A few months back, Mark Shafer sent me an unsolicited, free 1/2 pint of the oil-beeswax finish he sells @
I've been busy with cabinetry and larger furniture projects, so I hadn't had a suitable project to use it. I remembered a walnut jewelry box from a while back that I hadn't finished, and decided this finish would be probably work well on it. The box was hand scraped to a final surface ready for a finish. I tested Mark's finish on a small walnut scrap. Impressed with the final look, I decided to go for it.
Mark's finish is a blend of beeswax, food grade linseed (Flaxseed) oil, and citrus oils. On a side note, my wife uses Flaxseed oil in cooking, which sells for $17 a pint at natural food stores, here in New England. Obviously, this ingredient was not chosen as a cheap filler!
I applied the product following the instructions attached to the can, using clean cloth. It flows on smooth, and as Mark notes on his web site, "a little goes a long way." The product smells GREAT, and feels nice during application. After a short drying period I buffed the parts to a nice, even satin finish. Mark's finish nicely brought out the color and figure of the Walnut with a warm, even, satin glow. I finished the piece about two weeks ago, and have not noted any problems with fingerprints, etc... as the finish has dried nicely. It also made the shop smell so nice, I may consider using it to protect tool surfaces.
To sum it up, Mark's oil-beeswax finish was an absolute joy to use, and a welcome change of pace from the solvent based finishes I normally use. I would not hesitate to use it again where an oil/wax finish would be appropriate.
Barry