Lowes still carries Formby's products, including their Furniture Refinisher.

>Teak Oil blend shellac ?!?

No offense, but it sounds like you've been confused by the misleading labels on these products.

BTW, Minwax acquired Formby's some years ago, before it was acquired by Sherwin-Williams. There are about six major manufacturers of finish and paints that have swallowed up via merger and acquisition most of the labels out there.

Thank you for the replies. I mis-typed regarding the Teak Oil blend shellac - I meant teak oil blend varnish, which I understand is what most 'teak oil' hand-wiped finishes actually are - a blend of varnish containing a percentage of teak oil. the Formby's one I used 20 years ago has held up amazingly well on the pieces I still have (several sold over the years) and I'm hoping that the now-owned-by-Minwax Formby's will do the same.

Is the current formulation comparable to that of 20 years ago?

Thanks again for the replies.

Most don't contain a drop of tung oil. Formby's is simply a thinned varnish. Not that that's a bad thing, it's just the only tung oil is on the label.

Here is a link that might be useful: Oil finishes

Just to clear up some possible misconceptions about varnish. Varnish is a combination of a resin and a drying oil. In the old days woodworkers made their own by boiling these on a stove with a solvent, usually turpentine. Linseed oil, (also boiled) is a drying oil, as is tung oil, walnut oil and others. Various resins have been used over hundreds of years, including polyurethane, a relatively recent "synthetic" resin. I, personally, use an old formula varnish made with tung oil and phenolic resin. I've looked for years for this formula and it wasn't easy to find a source. There are several well-known commercial varnishes (mostly marine, "spar" varnishes)with tung oil added as well as some that contain phenolic resins.

For many many years wiping varnishes have been made by diluting varnish with oil and turpentine (or other solvent) in equal proportions and either wiping or brushing it on.

Every varnish is different and has a different feel. Brushing varnish is a minor art, but the right brush always helps.

Other minor misconceptions you might have about removing/replacing shellac or lacquer finishes is easily remedied and not very difficult to do. If you buy quality products (don't worry about particular brands you have used in the past) you shouldn't have many problems.

-Richard

Shellac is "spirit varnish", and contains no oil.
I think the Formby's product is called "Formby's Furniture Refinisher" not refinishing fluid.
Casey

The terminology gets a bit sloppy and is certainly not helped by centuries of finish chemistry and manufacturer's labels.

When most people think of "varnish" they are referring to a product produced by heating an oil with a resin to create a new substance. This substance is then thinned to create a brushing or wiping consistency. So:

heat
Resin + Oil ------> Varnish

Varnish + some thinner ---> brushing varnish
Varnish + more thinner ---> wiping varnish

1 part varnish + 2 parts (additional) oil + 6 parts thinner --> Danish oil (more or less, depending upon mfr formula) teak oil, antique oil, etc.

The common oils are : Linseed, soy, and tung.

The common resins are: urethane, alkyd, and phenolic, or some combination. Arcane formulas for violin varnish, etc., would use natural resins, but we're unlikely to see those in a can anywhere.

The thinner is usually a petroleum distillate such as mineral spirits.

Some people call anything that dries by evaporation a "lacquer." So that would include shellac (sometimes labelled padding lacquers) and some even stretch it to include acrylic finishes (the so-called water borne lacquers, that cure only partially by evaporation). But when most people think lacquer, they think of nitrocellulose lacquers, or perhaps CAB lacquers.

It's a shame there is such confusion. It's one of the things that makes finishing more complex (and hated) than it really needs to be.

The wiki article on "varnish" is pretty complete and accurate.
Casey

Here is a link that might be useful: Wiki Varnish

You're right. Here's a fish, enjoy your meal.

https://www.howardproducts.com/images/products/RAF.png

Thanks for the Howard Products tip. Checked out their website and going to give them a try!

Just like you, I had positive past experiences years ago with using Formby's Refinisher, and decided recently to give it another go... But, it's no longer sold. Formby's "recipe" or "formula" IS available, though. I'd list it here, but my keyboard is acting up. Just do a Google search for the SDS (Safety Data Sheet) for Formby's Refinisher. The best formula I found was on the msds.digital.com website. It was dated 10/11/2016, and gives exact percentages of Formby's Refinisher ingredients. The last 2 ingredients comprise less than 2% of the Formby's Refinisher liquid, so I left those 2 out. The first 3 ingredients are 98% of Formby's, and are available in any hardware store. So, YES, you can mix up your own Formby's! I did, and it's exactly like the Formby's I used to buy years ago. Hope this helps.

I'd check out varieties of lacquer thinner, that's roughly the same products as what was in Formby's. You might find one with similar proportions of solvents.

I saw Minwax Furniture Refinisher at Lowe’s and I’ve heard it’s the exact same thing, which would make sense since they acquired Formby’s.