Bowl Finishing

Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad
See more from AngryRhino

AngryRhino

Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2013
Messages
65
Location
Florida
Greetings All,

I've been doing an extensive amount of research lately on a good solid bowl finish for a display bowl (Ie/ will never be eaten out of, etc.)

I've kind of narrowed things down to wipe-on poly and shellac. (Though I'm open to other ideas.) I actually tried some Watco Wipe-On Poly (Gloss) on a few bowls, and I'm honestly not sure if I really like the "plasticy" look. I was hoping for more like "glass."

I applied the Wipe-On poly as instructed, 3 coats, sanding lightly in between coats (no sanding on the final coat.) I waited the instructed 4 hours between coats.

Specifically, I'm looking for something that's going to be relatively durable, and glassy (while protecting the base wood.) I may be asking too much, but I'd also LOVE it if it didn't take forever to cure / have high probability of screwing it up.

What do you more experienced bowl turners use on "showy" bowls? What's your process?
 
Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad
Used for serving purposes or not...ALL finishes are food safe once cured. I've been using Formby's Tung Oil Finish...about 3 coats. Then a few coats of WOP satin. The oil helps pop the grain and the WOP adds nice depth.
 
It's not clear to me what the difference is between 'glassy' and 'plasticky'.

But in general, once we set aside the non-issue of 'food safe', it seems to me that the choice of finish is sort of like the 'boxers versus briefs' argument - it comes down to what you prefer.

Glossy hard finishes retain the visual beauty of the wood, but not necessarily the tactile beauty. I use glossy hard finishes (WOP, etc) on things that need to withstand physical abuse - pens, bottle stoppers, etc. For show pieces, I prefer finishes that are less 'shell-like'. Pure tung oil is nice, as are the various oil-varnish combinations (teak oil, Danish oil, tung-oil finish). I have a shop-made lacquer-based friction polish that is very nice on decorative pieces and that provides more physical protection than penetrating oil finishes alone. A shellac-based friction polish is also nice. For utility items in the shop (tool handles, fixtures and jigs), I like a simple BLO-wax finish.
 
Back
Top Bottom