"RnJPhoto" wrote in message
...
I've just finished sanding a 12" x 12" x 1/2" piece of mesquite that I
want to
turn into a cutting Board. Would Tung oil be safe to use as a finish.
Tung
oil would certainly bring out mesquites unique grain pattern.

Ron in Hereford, AZ

Mineral Oil is what you want... Non-toxic and won't go rancid after a while.
--
Regards,

Dean Bielanowski
Editor,
Online Tool Reviews
http://www.onlinetoolreviews.com
Over 60 woodworking product reviews online!
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(RnJPhoto) wrote in message ...
I've just finished sanding a 12" x 12" x 1/2" piece of mesquite that I want to
turn into a cutting Board. Would Tung oil be safe to use as a finish. Tung
oil would certainly bring out mesquites unique grain pattern.

Ron in Hereford, AZ

I like to use RAW linseed oil. Must be RAW, cannot be boiled.
Hardens the wood a bit, takes longer to cure than mineral, but I think
it lasts longer and makes the grain pop a little better.

Cured Tung is non-toxic. So is cured linseed, walnut oil ....

Since tung polymerizes, it will not to collect oil-soluble dirt and become a
haven for bacteria like non-curing mineral oil, and is therefore never
"rancid," though I personally don't like the smell. Vegetable oils which go
rancid do so from incomplete oxidation, a condition easily avoided by
providing surfaces free access to the air.

Best thing for the board is nothing, second a curing oil, third, a
non-curing oil. Nothing needs no renewal, curing oil only to hide cuts, and
non-curing every time the detergent washes away the oil (and what's trapped
in it, temporarily protected from detergent).

"Woodcrafter" wrote in message
u...

"RnJPhoto" wrote in message
...
I've just finished sanding a 12" x 12" x 1/2" piece of mesquite that I
want to
turn into a cutting Board. Would Tung oil be safe to use as a finish.
Tung
oil would certainly bring out mesquites unique grain pattern.

Ron in Hereford, AZ

Mineral Oil is what you want... Non-toxic and won't go rancid after a
while.
--
Regards,

"RnJPhoto" wrote in message
...
I've just finished sanding a 12" x 12" x 1/2" piece of mesquite that I
want to
turn into a cutting Board. Would Tung oil be safe to use as a finish.
Tung
oil would certainly bring out mesquites unique grain pattern.

Ron in Hereford, AZ


Mesquite is the hardest or one of the hardest native American hard woods
that tend to dull carbide blades rather quickly. Would this be a wise
choice for a cutting board?

In article ,
says...
I've just finished sanding a 12" x 12" x 1/2" piece of mesquite that I want to
turn into a cutting Board. Would Tung oil be safe to use as a finish. Tung
oil would certainly bring out mesquites unique grain pattern.

Ron in Hereford, AZ



Yes, tung oil as well as any other common finishing oils and or non
curing mineral oil and a vegetable oil would be safe for a cutting
board.
--
MikeG
Heirloom Woods
www.heirloom-woods.net

Second Mineral Oil - I made some for family last year and they finished up
beautifully with mineral oil. You do have to renew from time to time.

"George" george@least wrote in :

Cured Tung is non-toxic. So is cured linseed, walnut oil ....

Since tung polymerizes, it will not to collect oil-soluble dirt and
become a haven for bacteria like non-curing mineral oil, and is
therefore never "rancid," though I personally don't like the smell.
Vegetable oils which go rancid do so from incomplete oxidation, a
condition easily avoided by providing surfaces free access to the air.

Best thing for the board is nothing, second a curing oil, third, a
non-curing oil. Nothing needs no renewal, curing oil only to hide
cuts, and non-curing every time the detergent washes away the oil (and
what's trapped in it, temporarily protected from detergent).

"Woodcrafter" wrote in message
u...

"RnJPhoto" wrote in message
...
I've just finished sanding a 12" x 12" x 1/2" piece of mesquite
that I
want to
turn into a cutting Board. Would Tung oil be safe to use as a
finish.
Tung
oil would certainly bring out mesquites unique grain pattern.

Ron in Hereford, AZ

Mineral Oil is what you want... Non-toxic and won't go rancid after a
while.
--
Regards,



Be SURE to get PURE tung oil. Most tung oil finishes I've run across
have heavy-metal driers added to them, but you don't want heavy-metal
driers added to your diet.

Mineral oil.

Or just cut fatty meats on it. The fat soaks in, and if you wash it and
let it dry properly the chances of bacterial infection are just about
nil, but there is residual fat soaked into the wood, so it looks oiled.

