Posts: 1,343
Threads: 0
Joined: Oct 2005
Location: Daytona Beach, Fl.
Off the top of your head, what finish comes to mind as your favorite way to finish an oak table. Looking for gut reaction and bot a long thought plan. Simple for my simple mind. Thanks/
Posts: 527
Threads: 0
Joined: Feb 2021
Location: Stevi, Montana
Posts: 892
Threads: 0
Joined: Apr 2006
Location: Trout Creek, Montana
Watco Medium walnut stain and wipe-on simi-gloss poly
Treat others as you want to be treated.
“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” — Mae West.
24- year cancer survivor
Posts: 13,970
Threads: 0
Joined: Mar 2006
Location: Summerville, SC
6 or more coats of hand rubbed lacquer. The real stuff.
"Mongo only pawn in game of life." Mongo
Posts: 12,606
Threads: 0
Joined: Aug 2003
Location: Wapakoneta, OH
A good quality varnish, I typically apply several coats, then sand it back to see if the pores are filled. If not go again, once the pores a filled, a final coat. That's for oak table tops only. To match the rest of the table just gets a few coats of the same varnish.
I started with absolutely nothing. Now, thanks to years of hard work, careful planning, and perseverance, I find I still have most of it left.
Posts: 1,289
Threads: 0
Joined: Sep 2012
Location: Mobile, Alabama
Equal parts of MS, Poly, and Linseed oil.
Posts: 7,421
Threads: 1
Joined: Sep 2005
Oil based minwax poly over stain.
I apply poly with three strategies.
Wipe-on (too time consuming to build sufficient finish thickness.
Brush on (foam brush). Allows a heavy coat and is good for horizontal surfaces that get lots of use.
Modified brush on (foam brush. I apply a heavy coat over the entire surface. After the surface is fully coated, I use paper towels to squeeze nearly dry the foam brush. Then I lightly drag the brush over the surface in one pass from end to end. I repeat the squeeze out and pass until just the weight of the brush is applied and the brush lightly chatters as it is drags across the surface.
The final finish resembles a 4 to 6 coat wipe-on, but in just two coats.
No animals were injured or killed in the production of this post.
