Just got done carving some signs. Wanted to seal it with shellac before pouring epoxy but didnt have enough. Stupidly sprayed water based poly as an alternative. Learning epoxy doesnt adhere to poly well. Havent poured anything yet. Depth of pour is .125”. What should I do now? 
I don’t know that epoxy won’t bond to CURED water-based poly but if you’re unsure, cover you poly with shellac and then the epoxy.
Personally, I’d wait a few days for the poly to cure and take my chance with only the epoxy.
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Thanks. Gonna let it cure a day or two, then shellac and pour.
Ended up waiting one day and shellacked. Only issue was the bleeding. I must gave not sprayed well enough in these thin lines. Used mica powder for the color.
@Clt49er The other issue to look at with shellac is that the sprays are much too diluted and may be waxed. Ideally, you want unwaxed shellac, 1 pound cut, brush on.
Good point. Used Zinsser shellac spray which is supposedly dewaxed. But I should have brused in those lines. Thx
@Clt49er Zinsser makes a product marketed as spray shellac and SealCoat, which is a dewaxed product. Both of the aerosols are very, very diluted so that they can be sprayed from a can. The do the job, but require several coats to be an effective sealer. A good one pound cut of dewaxed will do the job in one, maybe two coats.
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How about laquer instead? Like the idea of a spray and quick dry.
@Clt49er You can get lacquer sealer in a spray. Not to talk down to you, but you must keep in mind that any product put into a spray can has to be very diluted to get it to spray from a very small nozzle with light pressure.
To give you an example, I buy custom spray cans of pre-cat lacquer from a wholesaler in town. I use it for touch ups. I tried using it for picture frames. It was pretty much impossible to get the surface wet enough to get a good finish without runs. Using my HVLP gun, proper thinning and settings, I can get a very good finish in 2 coats.
Even as a sealer, you have similar issues. Most of the product in the can is a thinner. In the case of shellac, it is alcohol. In the case of lacquer, it is lacquer thinner. Neither of those thinners is doing anything to seal the wood. In fact, both of them are grain raising.
Brush on 1-pound cut of Sealcoat will dry in a few minutes. Spray will dry a bit quicker, but yield poorer results. Your call.
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Roger that. Thank you!!
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