The last few weeks I've been using "playing around" with Minwax Tung Oil.
I've previously used the combination Tung Oil and Teak Oil for a low luster
finish, but recently I've used straight Tung Oil on some boxes I've made.
In terms of looks, the cherry and english walnut turn out excellent after
just 3 - 4 coats.

I have two questions though - how durable is it? Would Tung Oil be ok for a
cherry dining room table I thinking about? How is it for turnings - can you
lathe-apply the finish?

Can it be sprayed on with an HVLP sprayer?

You thoughts would be appreciated.


Brian

The reason they put resins in oils to make varnishes is to give them
durability. On their own they're repairable, but not durable.

If you like tung, you may apply it to turnings, though it will sink in as
well when applied on a static piece, without messing you or the walls.
After it seems dry, at the point you would normally wipe, you might want to
fire up the rotation and apply some rag friction heat to pick the excess up,
else it tends to cure slowly, especially in cool or damp circumstances.


"B Man" wrote in message
...
The last few weeks I've been using "playing around" with Minwax Tung Oil.
I've previously used the combination Tung Oil and Teak Oil for a low
luster
finish, but recently I've used straight Tung Oil on some boxes I've made.
In terms of looks, the cherry and english walnut turn out excellent after
just 3 - 4 coats.

I have two questions though - how durable is it? Would Tung Oil be ok for
a
cherry dining room table I thinking about? How is it for turnings - can
you
lathe-apply the finish?

Can it be sprayed on with an HVLP sprayer?

You thoughts would be appreciated.


Brian

I hand-applied pure tung oil to a cherry dowel I used in a simple towel-rack
in my bathroom. After three years of subjection to "rolling" as towels are
pulled off, and sitting under a wet towel for hours every day, it is still
as lustrous, smooth, and well-protected as the day I installed it.

That data point notwithstanding, the oils seem to rank fairly low on the
durability scale. I have a limited amount of experience in using it on
turnings, but so far the results seem okay.

Every piece of advice I've received about applying oil has been the
antithesis of spraying. It's best applied by submersion for the early coats
(wiping away excess periodically) and by hand for later coats, working it in
with vigorous friction to generate heat.

--Jay

"B Man" wrote in message
...

I have two questions though - how durable is it? Would Tung Oil be ok for
a
cherry dining room table I thinking about? How is it for turnings - can
you
lathe-apply the finish?

I'm cheating by looking into the excellent book "Understanding wood
finishing" by Bob Flexner. This is a very good reference on the whole topic
of finishing woods. He has a chapter on oil finishes. I'll take a risk of
summarizing salient comments on various "oil" finishes.

1. Pure oil finishes are not durable and offer little protection.
2. Oil/varnish is easy to apply, but does not protect against water, water
vapor exchange and wear. It is a poor choice for table top.
3. Wiping varnish is "potentially excellent protection, if built up".

I'd avoid tung oil for your dining room table. I highly recommend the book.
He spends quite a bit of effort calling out myths in wood finishing and
calling out the facts. He also has a lot of practical tips on choice,
application, and repair of wood finishes.

Bob

Brian,
I would use oil to bring out the grain (at least three coats), let the
oil harden for a week, and then put on a couple of coats of poly.

Oil is wipe on to saturate surface, let it soak in for 15-30 minutes,
add some more to hit the dry spots, another 15 minutes and then wipe
off. Don't keep the oily rags laying around - they are a fire hazard.
The poly you can spray on if you prefer or there are some decent wipe
on polys that will work ok. The poly can be oil or water based
depending on your preferences.

For a table top I would use Danish oil rather than tung. Use the poly
to add sheen and good protection, the oil adds depth.

On Thu, 7 Oct 2004 11:45:33 -0400, "B Man" wrote:

The last few weeks I've been using "playing around" with Minwax Tung Oil.
I've previously used the combination Tung Oil and Teak Oil for a low luster
finish, but recently I've used straight Tung Oil on some boxes I've made.
In terms of looks, the cherry and english walnut turn out excellent after
just 3 - 4 coats.

I have two questions though - how durable is it? Would Tung Oil be ok for a
cherry dining room table I thinking about? How is it for turnings - can you
lathe-apply the finish?

Can it be sprayed on with an HVLP sprayer?

