Tung oil,Danish oil or.......

FOG2

FOG2

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Im getting ready to finish the handle,s on a batch of knives and trying to decide what to use. Ive been reading about different Oil finishes and it seems Tung oil and Danish oil would be good choice,s.

I would like to get your opinions on these or OTHER type,s of finish,s.Some of The wood i,m finishing is Bubinga,Rosewood,Ebony,Cocobolo,Lacewood etc.

The Ebony proly doesn,t need any finish nor the Cocobolo but for the Cocobolo
I HATE that when handled it darkens so quickly.The Coco i have has a lot of orange and lighter colors i would like to keep so i was thinking some type of finish would help with the darkening.

OPINION,S COMMENTS and ADVISE PLEASE.
 
Use Tung Oil, 5 to 8 coats, apply heavy and let soak in for 15 to 30 minutes, then repeat. It will keep the finish bright and clean. It soaks in and gives a good barrier to hand oils and such.
 
FOG2 said:
but for the Cocobolo
I HATE that when handled it darkens so quickly.The Coco i have has a lot of orange and lighter colors i would like to keep so i was thinking some type of finish would help with the darkening.
Click to expand...

You want to keep that orange color? I let it age a few months so it will darken....
 
yep i like the orange in the COCO i have.

OK 2 votes for TUNG oil.
 
Tung oil is good for furniture, and it seems that just applying it is being described. So when is stabalizing with vacuum, heat, etc needed. As far as wood goes, I only know making furniture, and I had never heard of stabalizing. I've read posts on it, but I can't find any posts on why to do it at all. I get putting an oil, etc. on wood, and repeating till it soaks in fully. After that I use oil and extremely fine steel wool to rub on the last coat going with the grain. But I don't get stabalizing unless it is for a knife used around water, like under water. So can someone educate me, or point me toward a post?
 
As far as stabilizing goes the reason is because of the "movement". In furniture a few thousandths' movement won't mean much, but when it's on a knife handle that's the difference between a sharp tang on a full tang being exposted from shrinkage or one that is blended in nicely with the handle. It helps prevent the scales from warping or pulling apart at junctions such as the full tang I mentioned or when it contacts guards or bolsters. That little bit of movement won't be seen on the bigger pieces of furniture, but a very slight gap between the bolster and handle material is horrendous. It's not full proof, I've heard many stories of stablized material warping, cracking, shrinking, swelling ect, but it increases your odds.
 
I like tung oil - actually polymerized tung oil from lee valley. I'ts food safe fast and durable. I don't know if Danish oil is food safe, but I've also used it with good results. I don't think either will prevent your coco from darkening. Either UV light or heat will make it darken - I think even after it's oiled.

As for stabilizing, it's kind of like customizing a vehicle. There are different levels - and probably all have some benefit. Some stabilizing is like power programmers or performance suspension. Some is more like fuzzy dice and shag carpet. :D Even the professionals aren't magic. It won't remove stresses in wild burls - it won't fill large voids and it doesn't 'glue' together existing flaws. It does prevent further movement from drying or atmospheric changes and it seals the wood well with little if any finish required.

Ryan articulated the benefits well. On a canvas as small as knife handle, a tiny bit of movement has a damning effect. On the woods that will accept it, it is very cheap insurance.

Good thread!

Rob!
 
With furniture, I hand make my dovetails so that the seasonal movement of the wood is not noticed. I cut the wood to fit tightly enough to have to tap the pieces together with a small rubber mallet with shot inside. I just didn't think of the movement being great enough to spoil a knife, but it makes sense. I guess when I graduate to wood scales I'll have to learn a new art.
(Though I still am not sure if this thread suggests that "stabilization" is not a cure all, and oiling might work for a folder if you recess the wood very slightly back from the liner, thus also protecting the wood edges)?
 
You still may have problems with cracking at the pins if the scales shrink. Stabilization helps prevent this.
 
Seems Tung oil is a good choice i,ll hafta try it out. Do you folks put WAX on after you Tung oil, or leave the Tung oil as the final finish ?
 
I use high gloss tung oil, put a heavy final coat on and let it cure overnight. Then with a light wheel, buff very gently with some white compound. You can also rub it out with 0000 steel wool with some furniture polish, then wipe off with a soft cloth.
 
I use multiple coats of tung, Watko, whatever. Slosh it on till the wood won't take anymore. Between each coat, fine paper and /or 0000 steelwool. Then l let it dry for several days before hand buffing. When I'm sure it's dry and cured, wax and buff.
 
I like to use Danish oil, it's got some penetrating and some protective properties. I also let it dry for several days if soaking it into wood.
 
I use multiple coats of Danish oil. I sop it on until the handle is wet with oil, and let it sit for an hour or so. By that time, most of the oil has penetrated; I buff off the rest with a soft cloth and add more. I'll do this 4-5 times.

--nathan
 
I have used both. Just recently the danish oil. I prefer it to tung oil in that it dries a lot faster. I am very happy with the end result
 
Nathan - are you also using it on your micarta handles? I've been using Danish oil for G10 and micarta for a while now with good results. I don't bother putting several coats on over days with it though, as I'm not trying for a luster.
 
I bought some MINWAX Tung oil finish at the hardware store( its the ONLY type of tung oil they had). I,ll give it a try and see how it looks.
 
Bryce,
Just thought I'd mention that the wire inlaid knife you saw was finished with Formby's Tung oil finish, 5 or 6 good coats then dried about 12 hours and rubbed on some beeswax and buffed with a cotton cloth.

-Josh
 
Cap, I've been putting like 2 coats on my micarta handles as well with good results. Especially on the tan canvas micarta. It seems to go a good job sealing things up and getting a more even color throughout the scale. In fact, on my build thread in David's forum, the first pictures I posted of the finished knife are with the handles before Danish oil and the later pictures are after a couple of coats of Danish oil. I haven't tried it on G10. Thanks for the tip!

--nathan
 
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