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I'm looking for advice on a durable finish for a utilitarian piece (salad bowl) that won't amber or yellow the natural white color of the wood. I normally use oil finishes and have been happy with them. However, I finished a couple of very light colored maple bowls yesterday and was disappointed to see the color change. I knew that would happen, but I guess I had forgotten how drastic the change was.
So, any suggestions for a finish that won't do that but will still hold up to regular use?
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If you want what you see unfinished color when finished, you're going to have to go to the water-based acrylics. They have their faults - chief of which is a certain haze and blue tint - depending on manufacturer. One of the cultural things we have come to expect is warm ambering of wood objects. So I use wipe-on poly, The Minwax product, which seems to feature modified soy, an oil which yellows less than the classic linseed, and is less stinky and has no haze like tung-based stuff. Reasonable compromise.
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If it's going to be a practical salad bowl¹ then I'd suggest a completely non-toxic finish. Take some mineral oil, heat it in a double boiler and dissolve bee's wax in it to get a good consistency. Check consistency by dropping a little on a cool surface and see what it's like. Rub the inside with it. It will need renewal every few uses. (Test on scrap and see if it does what you want.) Otherwise Crystalac Poly-Ox will do what you want.
¹ As opposed to being used to display/serve fruits, nuts, cold boiled potatoes….
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"Regular use" being the operative term here, I'd avoid any film finish that doesn't cure to a fairly hard surface and go with the something called butcher block oil, which is essentially food grade mineral oil and beeswax. You can make your own as described above for considerably less than what they sell at the big box stores. General Finishes makes something called Salad Bowl Finish. I'm not real sure what's in it, but it's an "oil and urethane based" finish. They admit it ambers over time.
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I've had good luck with general finishes, wood turners finish.
IAN
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Thanks for the advice, everyone. I know you're right about oil finishes, but I'm trying to find an alternative to them, because they darken the wood so much. I'll admit I haven't tried mineral oil finishes, but I've read in a lot of places it can go rancid because it doesn't dry or harden. Is that not true?
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MichaelMouse said:
If you want what you see unfinished color when finished, you're going to have to go to the water-based acrylics. They have their faults - chief of which is a certain haze and blue tint - depending on manufacturer. One of the cultural things we have come to expect is warm ambering of wood objects. So I use wipe-on poly, The Minwax product, which seems to feature modified soy, an oil which yellows less than the classic linseed, and is less stinky and has no haze like tung-based stuff. Reasonable compromise.
Long time no talk, MM. Hello! Are you saying wipe-on poly holds up nicely on utility pieces also? I've used it before and think I could be happy with the mild color change that comes from it, as long as I know it holds up well with use. Follow-up question: Any tutorials out there on applying a wipe-on poly finish? I've had some success with it, but not consistently. That's why I switched to oils back in my early turning days.
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jerickson said:
Thanks for the advice, everyone. I know you're right about oil finishes, but I'm trying to find an alternative to them, because they darken the wood so much. I'll admit I haven't tried mineral oil finishes, but I've read in a lot of places it can go rancid because it doesn't dry or harden. Is that not true?
Never heard of mineral oil going rancid, it is used on cutting boards all the time. I think you have it confused with cooking oil, which will go rancid. Mel
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jerickson said:
Are you saying wipe-on poly holds up nicely on utility pieces also? I've used it before and think I could be happy with the mild color change that comes from it, as long as I know it holds up well with use.
Follow-up question: Any tutorials out there on applying a wipe-on poly finish? I've had some success with it, but not consistently. That's why I switched to oils back in my early turning days.
Tutorial's on the can. Start with an application to refusal, wiping off after five minutes or so of penetration time. Even with maple, you shouldn't have shiny, so put the second coat on, wait, wipe. After the second, I reduce any glossy spots indicative of surface film with abrasive, and call it done. Extremely porous wood might require a third wipe, but the objective is not a film, but a penetration-resistant surface. If your objective is a sheen, make sure you use the minimum # of coats to get there, and carve some utensils out of softer wood for serving. That's all for the priming. Final treatment is, of course salad oil, but it shouldn't penetrate much, or mix with non-curing oils or oil/wax treatments. Best not to add dressing to the bowl, but to the salad, and it will stay nice for a long time. Wipe before use with a vinegar-soaked rag. Even non-curing oils will not offend if allowed free access to air, so don't nest your bowl.
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MM has some very valid points here. Wipe on poly will provide a hard, durable surface for most applications. It's used on tables all the time. If you use metal utensils with the salad bowl, you may possibly damage that protection. Hence his suggestion to use a softer wood for utensils. He sells a lot of utility and salad bowls, so he knows his stuff. MichaelMouse said:
[blockquote]jerickson said:
Are you saying wipe-on poly holds up nicely on utility pieces also? I've used it before and think I could be happy with the mild color change that comes from it, as long as I know it holds up well with use.
Follow-up question: Any tutorials out there on applying a wipe-on poly finish? I've had some success with it, but not consistently. That's why I switched to oils back in my early turning days.
Tutorial's on the can. Start with an application to refusal, wiping off after five minutes or so of penetration time. Even with maple, you shouldn't have shiny, so put the second coat on, wait, wipe. After the second, I reduce any glossy spots indicative of surface film with abrasive, and call it done. Extremely porous wood might require a third wipe, but the objective is not a film, but a penetration-resistant surface. If your objective is a sheen, make sure you use the minimum # of coats to get there, and carve some utensils out of softer wood for serving. That's all for the priming. Final treatment is, of course salad oil, but it shouldn't penetrate much, or mix with non-curing oils or oil/wax treatments. Best not to add dressing to the bowl, but to the salad, and it will stay nice for a long time. Wipe before use with a vinegar-soaked rag. Even non-curing oils will not offend if allowed free access to air, so don't nest your bowl.
[/blockquote]
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Allan Hill
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