Reviews

I have hesitated for the last 5 years with going from ML Campbell's Magnamax clear lacquer as clear topcoat... b/c it was bulletproof in applying. Even a novice can get great clear finish with the high VOC lacquets. BUT... without a dedicated spray booth, and expensive air mover (explosion proof fan), not to mention expensive HVLP equipment plus big compressor...

Yes, I have that. But it's getting harder to acquire high VOC clears. And there's zero portability of such a big compressor (7.5 HP w/ 80 gallon tank plus drier). I had a kitchen cab project in our old home that is now 1900 miles away. So I finally pulled the trigger and bought a Fuji turbine (Minimite 3 Platinum) from Phelps who unfortunately closed due to health issues. I had previously researched various water-based clearcoats. I called Target and had an hour long conversation with Seth. Both Seth and Jeff are incredibly generous with time and knowledge. I ordered the EM6000 in satin.

INCREDIBLE. FANTASTIC. I am literally excited to spray more with this rig AND Target's finishes.

Recoat time is great. Burn-in is great. Less sag/drip experienced. No fumes. Extremely simple clean-up with water.

Has compatibility with shellac if you want the slight ambering effect (for this project, kitchen cabs made of Bubinga), I chose to just clearcoat with the EM6000 satin. Didn't worry about grain fill.... the EM6000 satin gave more of a natural look to the Bubinga (test pieces with various ambering, including Sealcoat) convinced me to just clear coat with the EM6000.

Spray plan...I split it up into base components and wall (upper cabs) components. This way, I was able to manage almost all pieces sprayed horizontally. I was able to recoat almost without pausing. I applied 2 more finish coats on all 'faces'. Then repeat with the uppers.

Before spraying, I ran a mixer (but witnessed almost zero settling...unlike oil lacquer). I ended up only mixing once a day.

Easily got a 2 mil coat...looked like orange peel texture with modest 'bluing'. But within 30-45 min, it achieved full burn-in and it on to the next coat.

I HIGHLY recommend Target's products and customer service. Also, the Fuji turbine is a gem. It really complements finishing with Target's material. You absolutely won't regret it!

Goes on easily and love the fact that it’s 100% and non yellowing

My first time using this -- decided to try it on a bathroom vanity live edge top for the durability. This was a little trickier to spray than other Target Coatings (personal fav is EM6000). Here's what I found/experienced. Setup: Fuji Spray Q5, 1.5mm tip-set, pressure set to max, nozzle opened 1-1/2 turns; spray booth temp high 70s, humidity ~40%. Items: Live edge maple vanity top and small shelves. Process: sealed with shellac, cured overnight, sanded to 320; primed with EMCAT+ Si427 -- no issues, cured overnight. First coat of EMCAT+ EC2A not so good (see small shelf photo). Microbubbles I diagnosed as too high air pressure. Sanded after a few hours and turned the air down to ~60%. Second attempt better, but still not good (it stared as microbubbles and dried to appear a little bit like orange peel) - again, over atomized and perhaps sprayed too lightly. Third attempt after drying and sanding, I further reduced the air to about 35-40% and added ~10% SA5 Retarder and sprayed a tiny bit heavier. It came out perfectly (though in retrospect, I might also have tried the 1.8 mm tip-set). See third photo. :-) I welcome comments - I accept that my diagnosis might not have been spot on, though in the end, my corrective actions worked. Thanks Target Coatings!

The stuff is incredible. Lays out wonderfully, crystal clear, very forgiving. And I can accomplish all my coats in the span of a day with time to spare.I’ve been making furniture for about 20 years and started building guitars in the last couple years. I have tried many, many finishes. Once I gave this a shot on my last guitar build, I felt like I found the Holy Grail. As an added bonus, there were a couple times I had questions so I messaged target coatings and they gave me very thorough answers very quickly. The lacquer, and the customer service are both exemplary.

I have been using this product for years. It has never let me down. Highly recommended!

Once you dial in your sprayer, works like a charm. Great results.

I applied emtech primer and topcoat (EM6500) with an HVLP gun. The finished result on the cabinets is beautiful. The color match to the Benjamin Moore paint was spot on. The product is easy to apply and cleanup is remarkably quick and simple. Ordering and delivery were also made simple by Target Coatings. Truly a five-star product and company.

As a primer it’s great. As a filler I’m not so sure. You need to wait 1 hour between coats and as a filler it will take multiple coats. But that said I gave 4 stars because of its primer capabilities

Went on easy. Looked good even before buffing and polish.

Repeating my review here from the shop review, I am in the final stages of a $30K custom kitchen design project and THRILLED with the outcome. Using this pigmented lacquer. Finished these cabinets with HSF 5000 primer/grain filler (2 coats, sanded 220 between) , EM 6500 semi gloss tinted to SW "Green Black" (3 coats, sanded 320 between), topped with EM7000hbl (3-4 coats 500 sanded between). I followed Seth's guidance on tip sizes, spraying in colder conditions, etc., and these came out really exceptional! EMTECH Target Coatings are a dream to work with. I really appreciate Jeff and his guys - they are super responsive and helpful.

I have used other water based clear coats, but none come close to performing as highly as EM6000. Just the fact that it will adhere to undercoats without sanding and prevents "reveals" in the layered coats makes it the best for my musical instruments.

I am very satisfied with EM6000 Production Lacquer. I have applied this product using a Fuji HVLP sprayer, a conversion gun and by hand. Results are very consistent regardless of application method. Finish has a warmer look than the typical big box water based finishes.

I paint with a lot of darker colors and this provides a perfect CLEAR shell that protects beautifully without affecting the color

This stuff works great for priming and filling grain. Its still a good idea to water pop the surface first and I suggest three coats to achieve a perfectly smooth grain-free surface, sanded to 320 between coats. Two coats is great if you want to see just a "shadow" of the woodgrain.

Easy to apply, no fuss. Easy to clean off. Used before using EMTECH 8000 flat. Worked like a charm.

Easy to apply resulting in a hard and professional appearance

Easy to use, did not change the tint of the wood, dried like a dream.

Very happy with the Emtech finishes on the guitars I’m making. Used EM1000 before and after grain filler and then finished off with EM6000. Really impressive results.

I used this on a white oak cabinet that I had fumed with ammonia and sealed with EM 1000. This went on easily with a brush with essentially no runs. It was nice to be able to sand lightly and re-coat within a few hrs. This was a test piece before waking on kitchen cabinets I'm building. Very happy with how it worked on this cabinet. I'm planning to spray portion of kitchen project . I hope that works out as well as brushing but I'm new to spraying so wish me luck.

I used this on a white oak cabinet after fuming with 30% ammonium hydroxide. It went on smooth with no runs. As expected, it raised the grain requiring sanding before topcoating with EM2000. This was a test piece for kitchen cabinets I'm building. It passed the test!

Easy to use, I roll it on with a paint roller. goes on smoothly. easy clean up. looks great!

Worked very well with good coverage and flow out. I gave it a 4 star rating given that I had expected a slightly higher sheen for satin.

Title says it all

I have tried both the Em7000 and Em 8000. My opinion is that the water base products raise the grain too much for my liking. Then it is more sanding to get rid of of the lifted grain. Going back to oil base products

So far I have only done a test to see if the claims are true. They are. I sprayed four coats on some scrap Mahogany, which was dry and cured after 24 hours.