To be honest I am not a fan of micro-porous paints and question their validity. If the idea is to let 'the wood breathe' - whatever that means - or let the damp out then the proper solution is to remove the damp in the first place.

[quote author=Joiner link=1279924485/2#2 date=1282635821]One of the reasons SOFTWOOD joinery on old buildings has lasted for CENTURIES  
[quote]

More over, because the softwood, was slow grown, then FULLY  SEASONED , not kiln dried, and was correctly selected.....

Thanks for the replies folks. Nice to get some recommendations. Although the weather has delayed the job I thought I'd update y'orl with progress so far.
Went down to Brewers who recommended and sold me Sikkens Cetol Filter 7 plus. I bought the wallnut (dark) so I could cover the numerous imperfections in the oak.
Stripping went ok with Nitromors, really tedious getting all the gunk out of the panel grooves, but after my last disaster I was keen to get it right. Washed down with white spirit so as not to have to wait for ages with alternative of washing down with soapy water. (TIP: don't smoke  while doing this!)
Then thought I'd have a look at Sikkens web site and realised that Filter 7 is part of a two product system and really should have got some Cetol HLS Plus for the first application on the bare wood. So much for "advice and guidance from your retailer".

Had to wait ages for a dry day to apply first coat of HLS. The data sheet on the website warned that it would take at least 16 hours before recoatable - longer if humid, which of course it was.  And of course as I globbed quite a bit into the imperfections in the wood so wanted to make sure it dried out completely. Took at least 2 days before the "globs" were hard. So left it three days to make sure.

Having only consumed less than half the 1 liter tin I wondered if there would be any benefit to putting on an extra coat before the Filter 7 top coat. So decided to ring the Sikkens help line. (0800 052 2121).

What a pleasure it is to be answered almost straight away having navigated only one layer of menu and not having to pay 0870 call charges! Had a good chat about my previous problems, which the advisor thought might well have been partly due to me recoating before the base coat was thoroughly dry and forcing up drying solvent lifting the top coat. So definitely advised to make sure base coat was thoroughly dry. He said no problem applying multiple coats of the HLS basecoat as long as each coat is thoroughly dry - easier said than done in this humid weather.

So now done three base coats of HLS and must say the imperfections in the wood after my last disaster are almost covered, with the door a rich shade of brown. The main problem has been the weather so i've rigged up a big polythene sheet so that I can varnish even if rain is expected. Fortunately the doors (they are double doors) open inwards so I am reasonably protected.

So that's the situation so far, waiting for that third coat to dry thoroughly before moving on to the Filter 7 top coat. Panicing slightly 'cos would really like to be finished by the weekend, but I doubt that's possible.

Re the white architave, I bought Sadolin Superdec Satin which according to spec can be painted over existing paint - suitably prepared. A bit concerned that it advises against applying in damp conditions (it's water-born). Just wish I could get hold of Lasutect Venti 1-2-3 that I used before and was such an excellent product. I must say that except where there has been mechanical damage the architrave painting I did with Venti 1-2-3 many year's ago has lasted extremely well.

Ok I'll let you know how I get on in the next stage. Though i guess an update after 5 year's is the real test