Replies

1. 
   YesMaam27577 | Dec 06, 2009 04:06am | #1

   Paste wax.

   It will add a bit of extra protection, and will give that "pleasing satin finish" you're seeking.

   I've used the Minwax version with great results, and I'm sure that there are other brands that will do just as well.

   I won't be laughing at the lies when I'm gone,
   And I can't question how or when or why when I'm gone;
   I can't live proud enough to die when I'm gone,
   So I guess I'll have to do it while I'm here. (Phil Ochs)

1. 
   Slotolarn | Dec 07, 2009 02:24am | #4

    Thanks so much for the advice on finishing the bandsaw boxes...I see you live in Raleigh... I work close with some fine folks down in  Sanford---J & G Machinery & Supply Co... I have a small business here in Hickory selling machinery and parts to whats left of the furniture industry..."Bout gone though...Don't think China will ever send it back...Never thought in all my 62 years this  would happen to the only industry I have ever known...Again,thanks and look forward to talking with you again...

   Randy Buchanan

    

2. 
   Gretchen | Dec 07, 2009 06:19pm | #8

   Paste wax, when buffed properly, doesn't give a satin finish--at least for me, and when I wax, it isn't a satin finish I am trying to achieve.  ;o)

   If it isn't buffed, it is even more of a dust catcher than ever.Gretchen

2. 
   Gretchen | Dec 06, 2009 02:24pm | #2

   A nice wipe on NON-poly satin varnish would give you the "look" and also some protection, with an ease of application.  Probably 4-5 applications would be adequate. And don't worry about what it looks like after 1 or 2--it will not look good at all, but the beauty will build. You can probably do it all in a day. The varnish doesn't have to dry "hard".

   Gretchen
3. 
   Lataxe | Dec 06, 2009 03:08pm | #3

   Mr Larn,

   Long ago I graduated from the more simple oil finishes (pure tung, BLO and even Danish oil) to this excellent product:

   http://www.liberon.co.uk/gallery_files/site/2136/7731/7746/7750/8659.pdf

   There may be other brands that have a similar mix of real tung oil, varnishes and driers.  I can recommend Liberon Finishing Oil from personal experience, having coated dozens of pieces with it over the years.

   It is superior to Danish oil because it contains those varnishes, which are not super-tough but do offer much more protection than just the natural oil-resins that Danish oils rely on.  The more coats you add of this Finishing Oil, the tougher is the finish; and it does build to a very nice sheen as well.

   In fact, if you go as high as 5 coats with a buff after each of coats 2 to 5 have dried, with very fine glass paper, the sheen becomes just a few degrees lower than that of a basic French Polish , especially on smoother timbers.  This buffing can also begin to fill the pores of open grain wood, as long as the pits are not large (like oak) but more like those of walnut or sapele). It seems to be varish/resin dust filling those pores, so it doesn't fill them fast; although it does blend with subsequent coats of the Finishing Oil.

   Alternatively, a final coat of a bee and carnuba wax mix will provide an increased light reflection and gleam.  Again, I like the Liberon brand which goes by the name of Black Bison for some reason.  It comes in several colours to match common timbers.

   Finishing Oil is as easy to apply as other oil finishes, although any buffing you decide to do adds quite a lot to the required application effort.  It also has that other advantage of oil finishes, which is easy repair of just one area.  If ring-remover or even a sand-out of the finish is made on one small area, this can be refinished and blended back into the whole, with care.  One has to be careful with timbers that have their colour aged by UV of course.

   Lataxe

1. 
   Taigert | Dec 07, 2009 04:16pm | #5

   Lataxe,

   I can follow your wordage most times. Me Mum used to tell me when I was just a young Ladd, "Master Taigert, if can not speak proper English, than do not speak it all".

   My ? is what is "very fine glass paper"?

   We used to have this old fella come by to clean the glass ot this shop I used to work at years ago. He used a newsprint paper, he had big sheets of the stuff, the virgin stuff with no ink. Not used news papers with ink on them.

   Taigert

1. 
   SteveSchoene | Dec 07, 2009 04:21pm | #6

   As far as I know it just means what we would call sandpaper.  Of course, neither glass nor sand has been used on sandpaper for quite some time.  Flint paper, if you can find a place that aims so low in it's target market, is pretty close to sandpaper.  Basically, it's likely to be one of those items of our common language that divides us between sides of the pond. 

   Edited 12/7/2009 8:23 am ET by SteveSchoene

2. 
   Lataxe | Dec 07, 2009 06:03pm | #7

   T,

   I doubt it is actual ground glass anymore but....

   The stuff now sold as glasspaper may be sandpaper which uses a particularly soft sand, to emulate the softness of traditional glasspapers (which did use ground glass, apparently).  These are used mostly by painters & decorators to provide a fine "key" to a surface to which paint will then better adhere.  In addition, the stuff smooths off the "nibs" caused by dust pickup as one coat dries before the next can be applied.

   So, this soft-ish sandpaper is good for keying and smoothing varnished and other finish-coats applied to furniture.  Because its soft, there is less chance of a coat being entirely sanded-off or otherwise spoiled by an over-vigorous fellow or a cack-hand, such as moi.

   Here is an example of stuff sold widely within Blighty:

   http://www.amazon.co.uk/Draper-13099-Glass-Paper-280X230/dp/B0001K9P3W/ref=sr_1_1/277-2549339-9955153?ie=UTF8&s=diy&qid=1260197281&sr=1-1

   I like to use a 400 - 600grit, when I can find it.

   An alternative is to use one of the (much harder) silicon carbide papers employed by the automotive industry; but in an even finer grit.  They do clog easily, though.  One has to wait until an oil-varnish coat is really dry if the very fine dust is wanted as a poor-man's grain filler for those small-pored timbers.

   Lataxe

1. 
   Taigert | Dec 07, 2009 06:48pm | #9

   Lataxe,

   Like they say you learn some thing every day. I've never heard of it before " Glass Paper". Thanks for the lesson,

   Taigert

4. 
   sapwood | Dec 07, 2009 07:42pm | #10

   The first thing you should do now is to put on more coats. Two coats of Watco was enough in the 60's but it isn't today with their current formulation. It's still a good product.

   Others here will insist that watco and its cousins don't "build" and they don't... at least not like a film finish. But multiple coats will give increasing "depth" to the finish. Because of this, I've always concluded that the stuff left behind after a through wiping is adding to what was there from previous coats... thus building. Anyway, add some more finish and see what happens. Then when that is dry, buff with some 0000 steel wool or similar. The addition of wax will not change its appearance, in my experience, but it will make the surface feel terrific.

5. 
   10fingers | Dec 08, 2009 11:36am | #11

   Hello,

   I have made a bunch of bandsaw boxes, some for sale, some just to give away.  On one box in particular that I made for my wife, the wood was arizona cypress.  It wasn't very hard like walnut but I will tell of my experience anyway.  I used watco danish oil, applying it very heavy and flooded the surface.  The excess ran off and I collected it in a bowl in order to reapply later.  I used wet/dry sandpaper, from 100 to 2000.  The danish oil soaked in a little each time I applied/wet sanded.  The wood was cut on a slice like a cat skan in xray.  It turned out really well.  Due to the way the wood was sliced, the figure came alive when the sun hit it and the box was wiggled.  It looked like there was a flame in the figure.  It was one of those woods that you find locally and never find for sale.  I would recommend that you take pieces of wood and try different methods of finishing and keep a record of what you did to each piece.  You can find out what method works for you on each type of wood.  If you are  just starting out, it will help you to use up the danish oil before it goes bad.

   Good luck.