: Redhd,

: I respect every message of yours that I have read on this board including the
: last post.

Thanks Paul..! As I do yours... We just come from two different mind-sets..

: This is all that I will say further on this subject: Bob Flexner did not
: write a book on *his* ideas of finishes. His book is based on the
: *chemistry* behind wood finishes. I agree that the chemistry is not the
: whole story and the book discusses how to apply the chemistry finishing
: wood and gives suggestions to the end user of the information as to how to
: use the available finishes. Very little of the books is actually opinion
: and where it is his opinion, he plainly states it.

Might be a worthwhile read then.. I don't always take the written methods for facts... because seldom has anyone tried EVERYTHING and so there's always a little door open somewhere for more experimentation... And it gives me something to fiddle with...

: I have been working with wood on and off for approx. 20 years myself, as a
: hobbiest, and until I read this book, I never understood why things that
: happened when I tried to stain or apply a film finish over a certain piece
: of wood something would happen and I would have to try another idea, or
: why things did work correctly.

I occasionally thump my head against those same walls.. yes..!!

: Like my dad used to say when I was a kid and asked him why he read so much,
: "When you stop reading and learning, that's when you truly die."

I agree nearly totally... but if you only learned what's been written about... nobody would ever discover anything... or find new methods or improve on old ones.

Thanks for the exchange.. It's nice to get forced to think a little once in a while... Look forward to continuing this discussion when I've finished my experimentation... Hopefully something good will come of it...

Rehd

P.S. ( o.k., maybe I read just a little.. )