Spotted Gum Dining Table - what finish should I use?

[AlpineRaven]

Good evening all,
I have just built spotted gum dining table, the spotted gum is recycled timber and has nail holes which has been filled up with clear epoxy, I am in final stages of sanding it to smooth (its so smooth as baby's bum!) at this moment is sanding it back to 600 grit at the moment.
I have seen my customers using some oils for their tables when they make them, but I haven't asked what they use. They're workers they just do the tables to get out of the door - they don't really know after they make it - how good the finish is.

My question is; What is the best finish oil that is good and easy to maintain for as dining table. I am not that keen on getting gloss, I probably go for satin or matt finish. My parents dining table is wax finish and they need to wax it regularly (I cannot be bothered but if I have to, I'll do it) About 8-10 years ago I built an coffee table out of redgum top - I finished it off with pure beeswax (took me about 4 hours apply, remove and re-apply etc) and today it is still looks like 10 years ago when I finished it off!

There are couple of different types of oils available and my wife asked me are the oil toxic? Danish oil is the one I know it isn't toxic??
Thank you for your inputs.
Cheers
AP

[Gabriel]

My pick would be hard burnishing oil. It comes up a treat (satin finish just don't polish to too high a grit), is very hard wearing and makes the grain pop!! I used it on my first real project which was a spotted gum coffee table. That was 6 years ago and it still looks fantastic. I'm not one for maintenance so I haven't reapplied in that time.

LGS on here has used it in numerous projects (I think it could be his favorite) so maybe shoot him a message as I don't have all the ins and outs.

I used the one they now sell at masters so it should be fairly easy to get your hands on some.

Cheers
Gab

[AngelaPetruzzi]

There are several good oils on the market...and some not so good. Check out all maintenance and rejuvenation processes with all the products. To know if a product is safe or not, you need to know the ingredients. If no ingredients...why not? Is it certified food safe?
Penetrating oils generally are easier to wipe on an additional coat if or when necessary, any layer forming ones are more difficult. Check out the sanding grits required of the product you use...if using a truly penetrating oil, the grit may just be too fine. By sanding finely, the pores glaze over not allowing the oil to penetrate as it should. The "fine " furniture feel though can be achieved with the sanding processes.
Food for thought.