The beauty of gel stain comes from the thick urethane which can carry a lot of color to any surface but that color must be sealed in with top coat.
No stain gel top coat.
Also mentioned no sanding in between gel stain coats but yes sanding lightly with 400 grit between top coats and of course no sanding the final top coat.
This could be due to using a light that 1 needs bulbs changed 2 just isn t strong enough due to low quality 3 if cordless the rechargeable battery is no longer good.
If applying stain exteriorly top coating with an exterior clear finish is strongly recommended.
Apply a liberal coat of gel stain with a firm synthetic brush or lint free rag and work the stain across and into the grain uniformly feathering out streaks while stain is wet.
Gel stain is an oil based urethane that includes a protective top coat.
Continue doing daily layers of stain in the same way until you can no longer see streaks in the finish.
No sanding or de glossing required to apply this.
At last a stain resistant gel top coat that has the muscle to keep your enhancements looking fresh.
Each coat of stain needs about 24 hours to dry so plan accordingly.
In all of my experiences i ve had to apply 3 4 coats of gel stain.
I like to use high performance top coat water based over this stain.
Almost a no prep product just clean and remove any wax or grease.
However since one is water based and the other is oil based you must wait at least 3 days to apply the water based poly.
This is a water based top coat so you have to wait 3 days after doing the oil gel stain.
Wipe brush often on a lint free rag to remove excess stain.
This was the gel stain top coat i chose to finish my kitchen and bathroom cabinets.
I also spray painted the metal bases at this point.
Clean up with a washcoat.
Think of stain as the color and top coat as the sealer and protectant.
What kind of top coat can i use with gel stain.
All stains need a top coat.
If the stained finish is still tacky wait another day or so to apply the poly.
A rough surface there still traps more stain pigment particles than on other surfaces.
Take a serious stand against tough stains with young nails stain resistant gel top coat.
Clean up and cure time.
For use on acrylic and hard gels.
I just bought the arm r seal as he recommended and we will see how it goes.
Excellent for flooring and heavy use kitchen table tops etc.
Don t expect gel stains to get you out of sanding end grain to a finer grit.
If this top coat cracks when used on gel it s due to your gel polish not being fully cured when this is applied over it.