NAN'S FAVORITE FINISH

Nan Bushley passes this finishing technique along that she learned from Wally Dickerman of Seattle, Washington. She says it's best suited for woods such as Walnut, Olive, Maple, etc., and not the high resin content exotic species such as Cocobolo. Here are her instructions:

After finish sanding, liberally wipe on a coat of Deft Clear Wood Finish: don't wait for it to dry but follow immediately with a coat of Ben Matte Tung Oil finish applied with 4-0 steel wool. If the surface is unbroken (no defects, or bark inclusions), burnish in with the lathe running. Allow to become slightly tacky, (5 to 10 minutes; do not allow to dry), then wipe off.

Allow to stand over night then apply another coat of Ben Matte and wipe off as before. Repeat this process 4-6 times to build up additional luster as desired. You can top everything off with a coat of paste wax after the oil is completely dry, but this is a personal choice and is not necessary.

OSKAR'S PLATTER FINISH

Oskar Kirsten makes, among many other items, presentation platters for various technical societies with which he is associated. Most of these platters are made from Goncalvo Alves and are about 10" in diameter. He uses a process on them which leaves a fine marble like finish. Following is his step by step finishing procedure.

"I power sand, if shaping, starting at 80 grit. If I like the shape and have not torn end grain, I start at 120 or 150. The initial sanding is done with sticky paper on 5" diameter foam pads. I have several pads which allows me to progress rapidly towards 400 grit. I then look closely, using a backlight, for visible scratches. If everything is OK, I brush the platter clean of sanding residue. I might add, that after every grit change, I use a 2" wide paint brush to clear away any remaining grit of the previous grade. This prevents including a rougher previous grit with a subsequent finer one as I ascend to the finest. The last sanding is with 600 grit followed by 0000 steel wool. I have spent only 15-30 seconds on each sanding step thus far.

The final step is to apply my finish of choice. With the lathe stopped or very slow, I spray lacquer from an aerosol can to cover the piece. While the lacquer is still wet, I rub in a healthy dose of dark wax. Before it can dry, I speed up the lathe to about 600 RPM and literally burnish in the coat of wax. A single application gives a very nice finish to a closed cell hard wood such as Goncalvo Alves. This finish may initially be splotchy in a less hard or open grain wood and may require several lacquer coats before the final wax and laquer combination. Each coat is "wooled" with 0000 before another application and the lathe speed must be very slow so as not to streak burn the previous coat.

Because I finish the foot side of the platter first, I repeat each step for the inside when I reverse mount it. Try it, I think you'll like it."

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JIM YOUNG'S "ONE STEP FINISH"

Jim calls this his "one step, quick finish. Mike Mahoney, our Provo,Utah member, also uses this finish almost exclusively. I'm not sure who came up with it originally.

The finish consists of a concoction of mineral oil and beeswax. Jim uses one half pint of mineral oil to a half pound of beeswax. He places the two ingredients in a tupperware bowl and nukes them in the Microwave until the mixture liquifies. He then pours the liquid into a can or other lidded container and allows it to solidify into a soft paste.

Jim applies a liberal coat of the wax and oil mixture to a finished piece with a cotton cloth (diapers are excellent) and allows it to sit for a few minutes. He then turns on the lathe and buffs the wax dry. This process produces a durable, non-toxic, food safe finish with a satin sheen. It is especially good on hardwoods such as maple, walnut, cocobolo, etc.

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MY FAVORITE FINISH by Gene Reynolds

I use a finish called French Polish. I am not sure that it is the correct name for this finish, but this is what Nan called it. I first came across this finish by winning a bottle at the first San Diego Woodturners meeting I attended. I believe Nan was the one that made up this particular batch for the raffle. It is made by mixing 1 part denatured alcohol, 1 part boiled linseed oil, and 1 part clear shellac. You can purchase all these components from Standard Brands Paint Store. I buy the 8 oz. size of clear shellac all ready mixed in a denatured alcohol base as it makes it easier to mix the rest of the ingredients. You can use a quart plastic bottle with a sealed top and use 8 oz. of each ingredient for a total of 24 oz. Be sure to shake the bottle before each use as the ingredients tend to separate after sitting.