You thoughts would be appreciated.


Brian


TWS
http://tomstudwell.com/allprojects.htm

"B Man" wrote in message m...
The last few weeks I've been using "playing around" with Minwax Tung Oil.
I've previously used the combination Tung Oil and Teak Oil for a low luster
finish, but recently I've used straight Tung Oil on some boxes I've made.
In terms of looks, the cherry and english walnut turn out excellent after
just 3 - 4 coats.

I have two questions though - how durable is it? Would Tung Oil be ok for a
cherry dining room table I thinking about? How is it for turnings - can you
lathe-apply the finish?

Hi,

One thing to keep in mind is that "Tung Oil" can either be a mix of
tung oil and varnish (as the Minwax is), or it can be pure tung oil
(e.g., Hope's sells a pure tung oil).

I've used both, and the two finish very differently. The Minwax Tung
Oil builds pretty fast and forms quite a gloss (after 3 thinnish
coats). Pure tung oil does not build nearly so fast, and even after
several coats will not form much of a gloss.

Hope that helps.

Cheers,
Nate

I recently used applied two coats of Danish oil follwoed by two coats
of Minwax paste (which was buffed each time). I don't know _how_
durable or water resistent it is but I do know it's a lot more durable
and water resistenct than just Danish oil. It looks great, too --
semi-gloss. Feels good to touch.

You can see from my other posts that I'm no expert in finishing so
take what I say with a grain of salt.

BTW, this finish was suggested to me by a professional box maker
selling his wares at an art show in Boulder, Colorado (Pearl Street,
for those of you familair with Boulder)....Actually he used Tung oil
and BLACK BISON™ Wax PASTE WAX.


"B Man" wrote in message m...
[snip]

You thoughts would be appreciated.


Brian

In article ,
says...
The last few weeks I've been using "playing around" with Minwax Tung Oil.
I've previously used the combination Tung Oil and Teak Oil for a low luster
finish, but recently I've used straight Tung Oil on some boxes I've made.
In terms of looks, the cherry and english walnut turn out excellent after
just 3 - 4 coats.

I have two questions though - how durable is it? Would Tung Oil be ok for a
cherry dining room table I thinking about? How is it for turnings - can you
lathe-apply the finish?

Can it be sprayed on with an HVLP sprayer?

You thoughts would be appreciated.


Brian





Tung oil, any oil finish for that matter isn't durable and certainly
does not provide adequate protection for a dining room table.

Given the right viscosity, air pressure and volume, and correct
needle/nozzle combination you can spray just about any liquid. However,
considering that oil is a wipe on wipe off finish, I can't imagine any
circumstances where I would be induced to drag out my HVLP set up to
spray an oil finish. But, if you want to do it have at it, it's not
going to hurt anything.

Using it on turnings is the same as using it on anything else. It's fine
as long as it provides at least the minimum amount of protection to the
wood that is needed to resist damage to the piece from reasonable
expected use.


--
MikeG
Heirloom Woods
www.heirloom-woods.net

On Thu, 7 Oct 2004 11:45:33 -0400, "B Man" wrote:

The last few weeks I've been using "playing around" with Minwax Tung Oil.
I've previously used the combination Tung Oil and Teak Oil for a low luster
finish, but recently I've used straight Tung Oil on some boxes I've made.
In terms of looks, the cherry and english walnut turn out excellent after
just 3 - 4 coats.

I have two questions though - how durable is it? Would Tung Oil be ok for a
cherry dining room table I thinking about? How is it for turnings - can you
lathe-apply the finish?

Can it be sprayed on with an HVLP sprayer?

You thoughts would be appreciated.


Brian

I have no idea if it's still available, but Minwax used to make a
wiping oil in the 80's that was a mixture of tung oil and poly...

The closest to it that I've found so far is their rubbing poly, which
I like a lot... it gives you a compromise between that "hand rubbed"
look the "plastic coated" look...
If used as directed, a few coats rubbed in will make wood fairly
durable and not glossy at all...
I used it last summer on a side table by the pool, made of pine scraps
and with 3 coats rubbed in/on... it's been through 2 summers and a
winter now and still seems to be repelling moisture...

Nate Perkins wrote:

One thing to keep in mind is that "Tung Oil" can either be a mix of
tung oil and varnish (as the Minwax is), or it can be pure tung oil
(e.g., Hope's sells a pure tung oil).

