Bowl Finishes

[Lamar Wright]

Hello Turners, coming from the Pen world and now turning bowls I need some advice on finishes for bowls. As a pen turner I had to use CA as a finish because pens get handled a lot so CA was great for pens as a finish. I know turners use a lot of different finishes on their work and bowls, platters ect don't get handled as much if the work is more artistic and not for everyday use. I like the artistic pieces so I won't be making salad bowls or things for everyday use, for now anyway. I like friction wax polishes like carnuba and also oils. I guess it is personal preference. The finishes that turners use that are shown in the gallery are just fantastic! Any advice will be appreciated.

 

[hockenbery]

For non functional pieces any finish you like will work.

The finish I use most often is waterlox.
It is a wipe on tung oil. With repeated costs it builds up.
I think of the similar finishes Waterlox changes the color the least.
There is a slight amber cast but woods still look white when they were white and not yellow or gold

This works well for both functional bowls and decorative pieces.

 

[Hy Tran]

Bob Flexner's book on wood finishing is a fantastic book.

Remember, the finish is only as good as the surface (unless you're applying heavy paint, or you're going to intentionally texture/decorate).

Waterlox (with multiple coats), wipe-on-poly (with multiple coats) will give you a built-up shiny film finish, much like CA-finished pens. Built-up satin wipe-on-poly just looks weird, but 2 or 3 coats of satin wipe-on is a relatively easy finish. These take a while to apply (because of multiple coats & curing time).

Boiled linseed oil is a good finish, but does amber the wood fairly significantly. Also long curing time.

Danish oil (basically boiled linseed oil thinned with thinner) is an easy and fast-to-apply finish, but still takes time for final cure (several days, in my experience, before the smell totally goes away). Comes both in "clear" and "staining" colors.

Shellac and lacquer are good finishes if you want a shiny surface without the built-up-film look. They are relatively fast to apply. I tend to use thinned shellac as a sealer coat, rather than as the final finish. (Most lacquers nowadays are synthetic rather than tree resin, while shellac is still composed from, shall we say, insect sweat?).

Friction polishes are combinations of shellac, polymerizing oil (such as boiled linseed), and a thinner (typically alcohol). They are very fast to apply, especially on the lathe. I find that it takes several applications, and a good amount of pressure to make the polish heat up. Odor free in a few hours, but probably not fully cured for a few days.

On some items, I like using walnut oil (Mike Mahoney's, or a clone--not the grocery store walnut oil). It's a polymerizing oil that's pretty thin; I find that after a day, an item is handle-able. You can also use it as a seal coat beneath friction polish, or beneath a buffed wax coat. If I use walnut oil as a seal coat, I don't bother waiting for it to polymerize; I just wipe off the excess and then apply the friction polish. Even though walnut oil looks clear, it does slightly amber the wood. I like the look of maple that has had some walnut oil on it.

Buffed wax gives a minimalist finish, and is minimally protective. I'd use that on woods which are naturally oily, such as rosewood.

If you have the patience--Turn some boards, and apply 1-of-each-finish to the boards to see for yourself. I do find that different woods and designs are better with different finishes, but I'm not sure how to articulate that.

Best,

Hy

 

[Mark Wollschlager]

Friction polish works great on small pieces. It is hard to get a 'streak free' finish on a larger surface.
Like Al, I have used and like Waterlox. It is pretty easy to build up a nice finish.
It is also easy to overdo it and get a plastic looking piece.
And, the real reason I don't use it as much, is that Waterlox ( and a lot of similar finishes ) go 'bad' after you open the can.
Maybe not right away, but an $18 can of finish has a shelf life after opening...
Anyhow, I used General 'Salad Bowl Finish' on my last couple of pieces.
Fairly quick drying, low odor, easy to apply. Kind of shiny finish. I did not try to cut the shine back so it has a bit of plastic look. Seems durable.
Many people like finishes like Mahoney's Walnut Oil for functional bowls. Easy to apply, easy to re-apply. Not shiny.
At the AAW symposium Mike Hosaluk was showing a CA like finish called Parafix to put a finish on pieces.
Bought some, haven't tried it yet.

 

[hockenbery]

At the AAW symposium Mike Hosaluk was showing a CA like finish called Parafix to put a finish on pieces.
Bought some, haven't tried it yet.

Like to hear more about this. After you use it, give us a report.

 

[Tom Albrecht]

For non functional pieces any finish you like will work.

The finish I use most often is waterlox.
It is a wipe on tung oil. With repeated costs it builds up.
I think of the similar finishes Waterlox changes the color the least.
There is a slight amber cast but woods still look white when they were white and not yellow or gold

This works well for both functional bowls and decorative pieces.

Al, would you mind going into some more exact details about your process? I have used lots of different finishes with varying results. I made most of the furniture in my home and used Waterlox or a combination of Waterlox and Watco on all of it. When I use it on bowls it's a little more fussy.
So, do you wipe on heavy and let it sit a bit, and then wipe again? Or do you just wipe on lightly, dry, and wipe on lightly, dry repeatedly?