The way to use this French polish is to sand to a fine finish, 320 or 400 grit depending on the wood used, then while the lathe is spinning at a slow speed, apply the finish with a rag such as an old tee shirt. I keep the rag moving so there won't be any lap marks in the finish. Put on just a light coat at first, and let this dry. It only takes a minute for this finish to dry and that is why it is my favorite finish as all the finishing can be done at one time. I then sand the finish with a very fine mesh sponge, which can be bought from Craft Supplies in Provo, Utah, or from Woodworkers Store. You can also use 0000 steel wool , but steel wool has a tendency to stick to the finish and later to rust if it gets any moisture thereby staining your bowl. I then either put on another light coat and build up seceding coats until I reach a high gloss finish, or stop at one or two coats and then put a wax finish on for a slightly duller sheen. Sand between each coat of French Polish to keep the finish smooth, and to allow each seceding coat to adhere to each other.

I have found that after years of using this finish I can control it better than any other, and you don't have to wait for the finish to dry over night or worry about foreign particles sticking to it while it is drying. It seems to be very durable, and also if you want you can wax the surface after sanding the last coat of finish, this leaves the wood feeling good to the touch with a more natural finish. I also feel that this finish is a good sealer coat for the wood if that is all you want to use it for, and then wax or do what ever finish you like. One minus is that even though you use the clear shellac, this finish tends to give the wood a slight yellowing effect, but I don't find this objectionable in most cases.

Give this finish a try and you will come to like it, as it is inexpensive, dry's extremely fast and provides excellent protection for your projects.

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BUFFING AS PART OF FINISHING by Chuck Luebbers

Several years ago, I attended the large machinery show in Los Angeles. One of the booths had a sequence of buffing wheels and compounds as part of their demonstration. I had always thought of buffing as a means of polishing metal. To my surprise, they were buffing all types of wood and were getting a very high sheen.

I couldn't wait to get home and give it a try. I had a piece of Cocobolo that was turned round and sanded to 400 grit. As you know, geting the circular sanding marks out of Cocobolo is a real challenge. I used a 1/2" thick cotton wheel chucked in my reversible drill and charged it with brown Tripoli. When I held the spinning wheel against the rotating piece on the lathe, the circular marks instantly vanished and a very highly polished surface appeared. With the addition of a coat of wax, this technique produced the best finish I had ever obtained on Cocobolo.

When polishing dark woods, I use the brown Tripoli, and on light woods, I use the white. Ihave used this method on woods finished first with Ben Matte oil or a sanding sealer, and in all cases the final finish is smooth and glossy.

Tripoli can be purchased at any Lapidary shop.

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Horst Remmling's SATIN FINISH

In need of a finishing tip this month, I called Horst to see if he would share with us the process he uses to achieve the beautiful satin sheen characteristic of his work. Horst uses a product by General Finishes called Sealacell and a companion product called Arm-R-Seal by the same manufacturer. Sealacell is a Tung Oil wood sealer and the Arm-R-Seal is billed as a Oil & Urethane Top Coat.

After turning a piece and sanding to 400 grit on the lathe, Horst removes it and applies a liberal coat of Sealacell with a cotton cloth. He allows this coat to dry overnight and then hand sands with 220 grit. On spalted or punky woods,

Horst says he will just soak the piece overnight in a pan of Sealacell. After sanding he carefully removes all residue. Horst next applys three or four coats of Arm-R-Seal, allowing each coat to dry overnight, and sands with 220 grit between each coat.

The final top coat is first sanded with 400 grit and then 600 to dull the shine. Horst tops every thing off with a coat of Black Bison paste wax and buffs it by hand.

Sealacell is available through the Woodworker's Store.

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