A few years ago I used Maloof poly/oil on some small boxes made of cherry and maple, and the look was great – it looked positively buttery. I’m working on a cherry coffee table now, and I was thinking of using it, but I’m wondering about the durability for the table top. Has anyone used it on a table that gets heavy use? Or would it be safer to go with something like Arm-R-Seal?
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There is more to a poly/oil finish then just oil, there are additional resins and dryers added. For a very thorough evaluation of wipe-on finishes, look-up Chris Minick's article in FWW #178. From personal experience, about the only issue that I take with his evaluation is that Tried & True doesn't dry. If you use it as recommended by the manufacturer, it does dry. It needs to go on very thin and you need to exercise some patience. I used it on the floor below the desk at which I am working and it has been a beautiful non-film finish for the past five years. The key is care (wiping up spills) and how severely a surface is regularly treated which also applies to your coffee table. I have lived with a Watco Oiled coffee table for over 25 years and the finish looks great. Conversely, I have built tables for clients that have required a conversion varnish (nearly bullet proof) because of the type of service that they would see.
Sam's oil/poly finish is made from boiled linseed oil, polyurethane, and a solvent, in roughly equal parts. Because it is only about one-third varnish, it will take three times as many coats to build up a hard finish for a table top.
Get the beauty you want from one or two coats of the Maloof blend. Then add a couple of top coats of the poly or varnish of your choice.
You really can't build up a hard finish for a table top with the oil/varnish mixture, it's just too soft. It is applied, allowed to penetrate, and then all of the oil/varnish mix remaining on the surface is wiped off. That's certainly what is done with the Maloof chairs which just have a mellow glow, no film on the surface. And, yes, they do need refinishing from time to time, and can be sent back to Maloof to have it done.
Steve,I think Sam Maloof is a national treasure and has contributed greatly to the wood working universe. I could never afford a Maloof rocker, but I would dearly like one if there ever were a way to acquire it. I've never had the opportunity to meet him, but have read that he's really a nice guy.But I think the value of his work is much, much greater than the sum of its parts. He is completely self-taught. The methods he has developed are valid, but mainly in the way they have worked for him. I have a lot of reservations about his joinery techniques (despite the outward beauty of his rocking chair front leg to seat joints) and about the legendary Maloof finish. It is, after all, a run of the mill oil/varnish mixture, 1/3 oil, 1/3 polyurethane varnish and 1/3 turpentine (from his book).I religiously followed his description of his "finishing method" to finish a teak rocker I built (non-Maloof design). As all such finishes, it looked great when newly-applied and for the first few weeks. Then, anywhere there was any "abrasion," such as the tops of the arms, or the seat, the teak shed that finish like I had taken it down with steel wool. Right to bare wood.I sanded the whole chair down and refinished with nitrocellulose lacquer. Five years latter, it's still like new.Granted, teak can be a problem due to its natural wax and oil, but so can rosewood, which Sam uses (used) a lot. I think oil/varnish finishes are just a waste of time and I'm amazed when people get the mileage they claim from products like Watco and such.Maybe Sam really DOES have magic in his fingers!Rich
The oil finish is great for bringing out the beauty of the wood as others have said. It isn't good for durable table finish. It might be fine for a chair. Do as others have suggested, and wipe on a nice varnish topcoat.
The "maloof" finish can also be made from a non-poly varnish and the topcoat also which I much prefer.
As for minnick's article, I can't recall right now a huge shortcoming (like only testing poly varnishes maybe?) but there are better "texts" for finishes than that one. JUST MY opinion.Gretchen
nitrocellulose lacquer and a 5,000 dollar spay booth?
Just a comment.. I have several Collage girls here that no nothing about wood. They just mess it up! I use Oil and something for color.. Nothing happend that I could not fix with 220 grit and a new oil finish!
Edited 11/22/2008 1:55 pm by WillGeorge
Edited 11/22/2008 1:56 pm by WillGeorge
Will,"nitrocellulose lacquer and a 5,000 dollar spay booth?"I wish! No spray booth, just a garage with the door open.Yeah, there is something to be said about being able to quickly "freshen up" a finish after it's given you adequate service.But on that teak rocker, it came off in weeks like there was wax under it. Come to think of it, there was! Teak wood wax.Rich
I sort of hear you..
