Camellia Oil

[kiwigeo]

Yeah I agree, they do stock it. I would have bought from them at the time I first talked to them. The only thing that put me off was when they said that it might have some additives not to be consumed. At the time I was not sure but did not want to risk using this for a food carving knife?

The stuff that I found was food grade Camellia Oil can be used for cooking. And a friend of mine actually did that. My fault for keeping this in the kitchen.

Sorry...missed that part. IMHO if like alot of people you don't rinse your dishes you're probably ingesting more harmful chemicals from the dishwashing liquid residue that gets left behind.

If you're worried about the health aspects of the tool grade camelia oil then I'd just give the knife a wash before using it or just give the knife a wipe with a high grade cooking oil..this is what my wife does.

[Pat]

Well I dropped into New Directions thru the week. $25 for a litre of Camellia Oil. Well that's filled up my spray bottle I didn't need the certified organic version for $4 more.

[Horaldic]

wow Pat that's some serious price inflation, given we can buy it here in Melbourne @ $8 for 750ml.

I didn't ever have issues with surface rust on my blades when I was using a fine graded oilstone for the final dressing. I always used either a 50:50 blend of turps and motor oil or straight diesel to lube the stone and would just wipe the blades over with a cloth at the end.

A few years ago my very fine oilstone was broken and despite a bit of hunting about I wasn't able to find the same quality of stone. I then switched to waterstones which gave a finer finish. The protection given by the oil/turps mix wasn't something I had given any thought to. So when I went out to the shed and saw my chisels looking vaguely brown I bought Camelia oil which I now wipe all blades over with after final honing.

[Pat]

wow Pat that's some serious price inflation, given we can buy it here in Melbourne @ $8 for 750ml.

Horie, This is the only place I could find to purchase at a reasonable price. Woodworking stores have 240ml for $24

[tea lady]

wow Pat that's some serious price inflation, given we can buy it here in Melbourne @ $8 for 750ml.

I think Coles and Safeways must have been reading this thread and discovered that the only people using their Camelia Oil were darksider woodies. I saw it once in Coles before I had actually bought any planes or chisels, but did not buy it. Now either they have hidden it somewhere really tricky or they don't have it any more.

[Horaldic]

Asian grocers are a great source. As Minh Phat (as already mentioned here) in both Richmond or near Vic Market have it I'm sure others will do as well.

It can go under a variety of names: Tea Seed Oil, Camelia Seed Oil, Camelia Tea Oil are all titles I have seen. There is an Indian grocer near Glenferrie Station that had it on the shelf too so try indian places if you have no luck with your local supermarkets. You might have to ask one of the shop assistants as the labels are often in different languages/scripts.

[tea lady]

Asian grocers are a great source. As Minh Phat (as already mentioned here) in both Richmond or near Vic Market have it I'm sure others will do as well.

It can go under a variety of names: Tea Seed Oil, Camelia Seed Oil, Camelia Tea Oil are all titles I have seen. There is an Indian grocer near Glenferrie Station that had it on the shelf too so try indian places if you have no luck with your local supermarkets. You might have to ask one of the shop assistants as the labels are often in different languages/scripts.

Aaah! Will look there. Although "ethnic" shops are a bit rare out here in the outer east.

[JimDavey]

I have found G15 Rust Preventative to be better than Camellia Oil. In Melb. you can get it from Chris Vesper. I will have it at the Timber & Working with Wood show in Sydney next month, on the TTTG stand.

Take care and Stay Sharp,
Jim

[rsser]

I decided to add a bottle of Camellia oil to an order from Highland Woodworking in the US just to see what all the fuss was about.

Ingredients: Camellia Oil and liquid paraffin wax.

Once more, oils ain't oils.

[Big Shed]

I bought a bottle in Woolworths (Asian foods section), it is marked Organic Camellia Tea Oil on the back it says 100% Camellia Oil. The bottle holds 500ml and it cost me $5.95

[kiwigeo]

I decided to add a bottle of Camellia oil to an order from Highland Woodworking in the US just to see what all the fuss was about.

Ingredients: Camellia Oil and liquid paraffin wax.

Once more, oils ain't oils.

rsser this is the same stuff sold by Carbatec in Adelaide and it's the stuff I use in my workshop. Its actually also got distillates in it which explains this warning on the Highland website:

California's Proposition 65 Warning To California Residents
This warning is provided to comply with California's Proposition 65 product labeling law. Each and every product sold by Highland Hardware, DBA Highland Woodworking, may contain chemicals known to the state of California to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm. Highland Hardware, DBA Highland Woodworking provides this warning based on its knowledge concerning the possible presence of one or more such chemicals, without attempting to evaluate the level of exposure.

Cheers Martin

[rsser]

Ah, thanks for that heads-up. So now it will be white rubber gloves ;-}

...

Though frankly, this experience is pushing me in the direction of Mic-D's concoction: paraffin wax dissolved in Shellite IIRC.

[kiwigeo]

White gloves if youre bathing in the stuff...if youre only smearing a bit on your tools occasionally then use a rag and wash hands immediately afterwards. If using on kitchen utensils...wash them well before use.

If planning to use the stuff in a salad...dont..unless its your mother in law.

[rsser]

I was just joking kiwigeo ;-} And I like my MIL.

But I do wonder what the diff is btwn paraffin oil from the chemist that goes down the cat's throat to purge furballs and liquid paraffin wax. Clearly the latter has solvents to keep it liquid in the bottle but what else?

[JohnMurray71]

I've looked in local Woolworths and Coles as well as Asian supermarkets in Chinatown with no luck. Big Shed, was there a brand name on the camellia oil you picked up at Woolies? Is it the same product as this one here?