Thoughts on Finishes
Thoughts on Finishing and Finishes What follows is my experience derived expert opinion. All finishes are based on either drying oils or resins (or some combination of the two). Drying oils such as Boiled Linseed Oil and Tung Oil, which are commonly used in wood finishes, dry (cure) through a polymerization reaction in the presence of oxygen. BLO and Tung Oil are usually heat treated to speed up the chemical reaction, but can also be used raw. Resins, which are the bases for film finishes can be either polymerizing or hardening by solvent release. A few words about so-called Sealers. There’s no such thing because there’s nothing to “seal.” Any finish, be it oil or resin based, ne...
