Wax then Danish then wax again

I'd be interested to know what those with more experience think of this technique.

Doing a bit of experimenting last week, and I found that Danish oil made the timber darker than I wished. That led me to waxing first, then Danish, then waxing again. I didn't leave the oil finish for a week as recommended because I just wanted to quickly see what the result was.

I was well pleased with the result as the oil still brought the grain out, but without darkening too much.

What are the opinions on this technique? Is this a complete no-no for chemistry reasons?

Regards, Brett

I think your technique has ensured that very little danish oil has penetrated the wood. Kinda defeats the purpose of using danish oil.

Waste of time and effort.

If you don't want to darken timber any more than wetting it with water then about the only finish to do this is white shellac..

:U

Well yes, I didn't want the oil to penetrate too far, that was the whole idea. However, if the white shellac will do a similar job without the initial waxing then that's the way to go.

Thanks for your responses TP1 and Ubeaut - I had a feeling you might come in because I was abusing your excellent product. it's by far and away the best wax I have ever used (out of a dozen or so waxes).

Brett.

G'day Brett.

I've just completed some huon pine jewellery boxes (birdseye veneer on the lid and huon for the carcass) and wanted to keep the light colour of the huon without it yellowing. I hit them with a coat of Feast Watson Proofseal followed by several coats of FW Fine Buffing Oil. Sanded lightly down to 1200. They've come up really well with a shine as good as a poly finish.

Bill

Hi bill, I'd love to work with some huon. I hear it's a dream to work with. By complete contrast, most of my work is with 20 or more year old fence palings, rails and posts. Just a little bit tougher on the teeth (and tools).

That FW routine looks pretty good, and I'm a fan of going down to 2000. The hardwood takes really nice gloss then, and some of the contrasting textures between the new timber and the still-affected-by-weathering are fascinating.

Brett

Hey Brett,

I was over in the US of A earlier this year and met a great wood craftsman by the name of George Monroe. George has a workshop called Salmon Creek Wood Designs in Myers Flat, a small village in the middle of the redwood forests in northern California. He was doing some great experimental stuff, some out of salvaged timbers. He was also playing around with some great router work done in repetitive circular patterns. Two pieces of his work are on the web site of a co-op gallery www.mateelartgallery.com . One of the cabinets has a "floating" piece made out of a partially finished offcut from a milled tree. It looks a lot better in real life but showcases the timber really well. I reckon you could do the same with your palings and posts. If you're interested George also runs a radio show (mainly accoustic) called "Soup to Nutz"every Saturday noon - 2.00pm - I think this is about 7.00am Sunday our time give or take an hour for daylight saving. - catch him on www.kmud.org under the "live" section. From memory he goes under the name of Jake the Snake.

Bill

Hi Bill, that piece looks HOT, and yes that's the kind of thing I'm into: mixing old and new. TVM for all the info

Regards, Brett