finish for a jarrah bar?

[gpsmith]

I am just about to complete a bar made with recycled jarrah - bar, benchtop, drawers and door - internals with moisture resistant melamine. The bar will have a sink - so chance of water as well as alcohol spills. What is the best finish for this situation? Is polyurethane more practical than one of the oils?
Any comments or suggestions about the finish will be appreciated?
Regards,

[mic-d]

Unless you're setting out to splash water around and spill the alcohol:eek: , personally I would go with danish oil. I did some Jarrah bathroom cabinets in it a year or two ago and it provided a beautiful satin smooth finish that has been quite durable. Feast Watson floor finish is another alternative.

Cheers
Michael

[normell]

I am just about to complete a bar made with recycled jarrah - bar, benchtop, drawers and door - internals with moisture resistant melamine. The bar will have a sink - so chance of water as well as alcohol spills. What is the best finish for this situation? Is polyurethane more practical than one of the oils?
Any comments or suggestions about the finish will be appreciated?
Regards,

Can't beat a product called Glasscoat, same style stuff as the old Envirotex.
Pour on with a finish that looks like a sheet of glass.
Alcohol & water resistant

Normell

[BobL]

. . . . . The bar will have a sink - so chance of water as well as alcohol spills.

It depends how often you are going to use that sink. If it is daily I would go the polyurethane, whereas if it's no more than a couple of times a week I would go the oil finish

[Chesand]

Smithy
When you are going for your walk and collecting your paper on Friday, I will have a sample of Hard Shellac on Jarrah for you to look at. If you do not see me in the car park, call into the shop.

[Scally]

I like the Danish Oil and the Feast and Watsons Floorseal (it sounds rugged but gives a smooth low sheen finish that looks good on cabinets even though they use it on basketball courts).

I used a Mirotone 2 part polyurethane finish on my red been dining table because I wanted to be able to put hot or cold drinks on it.

It was recommended by a company that made some pretty flash commercial bars. So it had to be able to take some pretty rough treatment.

I got a heavy glassy finish on my dining table and it looked good.

Moisture, either hot or cold, hasn't hurt it but clumsy people putting heavy bowls down hard have shattered the finish. I think there is more give in the timber than the finish and the finish is brittle.

I used Floorseal on a jarrah coffee table for my 20year old daughter and it is still looking good after several years.

Because of the shattering and because I like the Floorseal look, I would prefer to use it on a jarrah bar.

[Peter36]

Classy looking coffee table Scally and nicely grained jarrah . Is that up for a vote.:)

[gpsmith]

Thank you all for your replies.
In a round about way (WMS) Neil has recommended hard shellac for the top of the bar and normal shellac for the vertical and non wet surfaces. This is the way that I will be going.
Thanks once again.