Thanks again for the video.

I can only imagine how many times you've said "Pencil lines on the surface help me gauge my sanding progress" or a similar statement. Admittedly after watching your videos I do it now too. Thanks for the tip over the years lol

Great comparison; I recently used the Arm R Seal, really like it, & was surprised how little color it has which could be a bonus on light colored woods.

And...this is why you're my favorite woodworking content creator. Always bringing extremely helpful and practical information yet keeping it entertaining. In my opinion, a general all purpose well rounded finish is Arm-r-Seal. Like you said, there may be specific instances where you'd use Waterlox. You did a great job of capturing the images and angles of the surfaces. It's very difficult to accurately replicate what you see in person. It would be great to see a similar durability test of water based finished as well. But I know that not everyone likes the look of a water based poly.

Thanks for the comparison test, Marc. This is great information and will definitely affect my finishing choices.

outstanding outstanding outstanding!!. Such a great thorough and fair test. Thank you for putting this out there!!!

Very helpful comparison! My compliments on VG production values, and that you don't drag in irrelevant "funny" video clips afflicting so many of other sites.

Useful and thorough! thank you!

I think the Minwax & Arm-R-Seal are the real winners here, imho. Just a nitpick on sanding between coats, regardless of the finish being applied, this is just me, but just after vacuuming off the surface, I immediately wipe it down with a well wrung out damp cloth, ( I use the H/D cotton blue ones, available most everywhere. ) It never fails to amaze me just how much dust was still on the wood's surface after vacuuming! Then & only then, the next coat gets applied. This is by far the best comparison test I've ever seen, well done Marc! I very recently finished up laying down 7" white pine shiplap ( 70 sf. ) horizontally on my workshop walls, 41" down from the above floor joices leaving a 1/8" gap above my 30" tall workbenches. I have on hand 3/4's of a qt. of Minwax oil based Clear Satin Poly & I plan on applying my 1st & only coat, hopefully, on a small section off by itself to see how it looks. I have never used the Minwax Wipe On Poly, but I will have a go with this product in all eventualities! Thank you for the excellent presentation btw, Bill on the Hill... :-)

Thank you for this video Mark. I love General Finishes products, especially Arm R Seal. I really appreciate you putting in the work to put them back to back though.

One of your best videos in my opinion. Thanks for sharing

That was a fun comparison. Thanks Marc!

Great video Marc, I really appreciate all the information you shared with us here!

Great, informative video! I've got some projects nearing completion and this video couldn't have come at a better time. I've decided to go with the Arm-R-Seal. If I remember, I'll try and update you on the outcome. Thanks again for a great video.

I'm making a 2x12 speaker cab and this helped me out so much, thanks. We have this in Australia Feast Watson Satin Wipe On Poly so I'll see how that goes.

Excellent set of tests. Sponsored products usually annoy me but this is pertinent and useful and I appreciate that. Thanks Mark

@woodwhisperer

7 жыл бұрын

It was either that or a mattress ad. :)

@toysoldier46552

7 жыл бұрын

Marc - No mattress ads please, so many woodworkers have sold their souls to Casper lol.

Best video I've seen. So well done and easy and pleasant to watch! Thank you!

Great shootout, Mark. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for taking the time to do this and share. Helpful information.

Thank you for making this video! As a wood working newb, understanding finishes has been one of the hardest pieces of the puzzle. I think I might need to buy a book on finishes next...🤔 PS - Including the prices was incredibly valuable. Love tangle details like that.

Excellent Video! And the Spreadsheet was a memory saver!

Great video Marc! Big fan of the show. I would love to see a future similar video where you compare different drying oils and oil/varnish mixes!

Thanks so much. I'm always struggling with finishing and this really helps. I appreciate your time, knowledge and skills.

The testing, by far, best laugh during video. Thanks from aspiring woodworker.

Great comparison. I usually use pre cat lacquer for most things now. But sometimes customers want something extremely glossy and that's when I'll choose a wipe on varnish. The only thing I do differently is, I spray the final coat via hvlp

Very thorough methods. You are now the FinishWhisperer. Thanks! The only regret i have is something you have no fault in. In the Netherlands, its other products, brands, names etc. I just hope some Dutch woodworker would do something similar, or collab with me to get it done. No time to go it alone here. That bloxygen is cool. The search is on!

Very informative, no-nonsense, and helpful video!

Great video comparison. Even though I'd already made my choice and applied the finish, this video helped me to feel good about my pick for the long run.

Thanks for doing the comparison. It really helps us newbies.

Love these types of videos. Thank you so much, extremely helpful.

