Looking for a good finish to use on keyrings

[HuonFletch]

Hi,

I'm new to the world of woodturning and have began by turning up some small wooden keyrings, made of Huon Pine and another mystery wood. My question is what would be the best finish to use on these? I think a hard finish would be best because keyrings get knocked about.

I've been using CA on some I've already made but I was wondering if there was something easier because the fumes can get a bit overpowering when you are finishing a number of piecs at one time.

Any suggestions?

Cheers!

[China]

I use this SHELLAWAX friction polish

[AngelaPetruzzi]

OK, I am biased but I don’t think you can go past natural oils as an option. Whilst it may not give you that hard exterior finish, it gives more of a natural look and feel to the rings.....plus no fumes, and if they end up in kids mouths, which at times they do, no problems at all.
With a hard finish, once the coating is knocked, it’s there for good. Try it for yourself and see the difference.

[HuonFletch]

Hi Angela, I was thinking that with hardwood keyrings that something like organoil might be the way to go. However I'm also turning some out of soft wood such as Huon Pine which is easy to mark up so I might need to go with a harder finish with them but not sure of the best option outside CA.

Cheers.

[AngelaPetruzzi]

HI HF,
It all depends on what your priorities are really. I would though recommend to try a sample pot of the oil and see what it can do, especially if you have not tried it before. Try different products on different timbers and see what transpires....especially if you will continue to work with timber and not a one off project.

[soundman]

the problem with most "natural oils" is that they either have no durability what so ever or they contain metalic driers which are far from non toxic even when cured.

so if you are concerned with kiddies sucking on stuff you have only one practical alternative and that is beetle ####...sorry shelac

one problem with huon or any other soft timber for pens, keyrings and the like is that it is soft and even the hardest finis will ding or scratch.

If the fumes from CA are a problem, you need to do something about your dust/fume extraction.

once cured CA will be less toxic that a great many other finishes, and for small parts like pens and keyrings it is hard to beat.

of course there are the wax finishes like hut wax and shithotwax.

and the all time favorite shellawax.

cheers

[HuonFletch]

... once cured CA will be less toxic that a great many other finishes, and for small parts like pens and keyrings it is hard to beat.

of course there are the wax finishes like hut wax and shithotwax.

and the all time favorite shellawax.

cheers

Thanks for your advice Soundman.I might persist with CA for the moment. I am using a Medium CA at the moment and will see how it comes up after polishing.

Cheers.

[soundman]

Most people I know use thin CA for finishing pens and the like.

there are various methods, I prefeer a cotton bud.

cheers

[AngelaPetruzzi]

Good morning Soundman
I find your comment about “most” natural oils interesting. To be honest, there really are not many : "natural” and not modified oils around. Each product, natural or not has its pros and cons. Just in case you did mean the Livos oils though, let me assure you these oils have many uses including timber and concrete floors Gallery - Livos Australia. There is even a full list of ingredients so you can see, no metallic driers are used.

[soundman]

Increases text size and launches into shamless promotion of own product.

HMMM

The simple fact is that there are very few oils or oil products that are non toxic, many "natural oils" are toxic in their own right.

If they are non-toxic and do not contain some sort of hardener and a raft of other synthetic chemicals they simply are not durable or stable long term.

If we are talking about "safe for the kiddies", the vast majority of natural oils should be rejected on the grounds that they are originated from nuts of some discription...in this day and age that is enough to reject a product as being child safe.

Most oil finishes are not inert and retain at least a portion of their toxisity once cured.

the truth remains the best nontoxic finishes suitable for children to suck on are synthetic.

Epoxy once cured is completly inert and food safe.
Parifin oil and wax of petrolium origin are both food safe and neither polernerise nor go rancid.

But we should realy be thinking of the wisdom of letting children play with keyrings used by adults...I have always considered it foolish in many ways, not least hygeen.
Key rings handled by adults will be almost as dirty as money.

cheers

[Mobyturns]

I would stick to a durable oil, something from the Organ Oil range like the High Speed Burnishing oil, or good old shellac.

Another option is the wipe on polyurethanes like Minwax Wipe-On Poly in satin or gloss. Also now a water based wipe on from Minwax. Very simple to apply and can also be a high build deep gloss finish if you want to put in the time & coats. It is a very durable film finish and as such can suffer from impact damage. I've used it for years on small turnings but like all finishes it has some downsides. Doesn't like really oily timbers like huon pine and will just not set /cure on some of them.

Most finishes once set/cured are considered "food safe" & I'm with the "don't let kids play with yourr keys" camp.

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

Another option is Rustin's Plastic Finish.

It's basically a two-pack epoxy, a bit expensive and feels a tad too "plasticky" for my tastes, but for cases where I want/need a hard, durable, waterproof and/or food-safe (after a couple of weeks for it to gas out) finish, such as the insides of my goblets or, oddly enough, keyrings it has become my main go-to.

I can't use CA anymore, having developed an allergic reaction after exposure over so many years. And personally I think Rustin's is far, far easier to apply for a better result.

But that's just my own opinion; I know others who don't agree. C'est la vie.

Doesn't like really oily timbers like huon pine and will just not set /cure on some of them

Huon's one of those timbers that, no matter what finish you apply, there's usually some difficulty because of the oils. Teak's pretty much the same. As a matter of course I now wipe down any oily timbers with an evaporative solvent almost immediately before application of the finish. I use acetone, but for safety reasons I won't recommend that; a good mineral turps works almost as well.

[HuonFletch]

I can't use CA anymore, having developed an allergic reaction after exposure over so many years. And personally I think Rustin's is far, far easier to apply for a better result.

But that's just my own opinion; I know others who don't agree. C'est la vie.

Thanks Skew,

I came very close to getting some of the Rustins product. What's the best way you can suggest to apply and cure for key rings without leaving drips etc How long do you find it takes for it to set/cure?

Cheers!

[Christos]

I have been using wipe on poly to finish the last lot of key rings.

[AngelaPetruzzi]

Good Morning Soundman
Not sure if I agree with your first sentence...rather than promotion, I was merely clarifying your word “most” and no text size change here, no product names and I clearly state who I am.
I totally agree about not giving key rings to kids and a lot of other things too, but they still manage to get hold of things whether you want them to or not. OK, you may say promotion again, however I am passionate that not all oils are " oils" and one should have all the info at hand, only then are they able to make an informed decision and decide to use it or not.
Again Soundman, I agree with you re the nuts part, which is why the products I love use only a certain percentage of true tung oil, as not only is it derived from nuts but is also a sensitizer to many people.
Did you know that when a natural coating has dried, there is no off gassing? However with a synthetic even when touch dry the coating is still off gassing the semi volatile organic compounds and depending on the coating or the project, can off gas for quite some time. A very small number of products even use food grade quality orange oil because it oxidises differently to industrial grade as this is also a sensitiser to many people.
I am certainly not saying natural oils are bombproof nor that no one is sensitive to them however if you knew 100% of what was in a product, you can actually be fully informed and choose to use it or choose not to use it. It is simply up to you, not anyone else....and I believe there would be many health professionals and building biologists that would beg to differ with you especially regarding epoxy and food safe...........but that is the great things with forums, as Skew ChiDAMN wrote one should have the opportunity to express their opinion, it is then up to others to make their own conclusion.
Angela from Livos