Has anyone had experience in preserving wooden wayside signage? The problem is the old paint on these signs is curling and falling off. These signs now inside are not exposed to the weather at least, but I would like some ideas in preserving what is there for the future. I have found on the net some clear coats with a flatting agents, has anyone has had experience with these products? Also, any suggestion would be appreciate. Thanks.

I had a well weathered depot sign years ago that I wanted to display in its "as is" condition, but it would shed paint chips if you looked at it crosswise. I gave it a couple of coats of ZAR brand satin finish polyurethane varnish, and it held together well thereafter.

A couple of considerations: all varnishes are somewhat yellow, and may turn the color of white signs. The solvents in the varnish I used didn't effect existing paint, but that may not be true in all cases. Also, you'll need to determine if satin finish is matte enough for your needs, or if you need dead flat. You may want to try a test on something of little importance first. If the solvents are a problem, you may want to try acrylic matte medium (sold at art supply stores). Model railroaders use this stuff as a water bassed adhesive for all sorts of sand and fuzz scenery material, so I don't see why it shouldn't work to stabilize paint chips. It's water clear, and the matte and gloss medium can be mixed to get the desired gloss level. The only concern with this material is the possible raising of the grain on bare wood.

I would ask the staff at a museum like the Museum of Western Heritage (formerly the Autry Museum of Western Heritage) what their recommendations would be. Or the staff at a western heitage site, like the California State Park at Bodie, that is being preserved in arrested decay.