3. Varnish is nice too but takes much longer than lacquer because it
dries slowly.

4. Clear polyurethane is hard, lasts long, hard to redo and looks like
plastic.


3 and 4 in your list are redundant. Polyurethane is a type of Varnish.
Polyurethane only starts to look "plastic" (IMHO) if to many coats are
applied.

--
Stoutman
http://www.garagewoodworks.com/index.htm
(Featuring a NEW look)