AJB Temple wrote:Mike, please can you report back on that when you apply it as to how much it darkens the wood and what it's like to apply. Thanks, A
Sure. It's funny stuff. The primer coat (HLS) is a light tan colour in the tin. Not what I was expecting at all. However, it goes on pretty clear, and dries to a matt. It darkened the timber to about the same extent that wiping it down with white spirit did (and incidentally, I did that first, assiduously). It brushes out nicely, and is much the same as a varnish in terms of texture and application.
The second and third coats are with the Filter 7 Plus (006 colour....light oak, in my instance). This is a dark chocolate brown in the tin. Again, not at all what I was expecting. It darkened the HLS coat a little, but not excessively, and brown rather than orange. It actually looks great on sapele. It's the pigments which make this product UV resistant. It's micro-porous and flexible, too, so in theory it should be a decent outdoor finish. I wish I'd tried it on some scrap oak, because that's going to be its primary function here.....the joinery of my new sunroom. I'm certain, though, that it will produce a darker finish than the indoor finishes we are used to, such as Osmo PolyX, my oil/ varnish/ white spirit mix, or just wax.
As an aside, it was quite difficult to get the data sheets, and there is no re-coating time in English on the tins. I had to ring the company to get the times from them: 18-24 hours for the first coat, 16 hours for the subsequent coats. There is no rubbing down between coats.
I took particular care to relieve all the edges (the long edges have a big round-over on them), and we're going to make a cover for the winter. I hope I've given the stuff every chance to succeed.