--
John Snow
"If I knew what I was doing, I wouldn't be here"

I've made a fair number of cutting boards as presents (as well as one for
myself) and I've almost always used mineral oil. It seems to work well from
what I've seen. If you can't find a cheaper or more convenient source you
can get it from Williams-Sonoma (a cooking store common in fancy malls).
What I also like about this is when I give the cutting board to someone I
can tell them a place to get more oil for it without sending them to a
specialty woodworking store they've never heard of.

Bringing out the grain is in pretty futile in a cutting board because if you
actually plan to cut on it you will quickly dull the surface of the board
anyway. I've had people "complain" that my cutting boards looked so nice
they did not want to cut on them, so bringing out the grain too much can
inhibit people from using the board for it's intended function!


"RnJPhoto" wrote in message
...
I've just finished sanding a 12" x 12" x 1/2" piece of mesquite that I
want to
turn into a cutting Board. Would Tung oil be safe to use as a finish.
Tung
oil would certainly bring out mesquites unique grain pattern.

Ron in Hereford, AZ

Another option, if you want a really pretty finish, would be "Salad Bowl
Oil". It's sold mostly for finishing turnings (bowls and suchlike) but it
should also work fine on a cutting board. I used it once for that purpose
but I decided that it was too glossy to be practical on a cutting board. It
is FDA approved for food contact.

Like others, I would be concerned about metallic driers in things like
linseed and tung oil.

- Bruce

"RnJPhoto" wrote in message
...
I've just finished sanding a 12" x 12" x 1/2" piece of mesquite that I
want to
turn into a cutting Board. Would Tung oil be safe to use as a finish.
Tung
oil would certainly bring out mesquites unique grain pattern.

Ron in Hereford, AZ

In article I2wad.2740$EZ.730@okepread07, "RonB"
wrote:

Second Mineral Oil - I made some for family last year and they finished up
beautifully with mineral oil. You do have to renew from time to time.

Mineral Oil is what the butchers used on their old blocks, often after
they scrubbed the surface with corse salt and a stiff bristled
(steel???) brush. I've been doing that for years. Also lets you get any
gunk out of any cuts in the wood from knifes, choppers, etc.

--
Regards,
JP
"The measure of a man is what he will do
knowing he will get nothing in return"

In article ,
(RnJPhoto) wrote:

Ron in Hereford, AZ

Hereford? HEREFORD? I didn't even know you guys had phones down there
much less internet access.

My wife grew up in your neck of the San Pedro. Jeez that's lovely
country. We talk of retiring down there somewhere - maybe Wilcox area.
Though we live in Oregon, we're both native 'Zonies to the core. Can't
beat that azure sky dotted with snow white clouds.

--
Owen Lowe and his Fly-by-Night Copper Company
____

The problem in this country is that the bar is constantly being lowered;
we then cheer clearing the bar as a great accomplishment and achievment.

Fly-by-Night CC wrote in newsnlnlowe-
:

In article ,
(RnJPhoto) wrote:

Ron in Hereford, AZ

Hereford? HEREFORD? I didn't even know you guys had phones down there
much less internet access.

My wife grew up in your neck of the San Pedro. Jeez that's lovely
country. We talk of retiring down there somewhere - maybe Wilcox area.
Though we live in Oregon, we're both native 'Zonies to the core. Can't
beat that azure sky dotted with snow white clouds.


My sister, a fourth generation Californian, has been in Wilcox for 12-14
years now. While she's happy, they are looking to retire FROM Wilcox. I
guess it depends on your perspective. And desire for change.

Patriarch

On 11-Oct-2004, (todd the wood junkie) wrote:

I like to use RAW linseed oil.

Wouldn't this be the same thing as Flax Seed oil that you get at
a health food store to eat? That would be one way of getting the
stuff without any risk of hydrocarbons or driers in the mix (as
might be the case with hardware store linseed oil). Do they add
other stuff to flax seed oil (like other oils that might go rancid
more easily)?

Mike

This former meatcutter used what every other meatcutter I know used - tallow
and lard from the meat cut on it, salted to lyse bacteria after scraping the
big chunks off with what looked like a horse comb, the name of which escapes
me at the moment.

Mineral oil would have been superfluous, and would never have penetrated.

"Jim Polaski" wrote in message
...

