I have just finished all the prep work on a new dining room table. The top consists
of a gorgeous 2″ thick bubinga slab . Although I have been
a woodworker for 30+ years, this is my first bubinga piece and I have no experience
with the best finish to use. Since I have a good amount of money invested in it,
I want to get as much advice as I can prior to this final finishing step. All tips
are welcome.
Thanks
Dave (seattle area)
Replies
In 2002 I finished a coffee table in bubinga/padouck. I used three coats of Danish oil (Rustin's). It's an easy wipe on finish and with nice low lustre appearance. My experience is that it is perfectly resistant to water, coffee and other spills. If the surface becomes too scratchy I sand lightly and apply two fresh coats. (we do put our feet up on the coffee table) I've done this twice since 2002, last time just recently.
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Dave,
There are many ways you could finish this. It really depends on the look you want it to have, filled pores, high gloss, "in the wood" or film finish? Also the protection and repairability you want.
In short more info is needed.
Rob
A dining room table is generally considered to be more a "piece of furniture" than a kitchen table, although both are used in a similar way.
The dining room table is generally more formal and requires a finish with a more "formal" look and feel.
Lacquer is the traditional finish for dining room tables. It has all the characteristics required - unrivaled durability, beauty second to none and straight-forward application (spraying).
Lacquer can be applied to look like a close-to-the-wood finish, leaving pores "open" and part of the charm, similar to a brand new oil finish, but never dulls and never needs "refreshing. Or it can be applied as a full-film finish with pore filler and rubbed out to any degree from soft satin to mirror gloss.
Bubinga is wonderful to work and finish. It's extremely forgiving. I've finished it both ways. I think I lean toward the close-to-the-wood look, but only barely.
Rich
Rich and Rob-Thanks for your replies. This table will not be used daily. I am happy to just
look at it, but my wife wouldn't go for that. We do not have kids
at home, but we do have family gatherings and my wife told me I can't
"treat it like your car that sits in the garage and is seldom driven". That said, I have usually finished with simple
oil and wax type finishes. I have used brush on poly and wipe on poly a few times.
At the moment, I dont have a spray setup. I dont know if brush on lacquer
is an option? I do want a natural look, not glossy. To be honest, I guess I want people
who see it to be drawn to walk over and feel it and go "wow". But I have to be practical and realize
it will get used and needs some level of durability.
I will probably just have to sedate myself
when we have a large gathering around the table (which is roughtly 4' x9').thanks
dave
Single malt scotch makes a good sedative for such occasions.
I'm in the same boat...bought some quarter-sawn figured bubinga and I'm making a dining table. It was 2" thick, but had to plane it down to 1 1/2" thick...it was 175 lb's. I've been playing with some scrap and like the look of 1 coat of Tung oil, followed by polyurethane. It does seem to accent the wood and will protect as well...but then again I'm VERY new at this!
Well, you've already been given some great choices for the bubinga. What you need to do is finish a few test boards, and decide which is best for you.
Jeff
mtvernon,
My advice:
next time you get a 2" thick 4 foot by 9 foot piece of bubinga, forward it to me and I will be glad to test various finishes for you. Of course, there will only be a small piece left when I'm done. ;)
If I may ask, did you get the bubinga from Gilmer? I have seen some smokin pieces on their website with what they aptly call "atomic" quilt.
Lee
Lee
I was at my supplier Wednesday, picking up a load of plywood. Owl Hardwoods in Des Plaines, Illinois. Lately, he's been carrying more and more large, exotic slabs. He had an entire flitch of bubinga, about 42" in diameter, all sawed 8/4, about 12 feet long. He also has slabs 4 feet wide and wider, chained to steel building support columns, that are 16 to 20 feet long. Absolutely amazing and beautiful wood. They also have a flitch of a species I've never seen before, Pao Fero. It has greens, purples, and dark garnet reds running through it, and hard as a cannonball.
I'm thinking about a new desk that I need to make for myself!
Jeff
Jeff,
That Pau Ferro is nice stuff. Kind of a close match to Brazilian Rosewood with the purples, greens, reds. Widely used for guitar fingerboards. Not many people seem to know about it. I think FWW did an article a while back on building a humidor and the author used pau ferro veneer for the boxes. Really killer stuff.
Here is a bubinga photo from Gilmer's site - this slab is 2 X 63-67 X 194". Only $5720
View Image
What a dining table that would make!
Lee
$5720, huh. Is that all. What a bargain!
You are right, though. Beautiful stuff. Just too rich for my blood. I'll have to wait for the right customer to get one of those babies. And, I'd have to get a shipment from Philip so I'd have a high end plane to flatten the high end table.
