One of the woodworkers that was mentioned on another thread uses this Sherwin Williams Lacquer... Thoughts? It comes in dull rub. Here's part of an email he sent to me. (This surface is not for cutting on) "" It is used for restaurant tables, counter tops and islands where the primary use is for service purposes and not for direct cutting. It is available in matt or what sherwin calls dull rub, semi gloss and gloss. 99% of all our blocks using a hard surface finish use the dull rub laquer. The catalyst adds hardness. It is water and stain resistant like waterlox but unlike waterlox it is hard and clear. Waterlox yellows the block. Most people who have hard surface finishes use a cutting matt or block and store it under the top or in a drawer. " Sounds good. I wonder how it wears and also if you can do small repairs by sanding and refinished or if you'd have to do the whole top. I'll call again next week. Maybe I can get a sample piece. I like that it comes in dull rub and supposedly doesn't yellow the block. Here is a link that might be useful: Sher-WOOD Catalyzed Lacquer

I've been painting most of my life. I use Sherwin Williams exclusively as they give me great pricing as a contractor. However I'm a fan of Benjamin Moore and generally steer clear of the "cheap paints" such as Behr , Valspar and some others... respectively. I'll give credit where it's due through an unbiased if it works it works attitude disregarding what others say because a lot of times they're only being brand snobs. As mentioned Im not a personal fan of Behr products they seem to be harder to brush , thick, yet... somehow runny and the longevity/ durability comes up short compared to more expensive... premium brands. With that being said Behr masonry, stucco, and brick paint is actually a really good product. I've used it numerous times and it's my preferred product for brick, concrete and stucco applications. I painted some outdoor picnic tables (concrete), a retaining wall, concrete steps and a stucco house... all have to this day held up suprisingly well. I rarely if ever promote Behr products, but this one in particular is quality, and for the price that's just a plus.

We did veneer plaster for a couple of reasons. In our regional area, no one does it. We had to go to a specialty supplier and order it in. We found someone who trained in Maine to install it and the only reason it was a bit more expensive than drywall is because our original framing was uneven and we ordered 5/8" thick sheets. I had a pretty strong aversion to drywall after the adventures with mold. Veener plaster is freakin' gorgeous, perfectly smooth and we would do it again in a heartbeat. The feel of it perfectly matches the rest of the house - which is all 1920's plaster. Here, people call the supposedly water resistant drywall "blueboard", so I was surprised by what it looked like (gray, gray and more gray) and that it was made up of two slightly different layers and that it is much harder and denser than drywall. It works pretty well as a sound deadener too! @casey Wow, that is really nice!

I personally liked the Woodwright...I got it from a local lumberyard at a relatively decent price and the install was a snap. I wouldn't worry about the longevity of the Fibrex, I know that they invented it in 1970 and tested it for 25 years before making windows out of it...Andersen has been around longer than any manufacturer (since 1903) and for obvious reasons; they wouldnt release something that would fail. Side note: make sure you do order it with SmartSun because that will qualify for the new energy tax credit. I'd personally stay away from Fiberglass unless you like to maintain your windows...Just like any quality Fiberglass entry door, you will need to paint and maintain ANY fiberglass product, regardless of "coating systems." Read the warranties....Unfortunately, this is a FACT. From opinions I've heard and research on the web be wary of the Pella line as i'm not sure if the class action lawsuit against their aluminum clad product has fizzled or not....I do know that if you do ANY search on Pella problems waaaaayyy too many pages come up with customer complaints. I'd stay away from that. I'd personally wonder why any company uses Aluminum to clad wood...why don't we clad our homes with aluminum anymore??? hmmmmm