Mineral Oil is what the butchers used on their old blocks, often after
they scrubbed the surface with corse salt and a stiff bristled
(steel???) brush. I've been doing that for years. Also lets you get any
gunk out of any cuts in the wood from knifes, choppers, etc.

That's the stuff. "Lin" as in linen - made from flax. And it's
hydrocarbon, with some acid ends.

As to metallic siccatives, you don't have enough stomachs to extract the
metallic ions bound in the polymer structure. It's a red herring.

Oh yes, the medic needs to mention that walnut oil at the health food store
is cold pressed, and may contain the proteins which can cause allergic
reactions in 1 in 10,000 people. Solvent-extracted oil does not, and is
safe for ingestion by the sensitive.

"Michael Daly" wrote in message
...
On 11-Oct-2004, (todd the wood junkie) wrote:

I like to use RAW linseed oil.

Wouldn't this be the same thing as Flax Seed oil that you get at
a health food store to eat? That would be one way of getting the
stuff without any risk of hydrocarbons or driers in the mix (as
might be the case with hardware store linseed oil). Do they add
other stuff to flax seed oil (like other oils that might go rancid
more easily)?

Mike

On Tue, 12 Oct 2004 08:34:17 -0400, "George" george@least wrote:

As to metallic siccatives, you don't have enough stomachs

Working on it....

"Michael Daly" wrote in message ...
On 11-Oct-2004, (todd the wood junkie) wrote:

I like to use RAW linseed oil.

Wouldn't this be the same thing as Flax Seed oil that you get at
a health food store to eat? That would be one way of getting the
stuff without any risk of hydrocarbons or driers in the mix (as
might be the case with hardware store linseed oil). Do they add
other stuff to flax seed oil (like other oils that might go rancid
more easily)?

Mike

I've never purchased it at a health food store, so I'm not sure. To
be sure, check the can or contact the manufacturer for exact
composition. I definately wouldn't use anything with vegetable oil
added because it may go rancid. I re-googled the subject since it's
been a while, and found lots of info (search on 'FLAX and LINSEED' and
you'll find further edification).

I have finished several cutting boards with RAW linseed oil and have
had no ill effects from myself or guests(after many salads). I kinda
like the smell (reminds me of grandpas oil paintings), but think I may
be in the minority on that one. One thing to keep in mind is this: I
usually give out a cutting board or two at xmastime, but try to finish
them in June or July to let the linseed fully cure. It's pretty much
usable after a few weeks, but I like to make sure when I give one out.

In article ,
patriarch wrote:

My sister, a fourth generation Californian, has been in Wilcox for 12-14
years now. While she's happy, they are looking to retire FROM Wilcox. I
guess it depends on your perspective. And desire for change.

I was born in Cottonwood/Clarkdale area - after college, lived almost a
decade in Flagstaff; my mom lives in Sedona. When I courted my wife and
visited her stomping grounds I enjoyed the rural feel along with the
scrub oaks, knee-high yellow grass, the ruggedness of the Chiricahuas
and the Dragoons and the eerie, desolate ghost towns of deep southern
Arizona. I haven't been back for almost 10 years so perhaps the same
thing that happened up north has also happened down there.

Thirty-five years ago I'd have stayed in the north but it's been
inundated by crystal peddlers, calyfornicators, mcmansions, resorts and
outrageous costs of living. Gone are the prospectors: those colorful
souls who made their homes from local rock, looked for income where they
could find it; strived for the good life - sometimes grasping and living
it, sometimes having it slip further out of reach - all the while
becoming part of the landscape.

I want to be a hermit: To let the world pass me by and just absorb the
sun and heat to the point my skin turns the color and texture of the
sandstone; To revel in the awe and wonderment at the snaking flash and
deafening clap of advancing thunderstorms that permeate the earth upon
which I stand; To cease all activity for each evening's performance as
our star slips below the horizon, releasing it's grip on the land and
all creatures thereon. There's something about the desert Southwest that
lives within. The starkness, the extremes, the abundance of life which
appears nonexistent. Arizona has always beckoned me home. Third time
will be for good.

--
Owen Lowe and his Fly-by-Night Copper Company
____

"To know the world intimately is the beginning of caring."
-- Ann Hayman Zwinger

On Sun, 24 Oct 2004 23:00:36 -0700, Fly-by-Night CC wrote:

I want to be a hermit: To let the world pass me by and just absorb the
sun and heat to the point my skin turns the color and texture of the
sandstone; To revel in the awe and wonderment at the snaking flash and
deafening clap of advancing thunderstorms that permeate the earth upon
which I stand; To cease all activity for each evening's performance as
our star slips below the horizon, releasing it's grip on the land and
all creatures thereon. There's something about the desert Southwest that
lives within. The starkness, the extremes, the abundance of life which
appears nonexistent. Arizona has always beckoned me home. Third time
will be for good.

