Shellac problems

I know shellacking handle bar tape has been discussed before under the Mixte thread, but I didn't run across my specific question anywhere else.

So I applied 2 coats of amber shellac to my cork bar tape. I loved how it was looking, going from clown nose red to a deeper almost burgundy.

Problem is, I applied my final coat last night around 8:00pm to finish it off. My roommates and I don't have the air-conditioning on, so it was about 87 degrees in the apartment. Thinking it'd probably be better for the shellac to be somewhere cooler I moved it out onto the porch and then left it out there overnight (without checking to see that it was supposed to rain). When I went to grab my bike this morning my bar tape had an awful white-ish mottling all over. Talk about disappointing...

Anyone have any ideas about what happened?

Shellac is supposed to be waterproof. Did this mottling occur from getting wet hours after I applied it, or did my shellac go bad sitting inside in 85+ degree air (in a closed container)? I just bought the can recently.

Also, I've heard you can take it off with denatured alcohol. Would it be better to buy some and try the process again, or should I just go get some new tape?

Thanks in advance.

Dab a little new shellac on a small spot to see if the white mottling disappears.
If it does, then first leave the bars sitting under a vigorous FAN for a few hours to completely dry that last coat. Then you can buy some CLEAR shellac and put on a third coat and let dry overnight with the FAN on it on high.

The 87 degrees with no air circulation was not good for drying. Air conditioning would be ideal, but a fan will help next time.

If a new coat of clear shellac doesn't eliminate the white mottling, then perhaps the shellac just needs to dry more thoroughly with the help of a fan.

It will be difficult to impossible to remove the existing two coats with denatured alcohol. I say this because I've removed little dabs of dried shellac from my metal handlebars with it- and it takes FOREVER to scrub even a speck of shellac off, though it does the job eventually. It would be way less work to put on new tape than try to remove 2 coats of shellac with alcohol.

I'll give this a try!

Just out of curiosity, why do I need a clear coat of shellac?

I checked with my DH, Leebob, and that's basically what he says too - throw on some more shellac and make sure it dries thoroughly, in a reasonably dry environment.

He's seen that mottling happen when he shellacs his bar tape in damp weather, but slapping on another coat in drier conditions takes care of it.

As for the clear shellac that Lisa suggests, I suppose that's assuming that you're happy with the current color and would rather not make it deeper, I would guess clear shellac wouldn't change the current color much. You could always use the amber shellac again and make it a much richer color.

You're my heroes (heroines?)!

You saved Remy the Mixte from being humiliated at the bike rack. Muchas gracias.

It looks great!!

Excellent :cool:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jobob

As for the clear shellac that Lisa suggests, I suppose that's assuming that you're happy with the current color and would rather not make it deeper, I would guess clear shellac wouldn't change the current color much. You could always use the amber shellac again and make it a much richer color.

---

Yes, that's exactly why I suggested the clear shellac topcoat, i assumed you didn't want the color any darker.

Wow, that photo is great to show the before/after happy ending!

And it's quite a difference!

It was a relief to get such quick responses to ease the horror of what I'd done to the tape.

My roommates saw the mottling and later did a double-take once I'd fixed it.

Brilliant.