Mary Fisher wrote:
"Andy Hall" wrote in message
...

On Mon, 14 Mar 2005 19:48:21 -0000, "colin"
wrote:


What's the best way to finish an oak dining table. Should I stain it then
apply varnish or is staining enough if applied every so often



What finish and what level of protection do you want?

If you are seating only adults and the worst thing that can happen is
the occasional accidental spill of red wine that is quickly mopped up,
then stain and wax if you want a more rustic appearance or stain, some
kind of sealer and wax if you want something a touch smoother.

OTOH, if it's for babies and toddlers, you might want to go for heavy
grade polyurethane. Bear in mind with this, that if it gets marred,
you have to strip it and completely redo it.
Personally, I think it's sacrilege to cover hardwoods with shiny
varnishes that make them look like plastic.


So do I. We protected our oak table with matt polyurethane, it satisfied all
demands. Not shiny, no plastic look, yet durable enough to withstand
anything we can throw at it.

Even the odd welding spatter ...

Wax for a table is stupid unless you want to spend a lot of time re-doing
it. My life's too precious.

Mary
Maker of beeswax polish :-)



Hmmm, bet you don't sell much polish with a sales pitch like that )

Anyway, I would recommend Danish Oil. I built a fish tank cabinet 18
months ago and treated it with Danish Oil and it still looks as good as
new despite having water splashed on it (and sometimes not mopped up)
practically everyday. The only thing I would say though is brush it on.
Don't mess about with a lint free cloth.