Thanks for the advice. Does anyone have a number for z-spar?

Andreas

: Hi there.

: Not too long ago I chatted a bit with a technical advisor at Z-Spar (a
: subsidiary of someone else) about their Flagship varnish and spraying. He
: said that while the can label advises spray application thinning to only
: 10%, you can thin up to 30%. That does make each dried film coat thinner
: than undiluted, and he said to put on 5 coats if you would have brushed on
: 4.

: On one warm day (upper 70's) I was able to recoat every 8 hours. I waited
: until each coat was no longer sticky, though it was still soft enough to
: mar easily. Recoating this soon does not require sanding first, but I wait
: long enough every 2nd or 3rd coat to do that to level out things and get
: rid of specs of anti-varnish matter.

: Pete Rudie turned me on to using a tack coat, which enables you to apply a
: slightly thicker coat each time. Works something like this: Once you are
: all set to spray, choke down the varnish volume to about 1/3 or 1/4 of the
: normal setting. Open the fan width wide open. Spraying the boat from about
: twice the normal distance away and at about twice the normal speed,
: quickly 'dust' the boat in just a short time, say 20 seconds.

: Leave the room, take a 15 minute break.

: Come back, restore the gun settings to normal, and spray away. I think it
: works, though it does tend to let me get overconfident, so, yes, you can
: still get the runs if you don't watch it.

: In any event, what Nick said goes as well. Most of the manufactors have 1-800
: numbers which, with a little patience, can usually connect you with a
: real, live human.