Just skimmed the above posts,
so hope i'm not repeating too much.
products intended for furniture
& commonly called lemon or orange oil
is actually scented mineral oil.
Butcher block oil is mineral oil.
these are either thin (low viscosity) mineral oil fractions
OR
mineral oil thinned with .....something HOC.
The two results are outwardly similar,
but technically different---like
ping-pong balls alone
vs
golf balls mixed with styrofoam beads
both give the same average density
but they may not -work- the same.
The faster (&/or more unevenly) wood dries
the more likely it will crack.
Any treatment I think will require a soak
to be both quick, simple & effective as possible.
Mineral oil doesn't appeal to me.
But I can't say what would work best.
I soak in 50/50 Citrus Solvent with either olive oil or walnut oil.
Olive oil I think is only a problem on exterior surfaces--
inside a material it couldn't get gummy.
Many many compositions of olive oil;
for this the cheapest is likely best--
all the -good- stuff has been previously extracted
& the cheap remnant likely contains a few solvents.
Walnut oil is a drying oil with properties very close to linseed.
http://www.cad-red.com/mt2/oil.html
http://www.noteaccess.com/MATERIALS/DryingO.htm
Other drying oils are poppy & safflower.
Safflower would be common & inexpensive.
Soy oil is another option.
The Citrus Solvent (GooGone quart=$6)
evaporates fairly quickly.
I've started using this mix for all my wood treatment
(tabletop refinishing, butcherblock maintenance, wood handles, carvings, ... ),
understanding it's not a -finish- for the wood;
but might provide a better base than other options.
[butcher block standard guidelines--
oil daily for a week, weekly for a month, monthly for a year,
& yearly thereafter]
I just soak as often as I think of it
& repeat while it still drinks it in.
Wipe down whenever needed to prevent standing oil.
Better prevention might be to have them wrapped in plastic before shipping
(or asap after reciept)
with a slow acclimatization period to the Reno dryness.
Not practical maybe when talking about stock
that needs to move out to customers.
? WD-40 is a water displacer ?
? Acetone -mixes- with water -&- oil
? Drugstore alcohols mix with water
? These might (in a soak) cause more cracking ?
by speeding drying?
Maybe a -little- drying heat treatment of the handles
before the blades are wrapped to ship from Birgorkha?
Storage in a hot-room there?
Likely problematic.
I wonder if boiling the wood before making the handle would do any good,
more likely cause more splits.
What about a glycerine soak ?
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