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Wood finishes....

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arcos:
I may have touched on this before but now I have.... Problems...

Yesterday I went to my local DIY store, the largest in the region, to search out wood finishes, oils etc

So my choices were....

Linseed Oil - Boiled
Linseed Oil - Raw

And... Yes, that was it!

When I asked if it was possible to order different oils the response I received was "Why? We've got LINSEED OIL"

Obviously there is a SMALL selection of varnishes in various states of 'natural' and coloured.

I am NOT a fan of varnish. I remember using it at school and on some DIY jobs and not being that 'good' at achieving nice, 'natural' results!

I am wondering if there are some clever guys out there who can suggest a 'DIY' alternative?

Yes, I like the olive oil finish on olive wood. It doesn't appear to go rancid (yet) and gives a really nice dark finish but I would like to try something that will give a bit of shine at least without getting it all over my hands and making the piece look unnatural!

Kind of thing I am thinking about is 'watering' down a varnish that I can apply to a piece that is turning on the lathe like an oil? Impossible? I really have no idea!

I'm looking for something a bit glossy!

Bryan Milham:
Arcos,

Raw Linseed oil is as it comes, when ground out of the seed. It can take a long time to 'cure', which is why it's a good substance for cricket bats (it soaks in).
Boiled Linseed oil - eh... has not been boiled. It's had metallised 'Driers' added. These are added to many oil based paints and finishes to cure them. When it comes to oil we refer to it as 'polymerisation'.

So if nothing else go for the Boiled Linseed Oil.

Something else you may want to look for is Tung Oil, which may be sold as China Oil, China Tree Oil or something like that. It's actually a base for many finishing oils so look around, you'll be surprised what it's also used in.

Don't confuse it with Tea Tree Oil though - completely different substance.

George Watkins:
If you can find a polyurethane based varnish you could try making your own wipe on poly- there's lots of recipes on the interweb but at its most basic its 50/50 varnish to white spirit.

arcos:

--- Quote from: George Watkins on February 01, 2013, 04:28:59 PM ---If you can find a polyurethane based varnish you could try making your own wipe on poly- there's lots of recipes on the interweb but at its most basic its 50/50 varnish to white spirit.

--- End quote ---

Ah, thanks George!

This is likely something that I am looking for... It can be applied with the piece still on the lathe?

Tung oil or ANY other oil that I was searching for yesterday is a no, no... Linseed oil and thats it!

So, I can get hold of polyurethane varnish and white spirit! I guess its then time to experiment until I get the finish I m looking for..

Bryan Milham:
If you search the web there are many finishes you can make yourself from fairly ea silly obtainable components.

This one comes from a guy on YouTube with a lot of turning videos called Capt Eddy Castelin, he calls it O.B's. Shine Juice.

3 fl oz uncoloured or clear Shellac (the premix stuff French polishers use)
3 fl oz Boiled Linseed Oil
3 fl oz Meths

Apply all over your turning, wait a minute and apply a second coat. Then put some on a paper towel and run your lathe, keep the paper moving and due to the warmth you create the meths will evaporate and the shellac will catalyse.

I'm also aware that you can also thin down and use Shellac as a sanding sealer, so a double use there. I've never done it so if anyone can explain how I'm sure many of us would be interested.

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