As a kid we did black Lacquer on 1950 or older cars with a spray gun.. My best friend almost died.. Lost a arm that was holding the spray gun.. Well, not lost it but very unusable.. YES he lit a cigarette!
We were just kids but did a GREAT pain job! My friend could do a perfect 'stripe' before that but he had to leard his skills all over using the left hand.
Gees!Turned the spray gun into a flame gun, huh?Rich
Yep.. He was more than OK..
OK.. so he never let me drive his old Harley Side Shifter!
His father was a very old Italian with connections and a expensive Packard in the driveway.. We never crossed his authority!
Edited 11/23/2008 10:40 am by WillGeorge
Here are the instructions for making and applying the "Maloof Finish"--which is really two finishes.Step 1: OIL/VARNISH -- Mix equal parts boiled linseed oil, raw tung oil and semigloss urethane varnish. Apply three to four coats one day apart, removing surplus oil as appropriate, to the raw timber.Step 2: OIL/WAX -- Add approx 2 handfuls of shredded beeswax to equal parts of boiled linseed oil and raw tung oil. Heat the mixture(CAREFULLY) just until the wax melts, in a double boiler on an electric hotplate. Apparently linseed oil has a very low flash point so do this outdoors in a clear safe area. The resultant mixture when cool should have the consistency of a heavy cream.
This mixture is applied vigourously with rags or by hand for three coats. Sam suggests that when your fingers start to get hot from the rubbing you are on the right track!!
Howie.........
Sam suggests that when your fingers start to get hot from the rubbing you are on the right track!!
Yep.. Like using a hand scraper!
Sam M. used his own blend of oil/varnish for years (and years). The proprietary blend available these days is simply an effort by a finish mfg. to capitalize on Sam's name by doing something for you that you can do yourself. I hope Sam is getting a decent cut of the sales.
You can whip up your own concoction by mixing roughly equal parts of any polyurethane with any kind of oil (boiled linseed oil works fine), with enough mineral spirits or turpentine to make it wipe easily. Start with one part of each.
If you want a more durable finish, simply add more polyurethane to the mix. Don't fret about the mixture -- since it can be changed as you go along. The 1:1:1 mix takes at least 4-5 coats.
For a finish for outdoor applications, substitute spar varnish and an oil with UV inhibitors (I use Clear Shield from Minwax).
Here below is a note I made from a magazine article from the early 1980's in which Sam freely revealed the ingredients of his "secret" finish.
The mix below yields a great finish, but over the years, I dropped the tung oil (hard to come by), and substituted poly for alkyd varnish (also hard to come by) with no adverse effect.
Remember, this is basically an oil finish with all the advantages (pops the grain, silky finish) along with the disadvantages (durability). However, the surface can be restored / refreshed easily by simply applying another coat.
**********************************************************************************
January -- 2001
THE SAM MALOOF FINISH:
Taken from a magazine article from 15-20 years ago (source not noted)
Mix the following in three equal parts, adding enough paint thinner to the mix to make it easy to wipe:
1) Raw, pure Tung Oil (not a so-called "tung oil finish')
2) Boiled Linseed Oil
3) Alkyd Varnish (not polyurethane)
NOTES: Raw, undiluted tung oil is not easy to come by. But the last time I checked, Woodcraft still carried it in gallons (about $40). This stuff is really thick and viscous (like heavy motor oil). Note that products labeled "Tung Oil Finish" usually have only trace amounts of real tung oil, and sometimes none at all.
I never quite understood why he mixed both linseed and tung oil, but it certainly does produce a beautiful finish.
Alkyd varnish. This is still available, but you usually have to get it from a real paint store, and it is usually buried on a back shelf. Regular Polyurethane works just as well.
For EXTERIOR APPLICATION: Just substitute a convention spar varnish (again , no urethanes) for the alkyd varnish. This is the version I have used most frequently, and it is terrific.
APPLICATION DIRECTIONS:
... Sand to 150 grit.
... Wipe on liberally, let soak for 5-10 minutes, wipe off excess.
... Use 4 applications.
... You can burnish the surface by rubbing in the final application with wet/dry sandpaper (320 or 400 grit)
... Sand lightly between coats (I generally use worn 220, or 320).
For touch-ups: 4/0 steel wool dipped in above mixture.
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"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
Edited 11/22/2008 9:44 am by nikkiwood
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