CPES on mahogany

[Kelsey]

If I were to apply a coat (or 2) of Smith's CPES as a sealer coat on bare mahogany, does that then eliminate the thinned varnish coats normally applied first? Or does CPES allow varnish to penitrate through it....anybody have any ideas?

[Concordia..41]

Although it's probably not necessary, I still thin the first coat of varnish about 30%. CPES will seriously darken the mahogany though. If it's a loose piece you're working on, try some on the back side to see if you're going to be happy with the darkening.

[Bob Cleek]

Don't go by me, I put CPES on everything except my french fries. Concordia is very right, though. CPES will darken some woods signficantly. Generally, if the wood is dark to begin with, CPES will make it darker more than if it is light to begin with... which is easier to understand perhaps by just trying it on a scrap than anything else. LOL I'd sure use it, though. Your varnish will stick a lot longer... There is no need to thin the first coat of varnish... it won't go through the CPES... Just start slapping it on. Thinning the varnish is a matter of personal preference. Myself, I always kill a chicken before I start varnishing, but... we all have our favorite tricks.

[paul oman]

products like CPES, including ESP155 (www.epoxyproducts.com/marine.html) are simply solvent thinned epoxies with the sovlents aiding in penetration albeit damaging the epoxies.

Adding sovlent to the varnish will not aid in additional penetration, but it will probably aid in creating a 'fused' or chemical bond to the epoxy.

paul

[thechemist]

Originally posted by paul oman:
products like CPES, including ESP155 <snip> are simply solvent thinned epoxies with the sovlents aiding in penetration albeit damaging the epoxies.
<snip>
paulDo your solvents damage your epoxy?