Time for a little geek info: One thing to note is that Waterlox is a phenolic resin mixed with tung oil the other two are a polyurethane. There is a third type which is an alkyd varnish but is more expensive and difficult to find. The polyurethanes have always been known for their great abrasion resistance, increased hardness, (think tungsten carbide which is subject to chipping) and thus have been traditionally used on floors. The phenolic resin and Tung oil finish that Waterlox uses is known to be "tougher" (Think O1 tool steel which you can lap to a really sharp edge, will flex and not chip, dulls faster) it is also easier to rub out the final even finish which is not easily done with polyurethanes. Not to be the the experiment critic... but I found it interesting that Marc decided on using veneered plywood rather than solid wood for testing purposes... I do believe that this automatically puts the Waterlox at a disadvantage because by nature the phenolic finishes are to be absorbed much deeper into the wood than polyurethanes and provide a type of flexible backbone to the fibers of the wood. This is why you saw the wood absorbing so much more Waterlox in the demonstration. Now if there is only 1/42" of an inch of veneer for the phenolic resin to absorb into then a barrier of adhesive between the veneer and substrate this may prevent the Waterlox from performing the way it was meant to perform which may have been why the Waterlox sealer failed the first water test which it really should excel at... Theoretically in summary Waterlox will not nearly have the scratch resistance of polyurethanes such as arm-r-seal but when they do occur they should be less noticeable and more easily repairable than an equivalent scratch on poly. What this test showed was how each of these finishes performed on plywood but not wood but that might just be splitting hairs. These are great videos and are a tremendous contribution to the woodworking community. I recognize the amount of time and effort that goes into putting these together so thanks and keep up the good work!!

@woodwhisperer

6 жыл бұрын

+Aaron Carter thanks Aaron. Just to address your concern, finishes don’t really absorb as deep as people think they do. Most of the time it’s a “skin-deep” penetration. Even though I used plywood, the Waterlox took more coats to achieve the same finish quality as the others. So the veneer was absorbing plenty of finish and probably took up as much as solid wood would have. If solid wood actually absorbs MORE of the stuff than this plywood did, I’d call that a total fail simply because you’d have to buy 2-3 times as much finish just to get a decent appearance. So I can't say for sure because I didn't run the tests, but I have no reason to believe the Waterlox would have done any better on a solid substrate.

@MNhockeydude35

6 жыл бұрын

The Wood Whisperer Thanks for the response. That is fair enough, I mean I will have to pull out the ol' electron microscope and take a peek at some cross section of each finish to confirm... Haha I just hope cremona is getting some of that GF kickback money. Jk

Excellent presentation and explanations! Thank you for posting!

5 Stars for a well thought-out and useful experiment. I have used the Minwax product, but I am going to give the General Finishes a try now too. I didn't believe it when you said argon was heavier than water vapor, so I looked it up. You were right!

Mark, nice job of doing the finish comparison! I have used Min Wax for years as a wipe on finish with good results, but will give Arm R Seal a try in the future. Welcome to Denver, enjoy your videos!

Thanks for getting back...I was hoping to use the Matte over some new spar varnish on Adirondacks to create that kind of finish...I will call the Epiphanes folks tomorrow...I am hoping to use it...

Wow, you really spent some time, and money doing this. Great job!

On video they all look great and different. I would say the project you choose would be the deciding factor.

Thanks for all this, truly. Excellent information. It does leaves me wondering how a satin finish comparison would have turned out.

Thanks so much for doing this for us and I'll be joining the Arm-r-Seal camp. Great info!

Great video Mark! Just what I have been looking for!

Thanks, Marc! Great comparison. I've used the Minwax and Arm-R-Seal products (satin, in both cases). Both worked great, but I prefer the Arm-R-Seal. It added less color to the finished project and seemed a little easier to apply. Just for fun, I may try a Waterlox product next before I settle on a favorite.

Very comprehensive. Great job specially for starters.

Waterlox Sealer is all I ever use on my woodturnings with exotic woods. Really enhances the grain without building up a plastic looking surface.

Well done. Thanks Marc.

The comparisons were awesome

Thank you for this video. I have recently refinished my cherry dining table. Strip it the citri-strip. Initially I applied waterlox sealer, four coats, it seamed very glossy, almost like marine varnish and I could not get rid of the shadow scratches from the 600 grit used between coats. I let it dry for a month then rubbed it out with 0000 steel wool and wool lube, it looked nice but could still see scratch marks. I love the clarity of waterlox but I think it is too soft. I stripped it again and am now on my 3rd coat of Arm R Seal Gloss. It is coming together nicely. Unlike the review I actually think I have less build with Arm R Seal, the wood looks more natural and I can see the rings in the grain, which I like. May do one more coat of gloss to really smooth it out, knock it down with a white pad then add a top coat of satin. I use foam brushes because I always get streaks when I wipe any finish on. The other huge difference in the products is the smell, waterlox is overpowering when it is setting up, Arm R Seal has a kind of walnut oil smell.