The MSDS for Minwax Tung Oil lists mineral spirits, Stoddard's solvent and proprietary ingredients with
no mention of tung oil.

--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA
(Remove "SPAM" from email address to reply)

In article ,
says...
Pure tung oil does not build nearly so fast, and even after
several coats will not form much of a gloss.


The reason for that is that an oil finish is neither designed to build
nor is a build, considering the attributes of an oil finish, desirable.

If you should eventually add enough to get a build what you have is a
poor substitute for any decent surface finish.

It makes little sense to add 5, 6, coats of oil to get a build of a ****
poor surface finish when two or three coats of varnish, already curing
oil, possibly tung, and resins, are pretty much visually the same and
provides far more protection.

--
MikeG
Heirloom Woods
www.heirloom-woods.net

Except, of course, the name. Only the active or dangerous ingredients need
to be listed. Smells like tung oil, too. Wonder how long it would take in
this litigious society before some ambitious attorney or basic troublemaker
filed for false or misleading, else?

"Nova" wrote in message
...
Nate Perkins wrote:

One thing to keep in mind is that "Tung Oil" can either be a mix of
tung oil and varnish (as the Minwax is), or it can be pure tung oil
(e.g., Hope's sells a pure tung oil).

The MSDS for Minwax Tung Oil lists mineral spirits, Stoddard's solvent and
proprietary ingredients with
no mention of tung oil.

--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA
(Remove "SPAM" from email address to reply)

Pretty good URL related to finishes: http://www.thewoodshop.20m.com/finishing.htm

[snip]

"Never Enough Money" wrote in message
om...

BTW, this finish was suggested to me by a professional box maker
selling his wares at an art show in Boulder, Colorado (Pearl Street,
for those of you familair with Boulder)....Actually he used Tung oil
and BLACK BISONT Wax PASTE WAX.

With all due respect, a decorative box has a primary function of looking
pretty. The requirements for durability on a dining table are a long way
from a decorative box.

Bob

"Bob" wrote in message
k.net...
|
| With all due respect, a decorative box has a primary function of looking
| pretty. The requirements for durability on a dining table are a long way
| from a decorative box.

I'm surprised at how well some of the easier to apply finishes can be made
to look good.

On my desk I have a nice cocobolo and ebony jewelry box which I use for
keeping small components like sensors that apply to my job. It's from an
artist I have admired for her oil and wax finishes. She sands down to 800
grit and hand-applies the oils.

At a recent show I saw some decorative boxes I was sure had been finished in
a similar way, but the artist there said it was rubbed lacquer -- easier to
do and easier to maintain. Obviously there's room for artistic disagreement
there, but I was suprised to see that you don't have to slave over a piece
for weeks with oily hands in order to have a top-notch finish.

--Jay

Thanks for the "due respect" but I admit I'm no expert so very little
respect is due.

I know my wax on danish oil is not durable. However, I think it is
more durable than just plain tung oil which was the question in the
original post.

For durability, some of the other post have good suggestions:
polyurethane and such.

BTW, I just ordered a copy of "Understanding Wood Finishing: How to
Select and Apply the Right Finish (American Woodworker)" by Bob
Flexner. The fact that I'm buying books is a sure sign of a
non-expert....but getting better by reading rec.woodworking post,
asking fellow ww'ers, and reading literature, and, of course, actually
doing a few finishes......

As a non-expert, I wonder how some of the floor finishes work on table
tops????

Anybody tried OSMO Hardwax oil
(http://www.environmentalhomecenter.c...OS_HARDWAX_OIL)

or

BioShield
(http://www.environmentalhomecenter.c...S_FLOOR_FINISH)?

Both are non-toxic and seem suited for table tops.....


"Bob" wrote in message news:9Tzbd.4072
[snip]


With all due respect, a decorative box has a primary function of looking
pretty. The requirements for durability on a dining table are a long way
from a decorative box.

Bob

"Never Enough Money" wrote in message
om...

BTW, I just ordered a copy of "Understanding Wood Finishing: How to
Select and Apply the Right Finish (American Woodworker)" by Bob
Flexner.

That book will turn anyone into an expert. Good choice!

Best regards,
Bob