Will spray poly hold over beeswax? One last question on page 2....

[Ifrit617]

Hi everyone,

I have an old bow that needs to be refinished. The original finish was 5 coats of beeswax, but it needs to be sanded down, re-stained, and refinished. If I sand down the surface of the bow and re stain it, will spray on poly hold up as the new finish? Input would be great. Thanks.

Jon

[Pat B]

If you can remove all the wax it will but I doubt you will be able to do that. You probably won't be able to restain it either. I've never used wax as a finish so this is just a guess on my part.

[Alaric]

You will need to remove the wax before resealing it, the stain won’t take well if at all through the wax either. Get some grease and wax remover, I use a 3m product I get from Napa and clean the bow with it before sanding to remove the wax then sand and finish as you wish.

Richard

[Alaric]

My response assumes there is something under the bees wax if not and the wax is worked into the pores of the wood you may not be able to remove all of it.

Richard

[Holten101]

Removing beeswax is next to impossible, especially if it has been heated in. If you sand down to a level were your sandpaper dont clutch up with wax you might be able to both stain and poly the bow. Your chance of succes are slim in my opinion...sorry.

I would drop stain and continue using wax...its a great finish when heated in;-)

Cheers

[Ifrit617]

Okay maybe that will be what I have to do... Thanks for the replies. I live in a very humid area and I am not sure how ell a beeswax finish will hold up to the humidity.

Jon 

[DarkSoul]

Take a look at this thread. It'll answer some of your questions.

[Ifrit617]

Thanks Darksoul. I now have my answer.    thanks.

Jon

[Ifrit617]

okay so I decided to just leave the finish as is and apply a few more coats of beeswax. I have some 100% beeswax candles which I believe will work?

I plan on melting the wax, brushing it onto the bow while still hot, then heating with a  heat gun set on low to melt the wax into the wood, repeating until the wood is thouroughly saturated. Then I plan on buffing with with fine steel wool. Is this the proper way to apply it? Once this is done can I apply acrilyc paint over the wax or should the small section of the bow be painted before I apply the wax? Let me know.

Thanks.

Jon

[George Tsoukalas]

I agree wit Dark Soul. Reapply the beeswax but I'd use a hair dryer. I think the heat gun may change the tiller. Jawge

[Del the cat]

Bees wax is usually made into a creamey polish by mixing it with turpentine, white spirit or some similar solvent.
Grate it with a cheese grater (Don't let wife see this) put it in a jar with a little solvent and leave overnight, warm it and stirring it it will help it dissolve. Maybe try it in the food blender
Del

[rossfactor]

1/2 beeswax and 1/2 mineral oil makes an awesome wood finish, easy to apply and beautiful.  Heat it in and reapply often and you'll be all right.

Gabe

[bubby]

1/2 beeswax and 1/2 mineral oil makes an awesome wood finish, easy to apply and beautiful.  Heat it in and reapply often and you'll be all right.

Gabe

this is a great finnish, it's also food safe for wood bowl's and cup's and such, Bub

[Ifrit617]

I can try the mix, but am curious, will beeswax work on its own or does it have to be mixed up first?

Jon

[Del the cat]

I can try the mix, but am curious, will beeswax work on its own or does it have to be mixed up first?

Jon

Dunno, I'd think it would be hard to apply solid without risk of overheating the bow, and even then it will dry as a thick layer I'd have thought.
If it it goes on thick and lumpy it's going to be a pain to get off and will also use a lot of wax, don't think it will penetrate any better either.
Let us know how you get on.
Del