Thunderbird question

[buckeyebowhunter]

For those that spray thunderbird are you sanding between coats? If so what grit?

Thank you

[Sam Harper]

I haven't used Thunderbird in a long time, but the way I used to do it was to spray one coat of the gloss finished, steel wool it, then spray on two more coats without steel wool. After that dried over night, I would spray a coat of Miniwax satin polyurethane.

[Kirkll]

I sprayed a lot of it years ago, and very seldom sanded between coats unless I screwed up and got my material laid down to heavy, or the pressure to high and got an orange peel…. What I had best luck with was using a reducer, letting it tack off before before laying down the next coat. Definitely a timing thing. By using the reducer the tack time was quicker…. I had more consistency without sanding between coats.

The problem I had sanding T-bird was that if I sanded clear through it in spots and hit bare wood, it stuck out like a turd in a punch bowl and showed the overlapping coats when the next coat went down resulting in sanding the whole riser again…

Don’t get me wrong here… I’m not bad mouthing the product. If applied properly it’s a tough long lasting, very durable product. But there is a learning curve using that stuff, and it’s not what I would call user friendly. But With a temp controlled spray booth and a good HVLP sprayer in the right hands it’s a top notch finish.

.02 cents worth.    Kirk

[Bow man]

For those that spray thunderbird are you sanding between coats? If so what grit?

Thank you

Sanding between coats is up to you and how you want to apply. if you want to layer on a couple of coats in quick succession you can do that.  If your schedule leaves lots of time between coats you can sand. Typically you will need to do at least one sanding to fill wood grain more on some woods with heavy grain. I like to hit bows with a scotch brite pad before final coat.

No spray booth needed. I am aware of several top bowyers that have sprayed or still spray the product with no booth or climate control.  But those can be of a benefit if that was available.

Call anytime with questions we are more than happy to help. 517-617-3658.

[buckeyebowhunter]

Thanks Bow man,  the reason for my question is I sprayed two coats yesterday (grain was filled last week). However the two coats I sprayed on yesterday have what look like dust nibs all over. Other than that the finish looks good. I have no spray booth here at my shop just spraying outside. It has been extremely dry and dusty here this summer and finding a day that isn't windy can also be a challenge.

[Kirkll]

Those fine scotch bright pads are excellent for nocking those dust titties off. Bow man mentioned something that I didn’t. Which is grain filling. I’ve learned it’s much easier to use a sanding sealer and fill your grain prior to spraying the final finish material regardless of your chosen finish. This eliminates the need to sand between coats and the possibility of a sand through on sharper edges. It also shows any sanding marks or wiggles that need to be blocked out before spraying the final finish material.

There are many different ways to get where you want to be with this clear coating. You can use a high gloss material that have more solids than satin, and lay down a couple wet coats to fill the grain using the finish material. Then carefully sand it flat again before your final coats. Some switch to a satin, or use a flattening agent in the gloss material. And some just stick with the gloss , add a bit of reducer, and adjust the fan and pressure to achieve a low gloss matte finish. That’s what I prefer doing myself.

I prefer getting my grain filled with a fast drying sanding sealer first, then spray the finish.

Good luck to you….  Kirk

[buckeyebowhunter]

Thanks Kirk!

[Kirkll]

Thanks Kirk!

Above all.... be patient. Clear coating is a big learning curve. It's actually a trade all in itself.... There are so many different products to choose from and all of them have their own procedures. Some are more user friendly than others are, and the price range is HUGE. Just the art of learning which tip size to use and your flow rate vs air pressure, along with distance to your bow while spraying can all have an effect on the finished product.   You don't have to spend big dollars on a high end spray gun either. I've had great luck using the low cost harbor freight HVLP guns as long as i keep them wet.

The cleaning is a huge part of spray guns. I clean mine regularly and keep the gun in a coffee can full of lacquer thinner all the time. This may not be practical for guys that dont use them often. But i use mine weekly, sometime more. So keeping the gun wet avoids things getting gummed up..... Another very important thing is making sure you have a good water trap in front of your air gun. That compressed air has a lot of moisture in it. I run my water trap right in the spray booth and use a 10' whip on the gun...

[TC209X50]

The Portable spray booths available on Vevor and Amazon work decent as well and help with dust control. $50 on Amazon, just weigh them down on the corners so they done blow over on you.

[Bow man]

Thanks Bow man,  the reason for my question is I sprayed two coats yesterday (grain was filled last week). However the two coats I sprayed on yesterday have what look like dust nibs all over. Other than that the finish looks good. I have no spray booth here at my shop just spraying outside. It has been extremely dry and dusty here this summer and finding a day that isn't windy can also be a challenge.

Spraying outside would be difficult.  Do you have access to a garage either yours or maybe a friends?   Pull cars out, Hang the bow in there wet down the floor and put a box fan in a window

Here is the sandable filler sealer we recommend. works great with our product. https://tbirdarchery.com/shop/ols/products/thunderbird-filler-sealer-quart

[Bowjunkie]

I like to sweep my garage good the evening before I start, then on the day of, wet the floor before I mix up the finish. The instant I'm done laying down a coat of finish on the bow, I move it to a separate clean and 'still' room that hasn't been, and won't be disturbed at ALL while the finish cures. This gets it out of the spray room that may have had dust gremlins set airborne, and overspray, while spraying with compressed air. This has almost completely eliminated things in the finish that need sanded out. I intended to build a spray booth years ago, but this has been working well so...