Wow, that was a crazy amount of great info! Thanks Mark.

Great Video Marc, very informative! Thank you.

enjoyed the shootout thanks as always,

That was one hell of a shotout! I wish, there was something similar availlable for the finishes, I can get here in Germany. May be, I have to do it myself.

Great video! I was at a crossroad trying to decide what to use on a project. Much mahalos (thanks) and Aloha from Honolulu Hawaii!

Very informative and thorough Marc. Thanks for sharing the information with us.

arm-r-seal for the win! Great video,Marc!

I appreciated the sponsor's advert & product as well and will check it out as its something I too can use.

@Bloxygen

7 жыл бұрын

Thank you. We are a small, made in the USA company, and sponsoring this was a reach for us. Marc's fans, however, are great and the response has been excellent! I hope you'll see us more!

Marc, this has to be one of your best videos! Really enjoyed you giving your opinion. Im sure most of us like myself use minwax from walmart because we are broke and have mouths to feed. I had no idea there were other finishes out there and look forward to trying new ones now! Your editing skills on this video where top notch... Few will probably realize you spent many many hours editing this... It came out awesome dude. -Brian

@woodwhisperer

7 жыл бұрын

Appreciate that Brian. Yeah, the editing on this one kinda sucked! Several times I asked myself, 'What the hell am I doing?!" haha

@dannysulyma6273

7 жыл бұрын

Thank you for persevering and sharing the results with us, very much appreciated.

Bro! such an amazing complete test. Your the man!

Good video Marc, I'll be looking up arm r seal seems to be the one that would suit me best.

Excellent comparison. As a side note, I bought a bottle of Bloxygen about 2 years ago and then forgot I had it. Gonna have to stick it out in plain view so I'll actually use it next time I open a can of something.

Marc, you are one creative son of a gun! But man this was pretty scientific in my opinion. Hypothesis aside you began with baselines and made comparative results as evidenced by observation and under the same controlled conditions. You have videos and documented data. Doesn't get more scientifically practical than that. To the wood working world this is very scientific since the average joe will not do this. The wood whisperer: where science, technology and education meet. Thanks for everything you and Nicole do.

This was a great comparison. Thanks

I only use Minnwax Wipe-On poly. It protects very well from water stains because it is polyurethane. I need to apply many coats (up to 8) for a glass like surface but it goes on very quickly. My method is sand to 120 grit, apply three coats at least 3 hours apart then sand with a 220 grit 3M sponge. You'll know it's dry when the dust is a fine white powder. I find this works best as sanding after the 1st and second coats still has fibers sticking up. Thee coats pretty much locks the fibers in place and sanding removes them. The fourth coats glides on smoothly. After I sand, I use ethanol to wipe up dust because mineral spirits can take a while to dry and it stinks. Depending on how rough the surface is after 4 coats, I may or may not sand until prior to the last coat, where I sand with a 3M 320 sponge. The final finish looks like sprayed lacquer but much tougher. Tip: To minimize fiber from giving a very rough feel after 3 coats, apply the Wipe-On poly perpendicular to the wood grain or in a circular motion with an all cotton rag. This seems like an issue more with plywood veneers than solid wood. Some synthetic rags are like microfiber cloth and it grabs wood fibers like crazy, making application of the first few coats difficult and could leave rag fibers in the coating.

Excellent video Marc, well done as usual!

@woodwhisperer

7 жыл бұрын

Thanks! Glad you liked it!

Thanks for sharing your experience. Greetings from San Luis Potosí Mex. I am a beginner in this beautiful woodworking art.

Very good video! I especially liked the end when you repaired the damage with sanding and another coat. I have used Minwax for many years and it works very well. Last summer, I tried Watco wipe-on poly and it was awful. The cans used by Watco are the push-twist type and that is also a negative because resealing is not a guarantee.

Great video Marc! most likely one of my favorites 😊 I miss your shorter video's and find the Friday night lives to be too long, tho the candid nature can be fun. So guess there is a trade-off 😀 Keep up the great work!

@woodwhisperer

7 жыл бұрын

Thanks Chad. Keep in mind Friday Lives are their own thing and are not intended to be a substitute or replacement for my regular videos. It's just something we do in addition to the rest of our content. We definitely don't expect that format to appeal to everyone.

Marc, It doesn't matter that your tests were not conducted according to high scientific standards. You did exactly the same thing any of us would likely do if we were going to compare and contrast products. None of us is geared up for running an experiment with lots of samples and analyzing them with high tech diagnostic apparatuses. Thanks a lot, Russ(Mid-Michigan Woodworker's Guild, mmwg.org)

I'd be really interested to see these tests done again with some much harder woods. I'm particularly interested in the 'wood' writing test and the carkey test to see if a harder backing surface affects the outcomes.