How to treat Huon pine

[Rachelle]

Hi. Need some help finding what to coat my Huon pine church pew in. Have already sanded back and ready to go. First option I was told was 1 coat of wattle golden oak then 2 coats of varnish. When I told a client what I was doing, I was told don't do it and to coat in tung oil. Help much appreciated from anyone that has worked with Huon pine before. Thanks Rachelle

[LGS]

Hi Rachelle,

Your client is a wise person! I don't understand the concept of staining a piece of Huon at all! And you can do better than varnish. You can use Tung Oil to coat the pew and if you are prepared to invest a little time and possibly money in burnishing the oil, you can have a stain/heat/food safe pew which will show off the Huon very nicely. There is no need to use any product over the top of the oil.

And since it's an oil, you will get some darkening with age. Most likely, you'll get a light pumpkin colour which is pleasing to the eye. If you look here (http://www.woodworkforums.com/166948-cabots-danish-oil-formula-change/), you will get an idea of what burnishing is all about and also see my method of choice.

You can see a picture of a Red Gum and Huon Coffee table on my website. This table is finished in Hard Burnishing Oil, which is Tung Oil plus some additives. The table is about 8 years old now.

Regards,

Rob

[AngelaPetruzzi]

Hi
Oils would be the way to go because a varnish, once scratched will one day need resanding.
Oils give a beautiful lustre to the surface without a plastic coat on top....
If you use a "tung" oil, check the ingredient or manufacture. Many are "modified" tung oil finishes which contain urethane.
The Livos Kunos sealer is not only completely natural, it also contains waxes and resins and economical to use....but then again, there other products that are suitable as well.
Good Luck, I' sure it will look magnificent when finished.
PS If oiling soon, watch the temperature in the room you are working in...many coatings do not like the cold.