 

[hockenbery]

I wipe on the wipe off.
On raw wood sanded to 320 i. do the first coat heavy and let it sit a minute then wipe off.
Let sit over night. Sand with 400. Wet the surface let sit a a little bit and wipe the surface.
Let sit overnight. Use the 0000 scotchbirte. Wet and wipe.
I usually do 2 pieces together wet both then wipe each. I want to wipe it off before it has any tackiness.
If there are cracks, void edges worm hole, sand blasted grain, grooves etc. I blow them out with air as I'm wiping.
A little waterlox in the bottom of a groove can dry as a shiny line I don't want.
I usually do 3 coats and beal buff.

If the piece has been dyed or stained I do the first coat very lightly. Just get it wet and sort of pad dry.
I want to "seal" the surface. A thick application can float some of the color which makes the finish dull.

NE Bowls I have been experimenting with one coat of waterlox wait 2 days then one coat of oldies oil.
This makes a soft finish.


Also waterlox tends to gel quickly. I put mine in plastic water bottles. When done i put the cap on loosely and squeeze the bottle until some leaks out before tightening the cap.
When almost empty the bottles get folded up and flattened.

 

[Lamar Wright]

For non functional pieces any finish you like will work.

The finish I use most often is waterlox.
It is a wipe on tung oil. With repeated costs it builds up.
I think of the similar finishes Waterlox changes the color the least.
There is a slight amber cast but woods still look white when they were white and not yellow or gold

This works well for both functional bowls and decorative pieces.

Thanks Hockenbery for your information, I will check into waterlox.

 

[Lamar Wright]

Bob Flexner's book on wood finishing is a fantastic book.

Remember, the finish is only as good as the surface (unless you're applying heavy paint, or you're going to intentionally texture/decorate).

Waterlox (with multiple coats), wipe-on-poly (with multiple coats) will give you a built-up shiny film finish, much like CA-finished pens. Built-up satin wipe-on-poly just looks weird, but 2 or 3 coats of satin wipe-on is a relatively easy finish. These take a while to apply (because of multiple coats & curing time).

Boiled linseed oil is a good finish, but does amber the wood fairly significantly. Also long curing time.

Danish oil (basically boiled linseed oil thinned with thinner) is an easy and fast-to-apply finish, but still takes time for final cure (several days, in my experience, before the smell totally goes away). Comes both in "clear" and "staining" colors.

Shellac and lacquer are good finishes if you want a shiny surface without the built-up-film look. They are relatively fast to apply. I tend to use thinned shellac as a sealer coat, rather than as the final finish. (Most lacquers nowadays are synthetic rather than tree resin, while shellac is still composed from, shall we say, insect sweat?).

Friction polishes are combinations of shellac, polymerizing oil (such as boiled linseed), and a thinner (typically alcohol). They are very fast to apply, especially on the lathe. I find that it takes several applications, and a good amount of pressure to make the polish heat up. Odor free in a few hours, but probably not fully cured for a few days.

On some items, I like using walnut oil (Mike Mahoney's, or a clone--not the grocery store walnut oil). It's a polymerizing oil that's pretty thin; I find that after a day, an item is handle-able. You can also use it as a seal coat beneath friction polish, or beneath a buffed wax coat. If I use walnut oil as a seal coat, I don't bother waiting for it to polymerize; I just wipe off the excess and then apply the friction polish. Even though walnut oil looks clear, it does slightly amber the wood. I like the look of maple that has had some walnut oil on it.

Buffed wax gives a minimalist finish, and is minimally protective. I'd use that on woods which are naturally oily, such as rosewood.

If you have the patience--Turn some boards, and apply 1-of-each-finish to the boards to see for yourself. I do find that different woods and designs are better with different finishes, but I'm not sure how to articulate that.

Best,

Hy

Thanks so much Hy for your informative information on finishes. I will take a look at Bob Flexner's book as well. I tend to like the shellac and lacqure finishes.

 

[Lamar Wright]

Friction polish works great on small pieces. It is hard to get a 'streak free' finish on a larger surface.
Like Al, I have used and like Waterlox. It is pretty easy to build up a nice finish.
It is also easy to overdo it and get a plastic looking piece.
And, the real reason I don't use it as much, is that Waterlox ( and a lot of similar finishes ) go 'bad' after you open the can.
Maybe not right away, but an $18 can of finish has a shelf life after opening...
Anyhow, I used General 'Salad Bowl Finish' on my last couple of pieces.
Fairly quick drying, low odor, easy to apply. Kind of shiny finish. I did not try to cut the shine back so it has a bit of plastic look. Seems durable.
Many people like finishes like Mahoney's Walnut Oil for functional bowls. Easy to apply, easy to re-apply. Not shiny.
At the AAW symposium Mike Hosaluk was showing a CA like finish called Parafix to put a finish on pieces.
Bought some, haven't tried it yet.

Hi Mark, I also would like to hear how the Parsfix finish takes to wood.

 

[Michael Nathal]

Here is a video by Mark Sillay on Parfix. He says it is an odorless CA.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omXY896_N6M

 

[Mark Wollschlager]

Here is a video by Mark Sillay on Parfix. He says it is an odorless CA

Yes, this is the one. I talked with Mark in the vendor area ( couldn't remember his name when I posted earlier ).

 

[Lamar Wright]

Here is a video by Mark Sillay on Parfix. He says it is an odorless CA.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omXY896_N6M

Thank you Michael for posting the video on Parfix. Very similar to the way I finished all my pens except I used 9 coats of medium CA and all the sanding in between coats. Really like the no odor as regular CA has a harsh odor and have to use respirator for safety against harmful flumes.