I recently refinished my oak kitchen cabinets. Installed probably 20 years ago by a kitchen remodeling store. They are solid doors but looking worn. I cleaned all surfaces using Murphy's oil soap. Let dry couple days and applied an oak stain to touch up worn areas. I let that dry a couple days also. I then applied ready to use blo. They look great but certain areas remain a little tacky. Can I rub them out? Is there another technique? Or am I outta luck
(04-27-2022, 08:59 AM)chizlr40 Wrote: [ -> ]I recently refinished my oak kitchen cabinets. Installed probably 20 years ago by a kitchen remodeling store. They are solid doors but looking worn. I cleaned all surfaces using Murphy's oil soap. Let dry couple days and applied an oak stain to touch up worn areas. I let that dry a couple days also. I then applied ready to use blo. They look great but certain areas remain a little tacky. Can I rub them out? Is there another technique? Or am I outta luck
It was all good until you used the BLO. BLO is meant to be used on raw wood, never over a finish. It has almost no protective value as a finish. It will collect dirt and fingerprints and probably look awful in a few months.
Your best option at this point is to wipe it off as best you can with paper towels wet with mineral spirits or Naptha. Don't smoke! It likely will take several wipings with fresh paper towels to get it all off. Some of the stain you applied may come off, too. Once you have the BLO all off let it dry for a day or so and then add back stain to any areas that need it. When that's dry I recommend you spray it with a coat of dewaxed shellac. If you don't have spray equipment then use rattle can shellac; it's dewaxed. The shellac will seal in any remnant BLO, wax, dirt, whatever, and give a good base for the topcoat to follow. When the shellac has dried for several hours you can apply any finish you want - but not BLO! If you don't have spray equipment I recommend a wiping varnish like Arm-R-Seal or Waterlox, which can be applied with nothing more than a blue paper towel.
John
Thanks John I didn't want the shiny finish of poly. Well good thing I am retired and have lots of time. 30 cabs to redue so I'll be here a while. Almost 50 yrs woodworking and still learning,thanks again
I hear you. I learn new ways to fail pretty regularly.
You can avoid the shiny look by using satin sheen. Or if you prefer, use gloss and let it cure for 3 or 4 weeks and then rub it out with 0000 steel wool or a synthetic pad (probably the better choice with oak).
Good luck.
John
I would go with what John said to be sure of success. I'm only bringing this up as a shot at something that might save a lot of work.
Is it possible that simply applying a wiping varnish to the remains of the BLO might work? I ask because Maloof finish of equal parts BLO, mineral spirits, and alykd varnish would seem to have a composition similar to a mixture of BLO and some wiping varnish -- what you'd get if the remains of the BLO could actually mix in. It might be worth checking an area before cleaning it all off to see if the easier approach works.