Replies

1. 
   roc | Sep 13, 2012 08:49pm | #1

   Hi ! Go Here, Page Down To Walnut Oil

   https://www.finewoodworking.com/SkillsAndTechniques/SkillsAndTechniquesArticle.aspx?id=26893

2. 
   Et0114 | Sep 14, 2012 09:38am | #2

   Thanks so much that awnsers it right away now if I could ask another question. Lots of people recommend a polymerized tung oil because it stands up better to water. But only because it's polymerized on a scale of 1-10 and polymerized tung oil is a 10 for water resistance to water in comparison what would walnut oil be? Thanks

3. 
   Et0114 | Sep 14, 2012 09:40am | #3

   Thanks so much that awnsers it right away now if I could ask another question. Lots of people recommend a polymerized tung oil because it stands up better to water. But only because it's polymerized on a scale of 1-10 and polymerized tung oil is a 10 for water resistance to water in comparison what would walnut oil be? Thanks

   Sorry I know this is a duplicate but I don't know how to delete it. 

1. 
   roc | Sep 15, 2012 12:50am | #4

   I just cut out all the text and put in a "." when I make a dupli

   licate post and leave it .  Is about all you can do these days.

   in comparison what would walnut oil be?

   Wellllllllllll . . .

   not so very.

   I know that is vague but it depends on what you or another person in your home spills on the table.  I mean . . . the bare wood can put up with getting water on it.  Many cutting boards are just bare wood and they do fine if not submerged and left etc.

   I would suggest what a great sage of this chat room recommends and that is 

   Test your finish, or finishes,  on some scrap wood of the same as your table".

   Use the heck out of it as a trivet and cutting board and general place mat etc. and budda boom badda bing (well maybe not that fast ) you will have your answer.

   I am doing just fine with shellac and the general consensus here , I think , is that is breathtakingly adventurous for a dining table.

   No kids you understand.  Just two adults that don't spill alcohol all over the place.

   So if it is similar on your end the walnut oil may work fine.

   Add klutzes into the mix and you need something with more protection,  Add parties and you need polyurethane.

   Add kids and you may as well make the table out of stainless steel and save the wood for a chest of drawers in your bedroom.

   I hope that helps.

   Heck I don't have a scale of one to ten.  I mix my tung oil with polyurethane and boiled linseed oil, one third one third one third.  That makes quite a good finish for darker wood like walnut and bubinga.  Still not bomb proof though.

   To split hairs and sorry if I am being too literal here but the only thing that is water proof is marine epoxy and a jolly thick coat of it.  Looks awful and like a great chunk of plastic.  About all the other finishes would not hold up to standing water if left a long time like a potted plant has over flowed etc.

   Soooooo . . . .

   the advantage the walnut oil would have over just plain bare wood is the walnut oil would bring out some depth and richness in the wood and the color of the wood where as the bare wood would be more flat (think chalky) and matt in finish .

   The advantage of the tung oil would be how it looks TO YOU I think more than that it would add significantly more protection.  If you rubbed the heck out of it it might look more glossy and rich where as the walnut oil would probably look like oil that has soaked into some wood. 

   My mentor had me make him kitchen counter tops and a cantilevered dining table through the wall in his house and we left it totally unfinished and just wiped it with a dish cloth and used it.  No oil or finish at all.the result was a rather interesting gray wood. No awful stains but then he  and his wife were less cavalier than most.

   The table was butcher block style made from two by fours.  It was more than three inches thick.  We installed it in the late seventies.  I last saw it in 1993 or four. Still looking good.  I imagine it is there yet but he is not.

4. 
   SteveSchoene | Sep 15, 2012 08:32am | #5

   Walnut oil barely cures, and offers zilch for protection against things like water spotting.  Neither does Boiled LInseed Oii nor pure Tung Oil.  All of these pure oils are not worth using on furniture.  Polymerized oils do offer a bit more protection, but are harder to apply evenly, and are best reserved for use on small items.  Gun stocks are an exampe--TruOil is polymerized linseed oil that is a traditional finish for gun stocks.  Price it out per quart before thinking about using it for furniture. 

   There is a good alternative to using the pure oils, that will look virtually the same, but that will be more protective, be easier to apply, cost less, and require maintenance . much less frequently.   I'm talking about mixtures of oil and varnish, commonly called Danish Oil.  You can make this yourself by combining equal portions of varnish, boiled linseed oil, and mineral spirits.  Or you can use commercial versions such as Watco Danish Oil, or Minwax Antique Oil. In any event you apply these the same way as the pure oils.  Apply liberally, let penetrate for a short period, and then vigorously wipe off all material remaining on the surface.  Two or three coats is all you would need. 

   By the way, unless the labels explicity says "pure" or 100%" tung oil, the product almost certainly contains little or no real tung oil.  For example, Formby's is a varnish, with no oil.  Oil (mostly Soya) is an ingredient in manufacturing the varnish, but has all be chemically compounded to becoming varnish.  Other products--such as Minwas Tung Oil Finish, are mixes of oil and varnish, and the oil component is almost all linseed oil to my understanding. 

5. 
   Et0114 | Sep 17, 2012 06:27am | #6

   Thanks to everyone for the input, one final question. If I go ahead and use "pure or 100%" walnut oil and after maybe a few months I decide that I don't like how it protects can I go over it with Danish oil? Thanks

1. 
   HowardAcheson | Sep 17, 2012 10:58am | #7

   When Walnut oil partially dries, it seals the pores and surface of the wood.  Other oils will have, at best, minimal penetration.  To some extent, the mineral spirits solvent in the Danish Oil will dissolve the Walnut oil allowing the Danish Oil to somewhat penetrate.

   Why not just use Danish Oil or a homemade oil/varnish mixture?  It a more protective finish.