Gee, thanks, pal. Here I am in Wisconsin with winter coming on, and
you have to go and remind me of home.

--
"Keep your ass behind you"

On Mon, 25 Oct 2004 00:00:36 -0600, Fly-by-Night CC wrote
(in article ):


I want to be a hermit: To let the world pass me by and just absorb the
sun and heat to the point my skin turns the color and texture of the
sandstone; To revel in the awe and wonderment at the snaking flash and
deafening clap of advancing thunderstorms that permeate the earth upon
which I stand; To cease all activity for each evening's performance as
our star slips below the horizon, releasing it's grip on the land and
all creatures thereon. There's something about the desert Southwest that
lives within. The starkness, the extremes, the abundance of life which
appears nonexistent. Arizona has always beckoned me home. Third time
will be for good.



Gee Owen,
Crack open your Edward Abbey books recently? :^)

-Bruce

On Sun, 24 Oct 2004 23:00:36 -0700, Fly-by-Night CC
wrote:

[snip]
|
|I was born in Cottonwood/Clarkdale area - after college, lived almost a
|decade in Flagstaff; my mom lives in Sedona. When I courted my wife and
|visited her stomping grounds I enjoyed the rural feel along with the
|scrub oaks, knee-high yellow grass, the ruggedness of the Chiricahuas
|and the Dragoons and the eerie, desolate ghost towns of deep southern
|Arizona. I haven't been back for almost 10 years so perhaps the same
|thing that happened up north has also happened down there.

No what's happened down here is Wetbacks. Sorry, I know that's not
politically correct, I should have said )*@^#^ wetbacks---I
mean---poor downtrodden, freedom loving, individuals just looking for
work.

Despite what Homeland Security says, it is completely unsafe for a
citizen of the United States of American to travel in the backcountry
(or even in a national park) within 100 miles of the border unless his
well-armed.

A buddy and I and our wives took a trip over the Dragoons from the
west side over to Pierce a couple of years ago. We took Middlemarch
Road out of Tombstone and on the way down from Tucson passed a Border
Patrol checkpoint at the junction of Highways 80 and 82.

In the mountains we encountered four broken down and alien smugglers,
all clearly had used abandoned vans. At one windmill/water tank,
where we get out to look around, the ground looked like the dump.
Litter everywhere and I got the distinct feeling that some of the
litterers were hiding in the bushes. My buddy, a flaming liberal
notices my holstered .357 and says, "What are you doing with that?"

I said, "Look around you. Here we are a couple of guys with two new
4X4 trucks and two women, do you think we're targets or what?"

He says, "Oh, I see your point."

Note to Homeland Security: Two middle-aged guys and their wives,
while out for a Sunday drive, easily avoided the Border Patrol's
checkpoint. What if we'd been wearing hankies on our heads?

And it goes on. Two weeks ago a newlywed elderly couple, sitting in
their car waiting for a red light to change, were murdered when a
truck full of illegals fleeing from the police went airborne and
crushed them. http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGB1MGKGG0E.html

Here's something to make you feel all warm and fuzzy. These killings
occurred on the highway that fronts Ft. Huachuca, home of the Army
Intelligence Center. Yet Ft. Huachuca is a smuggling route for drugs
and aliens! The United States Army cannot prevent invaders from a
foreign country from entering its bases.

http://www.svherald.com/articles/200...news/news2.txt

So come on down. Bring a gun.

Wes wrote in very small part:

A buddy and I and our wives took a trip over the Dragoons from the
west side over to Pierce a couple of years ago. We took Middlemarch
Road out of Tombstone and on the way down from Tucson passed a Border
Patrol checkpoint at the junction of Highways 80 and 82.

The "town" is spelled Pearce. Same as my Mailing address ;-).

Ed

On Mon, 25 Oct 2004 16:49:39 -0700, Ed Erbeck Jr. wrote:

The "town" is spelled Pearce. Same as my Mailing address

Can you see the Co-op plant from your house? (I'm in the great white north
now, but my roots are in that Valley.) You know where the Big Draw is?

Can you see the Co-op plant from your house? (I'm in the great white north
now, but my roots are in that Valley.) You know where the Big Draw is?