I'm taking a break right now from the shop. I'm working on the biggest job I've ever sold. Big library in a 5600 square foot home. The ceilings for this job are at 12 feet, and they're the lowest ones in the house. My first time working with alder, too. House looks like a Montana retreat, with a western rustic theme throughout. Real nice. I'm doing floor to ceiling cabs, bookshelves, and raised panel wainscotting with Knotty Alder. Fun stuff.
Talk to you soon.
Jeff
and here is one a bit bigger than that-with full blown Pommele figure. 2" X 72" X 11'.
Pom,
Very nice. Hope to see some completed photos of that slab with finish on it.
Lee
Sadely, a lot of it was cut up for luthier sets-but I preserved the cream only for my customers who knew only to sell it to folks who meant to make signiture tables.
Kind Regards,
That is where I usually go, Jeff. I picked up a stunning piece of bubinga that has all sorts of wavy grain. It will be the tops of two maple and bubinga end tables. I was hoping you would have picked up that big disc and turned it into a picnic table for the Tull BBQ.I find the wood at Owl a lot easier to pick through than at Badger or Hardwood Connection, although both have great guys there.I saw that Pao Fero the other day, too. I have never even heard of it.
Edited 1/18/2008 10:06 pm ET by ThreePuttJoe
Yep, as soon as I saw that huge disc, my head was spinning with table ideas. Only probably I could foresee is that I'd need a forklift just to get it in a house.
I only go to Owl for plywood. Their prices on hardwood insult my intelligence. Most of the hardwood I use is lumber I've milled and dried myself. If I am short on a particular species, I get it from Badger. Owl surfaces all of their hardwood, and they don't even flatten one side first. I prefer to get my lumber rough when I have to buy some.
And, in the next few weeks, I'm going to Woodmizer near Stevens Point, Wi, to check out first hand the lineup of sawmills, and I will be purchasing the one that suits my needs the most. I want to add selling hardwoods for woodworkers to my reportoire here. I have the land, and the sources for logs. I'll be putting in a Nyle kiln, also, to control the quality of the lumber.
blah, blah, blah. I can go on for hours on this subject.
Jeff
Would love to see you set up a wood business! I am only a hobbyist, so places like Owl, Badger and Hardwood Connection are really my only resources.
It'll help me fuel my addiction for wood, as well as offer another small profit center for my business in this ever changing business environment.
Jeff
I made a bubinga topped hall table last year and I used the poly/oil finish from Sam Maloof. I applied 4 coats with 320 grit sanding between coats and was very happy with the result. I attached a couple of pictures.
I've done several Bubinga jewelry boxes and used danish oil (2-3 coats) and several coats of wax. They came out great. Of course my boxes wont get the "traffic" a dining room table would so take that into consideration.
Brian
mtv,
Not to take anything away from the other posters, but I have used both the Sam Maloof and the danish oil/wax on pieces. While both finishes look exceptional, I don't believe either will stand up to the daily rigors of a dining table.
Since you mentioned that you do not have spray equipment, if you are looking for a nice thick brushable film finish you might try Behlen's rock hard table top varnish. Only comes in gloss, but after 3 coats you could wet sand with 600 grit and then buff with wax and 0000 steel wool for a finish that begs to be touched. I finished my dining table with it 10 years ago and it's still going strong. Just keep the kids from doing their homework with a ball point pen on the table (DAMHIKT)
Just my $.02
Lee
Edited 1/17/2008 11:05 pm by mapleman
mapleman, dave, RoboguyI second the recommendation for Behlens Rock Hard. And I would use it in preference to any other varnish type of finish.I would use that as the FIRST choice on a kitchen table. It would be second choice on a dining table to lacquer. Of course, only a full (thick) film finish is possible with it.A Sam Moloof type of oil/varnish finish is very easy to apply and would be beautiful on the bubinga also and probably would meet the needs of a lightly-used piece. It would not be anywhere as durable as lacquer or full-film varnish. It would need to be "refreshed," maybe yearly, but a reapplication with 4-0 steel wool, then wiped "dry" is not that much of a task.Whatever the oil/varnish mixture, I would make sure that linseed is at least part of the oil component as it will develop the bubinga color more than tung will. Or use a linseed oil application first to develop the color.If a commercial product is used, linseed is almost guaranteed to be the oil component, no matter what the "name" of the product, unless it's actually labeled 100% "pure" tung. Commercial oil/varnish or rubbing varnish preparations are called "tung oil this or that" because they harden to resemble a hardened real tung oil finish, but most of their oil is linseed.Rich
Edited 1/18/2008 6:34 am ET by Rich14
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