Post #707674 by AceExplorer on Tue, Feb 11, 2014 7:53 AM

I've never used real shellac, but I have used urethane from Lowe's. It dries to a hard and durable finish and responds very well to multiple coats if you need "thickness" to the gloss material. On my bare wood project, the first coat acted as a sealer. The subsequent coats were used to get a nice deep glossy finish.

There is a difference between urethane and polyurethane -- I think it has to do with indoor versus outdoor use and UV resistance, something like that. For my application, the urethane was ideal. The paint counter folks helped set me straight on which one to use.