Official Luthiers Forum!

I don't use a lot of shellac and prefer to make up small batches from flakes to keep things fresh. Where are people finding good quality flakes at reasonable prices?

I get mine from Vijay at Shellac Finishes.

http://www.shellacfinishes.com/product/dewaxed-shellac-flakes/

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Three good places:

http://www.shellacfinishes.com/product/ ... ac-flakes/

https://www.shellacshack.com/

http://homesteadfinishingproducts.com/p ... s/shellac/

I get mine from Vijay too. Helps that he's a good friend of mine.

I have bought from the one with obvious web address, shellac.net

https://www.shellac.net/Shellac_ordering_list.html

Their super blonde is just right They also have black shellac, but I did not have much luck with it. And they have 190 proof DA at a reasonable price.

Ed

shellac shack, and another place in so cal forgot adr.

Regarding the alcohol, if you live in or are driving distance from a state that allows the sale of grain alcohol (Everclear or other brands), it is worth the effort to use it instead of denatured.

Hi Don,
Aside from the fact that pure grain is non poisonous does it make the shellac work better? I could slip over the line into Delaware and get a bottle.

I am not Don, But if you use DA which work great as solvent, do yourself a favor and use kleen strip Green. It is the least toxic (their normal DA is pretty toxic.) kleen strip Green is almost all ethanol instead of half methanol. A lot of hardware stores carry it.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Kleen-Strip-Green-Denatured-Alcohol/23232780?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=897&adid=22222222227040759413&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=100302717394&wl4=aud-566049426665:pla-238886850994&wl5=9033318&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=112354565&wl11=online&wl12=23232780&veh=sem&gclid=CjwKCAjwpuXpBRAAEiwAyRRPgfAYMqKL6OK_vYhRTvj7m8_k244dtFkPi5YHGLbCZYw8eCnuBGtkOhoCyjcQAvD_BwE

_________________
http://www.Harvestmoonguitars.com

Clay—

I don’t know of any performance differences. I just know I don’t enjoy the smell of denatured alcohol, and being around it very much gives me a headache. Everclear, in contrast, is delightful. It smells great when mixed with shellac, I don’t worry about getting it on my skin, and it doesn’t give me headaches.

Not so sure about the Klean-Strip Green's composition- here's a link to its data sheet:

http://www.kleanstrip.com/uploads/docum ... 1625.6.pdf

I've been using Behkol for awhile and while it's not too bad IME, wish I could use Everclear.

Last shellac I got was from shellac.net (Kusmi buttonlac and Platina flakes) and their product
and service was good, including phone support for some questions I had.

Carey - The safety data sheet you posted is not for Klean-strip Green, it's for their standard denatured alcohol.

_________________
Jim Watts
http://jameswattsguitars.com

I'm familiar with the kleenstrip green denatured alcohol and have recommended it a few times here. It is certainly an improvement over regular denatured from a toxicity standpoint and may be a reasonable alternative to Everclear if Everclear has no other benefits for making shellac.
Thank you to all who have responded to my inquiry. I will check with the sources you have recommended.
Here is the MSDS for kleenstrip green:

http://www.vercounty.org/MSDS/SDS-EMA/8 ... ol_SDS.pdf


P.S. - My guess is the "trade secret" withheld on the SDS is hydrogen dioxide.

[quote="Jim Watts"]Carey - The safety data sheet you posted is not for Klean-strip Green, it's for their standard denatured alcohol.[/quote]

Yes, my mistake. I see Clay S. has posted the correct MSDS for the 'Green' above.

shellac.net here.

_________________
Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/

I’m a big fan of Wood Essence
woodessence.com

Paul

Not that the places mentioned are not great, but also a good place is www.toolsforworkingwood.com.

_________________
Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

Lat time I bought shellac it was button shellac from a company in the UK called Rothko. I used to just get the flaked stuff from LMI when ordering other things.

shellac.net for me too. I kinda like their old timey looking website.

_________________
formerly known around here as burbank
_________________

http://www.patfosterguitars.com

LOL that is so true. Something ironic and funny about referring to a website as 'old timey' but I get it

Yeah, it really is nice and straightforward with no annoying flashy stuff I also like that they sell 1/4lb bags. It lasts me a long time, but not long enough that I have to worry about it going bad like with 1/2lb bags.

I checked out most of the places that people mentioned, but found a better price on eBay with a guy in Indiana (Joshua Weller, PO Box 134, 735 spruce St. Potlatch, ID 83855, United States Ebay seller - Wellermart). I bought 1/2 pound of blonde flakes and a 1/2 pound of Garnet flakes, and the total including shipping was a little over $31. Most of the sites I visited listed a pound of blonde shellac for about $30+/- but the shipping in some cases pushed it over $50 (shellac.net - $56.25).
Weller sells quantities as small as 2 oz. but appears to charge the same shipping and handling ($4) as for a pound.
The shellac I received seemed fresh and dissolved quickly and completely. It also dried quickly when applied F.P. style.

10 years ago I got some blond flakes that would not dissolve, even after a month. Found out that if they get hot during shipment, this problem can come up. So order it in cold weather to be safe.

Has anyone else had this come up?

I wonder if refrigerating shellac (mixed or flakes) would extend it's shelf life? Does anyone do this?

Edit:
Surfing the net a little bit I found this quote from Jeff Jewitt:

"Dry shellac flakes store indefinitely under proper conditions, but contrary to what you may hear, it won't store forever. Given enough time, especially under hot, wet conditions, dry shellac reacts with itself to form polymers that are insoluble in alcohol. Shellacs that have been dewaxed are more prone to this. You can extend the usable life of dry shellac flakes by storing them after purchase in a cool, dry area -- a refrigerator is best. A test for suspected old shellac is easy -- simply dissolve the flakes in alcohol. Most shellacs should be totally dissolved within three days. If you see a gelatinous mass after this time, the shellac is past its usable life and should be discarded (don't confuse natural wax with this). If you just purchased it, return it to the company you bought it from. Sometimes in summer months, shellac will cake together. This is known in the industry as "blocking" and is not a sign of bad shellac. Break up the shellac with a hammer and dissolve it in alcohol as usual."

Hmmm I was under the impression that in button or flake form the stuff would last forever but mixed up you got about 3 months.

No?