Oil Finishes

[JeffB]

A few recent posts extolling the virtues of BLO (boiled linseed oil) got me to wondering. Are the results really that much different from other oil finishes? I haven't used pure BLO, although various oil finishs I remember using include General Finishes Tung Oil, Watco, different MinWax blends, and Liberon. The biggest differences I've seen in side-by-side comparisons have to do with application techniques. Am I likely to see a big difference if I get some pure BLO to try?

[George]

Oil without resin is soft, takes a long time to dry, and doesn't add any "look-through" brilliance.

If that's what you're after, and minimal protection, it should work.

[toller]

BLO gives dramatic results on soft absorbent wood. On hard wood it does very little, and you might not like the dramatic results. But it is worth experimenting with; it is certainly cheap enough.

[Andy Dingley]

Much more yellowing than tung

[dadiOH]

Most "tung oil finishes" are mostly linseed oil. Shame the manufacturers no longer have to list contents and percentages.

Plain boiled linseed oil will oxidize to a fairly dark amber in a couple of years. The result is not unattractive but can look blotchy if it was absorbed differentially into light colored wood.

The same is true for the ersatz "tung oil finishes"...oxidize to the same (or close to) color as BLO. Got an old can of it around? Look at the dried oil around the can opening...

Biggest difference between BLO and others like Watco is that the others have a lot more driers in them.

BTW, if you hate the odor of stuff that has been oiled (I do) get some oil of wintergreen at the drugstore and add a couple of ounces of it per gallon to the finishing oil...still smells but smells better.

-- dadiOH ____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06... ...a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at

[Australopithecus scobis]

Hmm. One could use almost any essential oil for scenting one's BLO. (I know, wintergreen is an ester.) I prefer the nutty smell of BLO to the ointment smell of wintergreen myself. But oh the possibilities: vanilla shellac, patchouli paste wax...

[Larry Jaques]

On Fri, 08 Apr 2005 22:39:38 -0500, the inscrutable Australopithecus scobis spake:

Hey, those last two are great ideas for products to sell to New Agers and Hippies. OR, their use would enhance sales of so-coated objects to the aforementioned epidem^H^H^H^H^H^Hsocietal groups.

[lgb]

I've got a gallon of "teak oil" I picked up at a garage sale. Supposedly great for boats. Anyone used this stuff? How did it work out?

[Australopithecus scobis]

Well, I have noticed that the racks of essential oils are most often found in new-age type stores, so you may have something there. I'm just interested in killing the awful smell of my homemade beeswax-kero-turps substitute for camillia oil. (It works, though. Pill bottle stuffed with a rolled up piece of flannel makes a good spreader.)

For the OP, I've been using BLO for tool handles ever since a discussion here a while back. Doesn't matter if the color changes; it'll get grubby anyway.

[dadiOH]

A better name is "oil for teak" (can be used for anywood, not for teak exclusively). It works fine if you want to keep the teak from weathering. So does linseed oil.

-- dadiOH ____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06... ...a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at

[Andy Dingley]

Use real turpentine and skip the kerosene

[lgb]

I kind of knew that - I was planning on using it on alder :-). But I wondered if its attributes were different from BLO in any significant way.

[Australopithecus scobis]

Yeah, I added the kerosene after reading here (or maybe r.c.metalworking) that WD-40 contained kerosene. Thought a light oil would help. Maybe a _different_ light oil for next batch--not thread-cutting oil, though!

[George]

I suppose if you had been schooled at home you'd have been told to look it up.

[Andy Dingley]

Adding oil to wax is a bad idea anyway. Even too much turpentine is a problem.

Wax needs to be softened so that you can apply it and buff it out, then you want it to harden. You don't want to leave a stable oil (like kerosene behind) as it stops the buffing working and you don't want a drying oil as it will hide the buffed effect by submerging the wax within the oil. What you want is a pure solvent that evaporates.

If you want a lighter wax, try the "creamed wax" formulations with a few % of ammonia.

For fine work on leather, I use cyclohexane - a light and easily evaporated solvent (highly flammable though).

[lgb]

Nice one, George :-).

But after looking at 3 pages of manufacturers propaganda sites from Google, I was trying to hear from a poster here who had actually used the stuff and wasn't trying to sell it. I guess there aren't any.

[Australopithecus scobis]

Just to clarify this thread a bit, I was using the gunk to coat tools' metal parts. My homemade paste wax for wood has just enough mineral spirits to dissolve the beeswax. I like your cyclohexane idea for that purpose. (Carnauba's in the mail now.)

[Jason Quick]

Okay, whaddya do with *real* tung oil then? Straight on, or mix with, say, turpentine? Or mineral spirits? Alcohol? Acetone? Or what? Different diluents for different woods?

Recently made a step-stool for His Majesty (4 years old) to use around the house, mainly to climb into his big ol' captain's bed. Red oak (mostly dumpster salvage, actually), finished with a couple coats of BLO and turpentine with a bit of Watco Fruitwood mixed in. Produced a lovely golden color. Sprayed some satin poly on top for durability and - done.

Jason

[dadiOH]

Not true. I've used many gallons (all bought and paid for) and as I said, it works fine.

-- dadiOH ____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06... ...a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at

[dadiOH]

Mix about 1:4 with mineral spirits.