Trouble with Ubeaut Traditional Wax

[Shedhand]

This is for Neil if you're around mate.

I've just finished making 20 Sassafras and 20 Huon Pine mantle clock blanks for a client. I sanded them to 400# and then gave them 2 coats of Danish Oil with a 500# sanding between coats. I wiped off the residual oil as per the manufacturer's instructions. Today I began hitting them with the Ubeaut Traditional Wax and disaster has struck. When I put them to the polishing doohickey (duck something or other I got from Ubeaut some time ago) the wax has picked up bits of fluff and its a real bugger to get off. I tried putting them to 600# paper (mounted on my Festool ES150/3) and now the one I tried doing this with has small dark grey "cooked" on wax lumps on the finish. Is it caused by putting the wax on Danish Oil too soon after the oil was applied (i waited 24 hours). Was Danish Oil a poor choice (i had a 4 litre drum laying around) What can I do to fix this. Will I have to take it back to raw wood? ( I bludy hope not I have to deliver them this week)
The client wants a very smooth hard matt finish.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated and I'd commission a caricature in your honour.
Cheers
Sheddie in the Shed

[RETIRED]

Sounds like you waxed it too soon after the Danish oil.

I would have waited a week in this weather before waxing it.

Did you "defluff" the swansdown mop before using it?

The wax should be able to be "stripped off" with turps but do it gently. It will probably need some more oil.

I would have just used the oil and then after about a week cut it back with EEE and put a thin coat of traditional wax on.

Neil will correct me.

[Shedhand]

Sounds like you waxed it too soon after the Danish oil.

I would have waited a week in this weather before waxing it.

Did you "defluff" the swansdown mop before using it?

The wax should be able to be "stripped off" with turps but do it gently. It will probably need some more oil.

I would have just used the oil and then after about a week cut it back with EEE and put a thin coat of traditional wax on.

Neil will correct me.

G'day . how goes the battle mate. Yep, I've just read the guff on Neils Ubeaut site. Shouda waited for the Danish Oil to harden off then used EEE instead of the Trad Wax. You live and learn ergo "Read the bludy destructions. I defluff the mop regulalry but starting to wonder if its spinning fast enough in the drill press. Do they work better when spinning faster and if so what RPM do you suggest?
PS: Finally makin some good money off my skills. The Adirondack chairs are selling like hotcakes. Over 30 gone now. More on the go.
Cheers
and hey to the better half.
Mike

[ubeaut]

Sorry Sheddie couldn't get online last night yep way too early for the Tradwax. Over Danish I would leave it for at least a couple of weeks or more depending on the timber, the danish manufacturer and the weather. A month could be even better.

Speed of buff shouldn't matter, sometimes slower is better especially when working with plastic finishes like polyurethane. Might have been better to buff it by hand instead of the the buff as it wouldn't have put too much heat onto the danish.

For now there's not a lot I can offer other than to wash off the trad as suggested. Problem with that is it will almost definitely affect the danish oil beneath.

The problem will be the Danish not the Trad as the wax will melt off under the heat generated by rubbing or buffing. Your danish will most likely be a mix of poly and oils and as you warm it up it's being drawn to the surface by the heat and polymerising or something like that. Trad or other waxes will mix with this and go sticky like it has for you. This is due to the turpentine or similar solvent used in both the danish and the wax.

Most finishes are best refinished ie buffed or dulled etc after they are fully cures and for most finishes the best time for this is around a month. Some oils may take much, much, longer but really should be left alone unless they look and feel really yuck.

Quick, easy, smooth, satin finish....... White shellac. Couple or 3 coats leave, a few days to dry hard and cut back to silky, smooth satin finish with tripoli powder or fine steel wool or pummice or fine abrasive paper.

Not much of a help now but for future reference.

Best advice I can offer anyone is:

• never leave the finishing to the last minute unless you know the finish really well as well as it's capabilities and yours.
• Never use a finish that's new to you as a last minute thing, try it out before using it and leaving lots and lots of time for repair or replacement if it's not suitable or you mess it up.
• Don't mix your finishes unless you know how exactly what will happen.
• Always allow plenty of time for finishing. It's the most important part of the job. You may have the best design in the world, the most beautiful joints and timber and a product that everyone will want, but if the finish isn't spot on then it's not going to be too popular.

The finish is the first thing people see, the first thing they touch and the first impression they get of a persons work. It's the most important thing of, yet in most instances it's the most neglected.

Sorry for the rant. Finished now.

Call me after 11:00 today and I might be able to help.

Cheers - Neil

[Shedhand]

Thanks for that Neil. I bit the bullet and stripped them all back to bare wood. Will go through the grits from 120 to 1000 again and hit them with the EEE. That'll be ok for this lot as I have to get them to my client this week. Next time I'll go with your suggestion and do them with white shellac and 1500 grit.
Cheers
mike

[RETIRED]

EEE is an abrasive, not a finish.

[Shedhand]

EEE is an abrasive, not a finish.

duh I meant Trad Wax of course.

[RETIRED]

duh I meant Trad Wax of course.

Phew!

[Shedhand]

Phew!

Just testing..

[Shedhand]

NEIL
IF YOU'RE ABOUT PLEASE CHECK YOUR PM BOX.
CHEERS
MIKE

[rsser]

I used to use wax over oil with power buffing and learned that the wax coat has to be applied thinly otherwise the buffing pushes it into lumps; the lumps can only be spread out by concentrated buffing to heat them up and that takes time and effort.

My buffing was done with the rim of a lambswool bonnet.