Nope can't see the Power Plant - I'm also an Amateur Astronomer and had
the realtor check if it was visible from here - Me thinks you know the
area!!!
As to "Big Draw" only area I know of is near Dragoon/Texas Canyon.
Oh and to keep this within the Woodworking realm - to get any Wood
working materials or tools, it's a 60 mile one way trip to either Sierra
Vista or Tucson. But no complaints the Skies are wonderful!!!!!!

Ed

In article ,
Australopithecus scobis wrote:

Gee, thanks, pal. Here I am in Wisconsin with winter coming on, and
you have to go and remind me of home.

Just close your eyes.

--
Owen Lowe and his Fly-by-Night Copper Company
____

"To know the world intimately is the beginning of caring."
-- Ann Hayman Zwinger

In article , Bruce
wrote:

Crack open your Edward Abbey books recently? :^)

Hayduke Lives! (Never read that one, akshuly.) My favorite is A Fools
Progress - especially when the guy shoots his fridge. With any luck,
maybe I'll end up on the land where ol'Ed rests...

--
Owen Lowe and his Fly-by-Night Copper Company
____

"To know the world intimately is the beginning of caring."
-- Ann Hayman Zwinger

On Mon, 25 Oct 2004 21:50:59 -0700, Fly-by-Night CC
wrote:

|In article , Bruce
|wrote:
|
| Crack open your Edward Abbey books recently? :^)
|
|Hayduke Lives! (Never read that one, akshuly.) My favorite is A Fools
|Progress - especially when the guy shoots his fridge.

I've got an autographed copy of that one. Henry is Abbey...Abbey is
Henry.

|With any luck,
|maybe I'll end up on the land where ol'Ed rests...

But few know where that is. [g]

In article ,
Wes Stewart wrote:

But few know where that is. [g]

Given the signed book, do you?

--
Owen Lowe and his Fly-by-Night Copper Company
____

"To know the world intimately is the beginning of caring."
-- Ann Hayman Zwinger

"Ed Erbeck Jr." wrote in message ...

Can you see the Co-op plant from your house? (I'm in the great white north
now, but my roots are in that Valley.) You know where the Big Draw is?

Nope can't see the Power Plant - I'm also an Amateur Astronomer and had
the realtor check if it was visible from here - Me thinks you know the
area!!!
As to "Big Draw" only area I know of is near Dragoon/Texas Canyon.
Oh and to keep this within the Woodworking realm - to get any Wood
working materials or tools, it's a 60 mile one way trip to either Sierra
Vista or Tucson. But no complaints the Skies are wonderful!!!!!!

Ed


Okay, that's it! I read this thread and now I'm officially homesick!
Grew up in Colorado but landed in Tucson at the UofA. Stayed on for
several years after school and still get back there once a year or so
to visit old friends. I've read all of Ed Abbey (actually partied
with him once at an Earth First! gathering) as well Joseph Wood Krutch
and Dave Quammen (another Tucson resident while his wife was in
nursing school). Spent many happy days hiking with my
girlfriend-wife all over So. AZ. Hope to get back there permanently
when the kids go off to school. Sigh.

Ian

On Mon, 25 Oct 2004 23:46:47 -0700, Fly-by-Night CC
wrote:

|In article ,
| Wes Stewart wrote:
|
| But few know where that is. [g]
|
|Given the signed book, do you?

Alas, no. And I'd be fibbing if I said that I even met him. My wife
got the book for me at a signing.

But in an "It's a small world" story, I knew a guy who knew Abbey
quite well. That was the late Ike Russell, the subject of the book
"Backcountry Pilot." (I have an inscribed copy of this one too,
although as you will see, not by Ike)

Ike flew Abbey into Baja California on at least one occasion, which is
documented in "Pilot" by Doug Peacock, believed to be the model for
Hayduke. Peacock also talks about the burial of Abbey in this
chapter.

Both my dad and Ike were taught to fly by the same instructor, Skeet
Taylor, at the "old" Benson, AZ airport in the late 1940's. (I have my
dad's logbook that shows his first flight 7-26-46) I don't know
whether they knew each other, but I met Ike and spent a fair amount of
time at his house, because his son, Luke, and I went to high school
together and shared an interest in ham radio.

I bring this up because I *do* know where Ike is buried... in his back
yard. This burial is well documented in the book and has a nice punch
line associated with it.

When the backyard burial was mentioned, people would say, "I didn't
know that you could do that."

The response was always, "You can, if you have a shovel."