finishing question

[ahoiberg]

i've recently completed a bandsawn box and last night put the first coat of danish oil on it. i've got some questions from here as this realm is new to me.

1) how many coats of danish oil should i use (before it becomes redundant) and is there any wisdom in using high grit SP to apply the subsequent coats?

2) if i want to increase the sheen after the oil is cured, is there any paste wax anyone can recommend for the final coating?

3) when buffing this final coat, would hand buffing suffice or should i be using a clean buffing wheel?

thanks!

 

[Mikey]

I have always put about 3 coats of danish oil on anything i've done. Make sure to wipe off excess as it will take some time for additional coats to dry. Once cured, furniture was works fine.

 

[redfishsc]

Mikey is right about the danish oil----- 3 coats (I use Watco "natural" and it works fine).



As far as getting a higher sheen, you have a couple of options. Here is how I do pretty much ALL of my mitered-corner boxes.

1) Three coats of danish oil, 24 hours apart. Each coats is allowed to absorb into the wood as much as possible and "lathered up" again throughout the course of an hour or so (ie, a "coat" is a 1-hour soaking). I just swab a bit more on as I am working on something else. After the hour~ish of soaking, I wipe it clean and let it sit overnight. 2nd and 3rd coats the same way, though they will absorb a bit less each time.

3) The FINAL (3rd) coat of wax, I will pick up some 800-1000 grit sandpaper wrapped around a sponge and wet-sand (with the danish oil) the entire outer part of the box--- you will be surprized how this makes curly, birdeye, or quilted wood "pop". It's also kinda fun. I wet sand, wipe dry, and let sit for 3 days.

4) The best wax I have found is Johnson's Paste Wax or Minwax Paste Wax. The Johnsons is much "goopier" and works very well on open-grained woods like oak. The Minwax is much firmer and works well with close-grained woods like cherry and maple.


However, I recently rewaxed a box I made from curly oak, using Renaisance Wax, and I was pleasantly suprized. It looked spectacular and didn't use a lot of wax.

 

[ahoiberg]

great, thanks for the replies. that's pretty much the road i was heading down, i've got 2 coats of the danish oil, will do the last tonight. i tried using some 320 grit to "sand in" the second coat. i've been researching various methods of danish oil application. i will try the sponge method with some higher grit tonight.

also, i'm thinking about using a paste wax with a high carnauba content in it and i've found a few that i'd like to try. one is briwax, the other is lundmark's clear paste wax. has anyone used either of these? i think i'll apply it and use a clean buffing wheel to see if i can get a warm glow to the finished product.

thanks again.

 

[alxe24]

Try using 0000 stell wool insted of paper between coats. It is less agressive and it works great to smooth the suface. Also you could apply the wax with it.