Product Reviews
POR-15 Rust Preventative Coating…
…Because RUST never sleeps! Neil Young is a master of the obvious, making us wonder if he ever used POR-15. The sad reality of rust is especially true for those of us who live in the Northeast, also referred to by vehicle owners as the Salt Belt. In the winter, our roads are heavily salted […]
3-in-One® Garage Door Lubricant: Overhead Door Maintenance Tips
How to Use 3-in-One® Garage Door Lubricant If you have a paint shop, it likely has overhead doors on it. As they age, overheads collect dust and debris in the tracks, chain, hinges, springs and other moving parts. Throw in a little corrosion, and doors get loud, squeaky and downright clunky. Personally, I have 5 […]
Interior Products
The Best Clear Finish you may have Never Heard of: Vermont Natural Coatings
If you haven’t heard of Vermont Natural Coatings, this will sound kind of crazy. This small company located about 40 minutes from our Topcoat shop makes water based finishes that are fortified with whey – the protein that is a by-product of cheese making. Replacing Toxic Chems with Cheese? No Way! Way. PolyWhey™. And its […]
8 Often Disappearing Interior Painting Products Under $12
We have been saying it for years – “it’s not the elephants that will kill you, it’s the mosquitoes”. This means that usually it is not the bigger issues that cause the most problems. In the world of interior painting products, it is the smaller, seemingly innocuous issues that really sting. And the cumulative effects […]
Exterior Products
Painting Boral TruExterior® Trim
A quick and inconclusive ‘heads up’ about a recent experience we had painting Boral TruExterior® composite trim. We have been sharing in our Facebook Spray Group the progress on a large pre-finishing project, with about 6000 lf of 1×12 pine shiplap siding for a new barn build by a local custom builder. The siding stain is […]
Elastomeric Coating for Old Pressure Treated Decks
For decades, painters have wrestled with how to best refinish neglected, old pressure treated decks – without call backs. Pressure treated decks are common in the residential repaint segment, because the wood rarely rots, but often seems to take on every form of ugly just shy of rotting. Splitting and checking are typical in pressure […]
Sanding and Dust Collection
Unplugged: New Festool Hand Sanding Abrasives
Muscles not Motors: Festool Hand Sanding Line Grows in ’17 If you use soft Granat and synthetic steel wool much, check this out… Festool USA and Festool Canada will introduce a complete line of premium hand sanding products. We’ve been testing these handy new abrasives for many months now. While at first the thought seems […]
Festool Orbital Sanders Improved for 2017
2017 RTS and DTS400 Festool Orbital Sanders If you own previous versions of the Festool orbital sanders (RTS/DTS400EQ), those are still nice tools. No cause for alarm, but you may be interested in knowing… Festool has improved the functionality of these tools in the new generation for 2017. The new orbitals (RTS/DTS400REQ) sport a new […]
Wood Snobbery
Wood Snobbery
What do we do when we aren’t finishing things or testing products and creating content to share? The answer is pretty simple, we are on the road teaching others how to do, well, all of the above really. And many times, it points back to our long held commitment to wood snobbery. Our Prep to […]
A new resource for IPE enthusiasts
Due to the overwhelming response our ipe content has enjoyed on topcoatreview.com, the topic now occupies it’s own chunk of online real estate. If you are a ipe deck owner (at any stage of ownership) in need of professional guidance, we invite you to join us there.
All about Sprayers
Graco Ultra Handheld Airless Sprayer
2017: Year of the Comeback for Handheld Sprayers? There is a new line of Graco Ultra handheld airless sprayers for 2017. If you have used handheld sprayers in the past, keep reading because the technology has changed considerably. The new offerings from Graco are no longer called “ProShots”. And they have very little in common […]
Preview: Graco Ultra Handheld Sprayers
[Publisher Update: Graco Ultra Handheld Full Review now available] Graco’s 2017 lineup includes a total remodel of the handheld sprayer, now to be referred to as Graco Ultra (or Ultimate) Handheld Sprayers. We all recall the ProShots and TrueCoats from over the years. They’ve had their ups and downs. We’ve been working with handhelds for […]
Reader Questions
What About Getting a Perfect Finish by Sanding?
Thanks for all the great info on your website. My question: can I sand latex painted wood (trim, shelves etc.) with 1000 – 1500 grit after the final coat? I’ll be using the ETS 150/5. Is getting a perfect finish by sanding possible without using a sprayer? Thanks, Greg Hi Greg Getting a perfect finish […]
Graco Jet Roller Inquiry from New York
Eli from New York asks: I was wondering if you have used the Graco Jet Roller system? Scott answers: Hi Eli, Great question. We do use the Jet Roller, most commonly in our paint training program – Prep to Finish. It is a great system to teach students how to spray and back roll sheetrock […]
On Further Review
Pivit Tool for Ladders
Pivit Tool Could be the Best Under $100 Investment You Make If your work involves much use of extension ladders, then you’ve likely encountered awkward set up locations. The Pivit tool from ProVision is a safe, convenient and cost effective solution. A stout, wedge-shaped implement made of durable polypropylene, the Pivit weighs in at 14 […]
Top Tools for Fine Finishing
There are so many choices in products and tools for fine finishing, and of course, the products and tools define the process to a large extent. We are frequently asked which tools continue to rise to the top in our shop and in the field. Here is a compilation pulled from a recent cherry table […]
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Miracle Wipes: Go Home Clean I re-encountered one of my least favorite pet peeves this year on an interior painting project – a custom new construction that was very trim heavy. After days of sanding factory primed trim, caulking carpentry that was less than tight, and filling way too many nail holes, I started noticing […]
If you are looking for a good read that is a solid balance of interesting paint stories and straight up cool paint tool resources, the Festool paint magazine is worth flipping through.
Choosing the best tools for tasks is one way great craftspeople break away from the pack. Festool is well known for being the unmatched surface prep solution for efficiency and the most convenient customer experience. No one wants 80 labor hours of dirty prep in the kitchen when it could be done clean in 12. […]
Question from Minnesota Hi Scott It’s Eric up in Minnesota. You helped answer a lot of questions for me when I was building my IPE deck a couple years back. Well, it turned out great and thanks again for all your advice! I’ve been applying the Penofin Marine annually and it looks great but after […]
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