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The big buzz in my mailbox this past week has been the “Finishes That Pop” DVD (click here to see more on the DVD and click here if you would like to purchase a copy). Overall, the comments have been positive, but a couple newbie woodworkers think the dye, oil and shellac process is too involved. (And forget about tossing glaze into the mix.) They are looking for a finish that’s dead simple. Maybe this is why so many woodworkers finish the first few projects with a couple coats of oil.
Included on the DVD is the oil/varnish method that I use for some of my pieces. To me, this is a dead-simple method that anyone can use. It’s a mixture of varnish, boiled linseed oil and turpentine or mineral spirits. But what about woodworkers who work in small shops or even in apartments, and those that are simply smelly-finish averse? Even if the oil/varnish mixture I use isn’t as involved, there’s still a nasty smell (although some do like it) due to the turpentine or mineral spirits in the recipe.
But if you grab most cans marked “_____ oil” (fill in whatever name) off the shelf of your woodworking or home-center store, you might as well use the oil/varnish mixture I concoct and show using on the DVD. I’m willing to bet that most of those oil products purchased are much more than simply oil. To get an oil finish that’s not manufactured with a solvent of some sort, reach for pure oil, 100-percent tung oil or boiled linseed oil.
With any oil, most woodworkers apply three or four coats and call it done. But with such a small number of layers of finish, the surface is flat and dull , if not as the piece is complete, certainly in a year or so. And there’s little surface protection.
But there is a group out there that doesn’t stop with such a small number of coats when oiling a project. I have heard rumors these woodworkers exist. If you’re a member of the group, please raise your hand.
From what I hear, many from this group work on gun stocks. It seems gun-stock refinishers know the secret about tung oil and boiled linseed oil finishes , furniture makers, not so much. The secret appears to be multiple layers, as many as 25 , 30 coats. With that amount of build, the finish has a nice sheen, is water resistant and durable.
One person I talked with has had this finish on his gun stock since 1982. He admits to the amount of work , he says the process is just as therapeutic as planing a surface with hand tools (boring!). And he admits his stock has dents, but there are no cracks or crazing. Best of all, he doesn’t agree with the often-reported application process described in articles and on the Internet: One coat of oil a day for a week, once a week for a month, once a month for a year then once a year after that. In fact, he hasn’t added to, touched up or re-coated his gun stock at all and it looks great.
If you are one of these multi-layer oil finishers, please take a minute to comment on your process. And if you’re near the Cincinnati area, drop me a photo of your piece. I need a good shot for an upcoming article , I doubt I have enough time to properly oil-finish a piece before my deadline.
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