BLO alternative

I never use BLO under the OMOS, sometimes a wipe of wipes with Shellac to clean up the wood? The OSMOs usually brings the grain out enough IMHO!

-- Lifting one end of the plank.

No real use in using oil before any of the oil based combo finishes, since it already has oil. For example one of my go to finishes is Arm-r-seal. Its already half oil, so if I use BLO before its just added time and effort.

Kind of what SMP said, try a piece of scrap from the same board and finish one as you would with the BLO. Then also finish it with just the varnish you normally use. I highly doubt you will see a difference.

-- Our village hasn't lost it's idiot, he was elected to congress.

never cared for blo ive always used a oil poly blend like the maloof formula or recently ive fallen in love with arm r seal.

-- working with my hands is a joy,it gives me a sense of fulfillment,somthing so many seek and so few find.-SAM MALOOF.

Hmmm. These responses were not what I was expecting. I’ll try this bowl with just Osmo, no BLO. I don’t like ArmRSeal with a bowl, as it can get scratched too easily.

But I am going to try a side by side BLO and no BLO with an oil finish. I will tip my hat to you guys, and also be surprised, if I can’t tell the difference.

David

If it’s maple oil might turn it a yellow color. I don’t find yellow wood very attractive I guess others do because I see it here and there.
Good Luck

-- Aj

This is something you may want to try, works great with just a rag and wiped on?

-- Lifting one end of the plank.

Know lot of folks advocate using BLO in their finishing procedures. I believe it’s an unnecessary step! Any film finish (lacquer, poly, shellac, & varnish) will pop whatever grain or figure there is in surface of the wood. Same can be said for wiping varnish or oil varnish blend. You do not always have to use BLO in an oil varnish blend.

-- Bill

But I am going to try a side by side BLO and no BLO with an oil finish. I will tip my hat to you guys, and also be surprised, if I can’t tell the difference.

Good job! Run the experiment yourself and see.

In my current bookcase build, I tried doing the first of the plinths without any oil, just shellac. The color is maybe a little less intense, but the time savings of not having to wait for the BLO to cure has been huge, and I find I’m happy with the finished color of four-ish coats of blonde shellac on pine. Wouldn’t have known that if I hadn’t tried it.

-- Dave - Santa Fe

Beautiful turned bowl! Whatever you choose to put on it, it will be gorgeous.

May I add that the tactile experience should also be considered? While I love wicked smooth finishes that glow, I also love when my fingers touch real wood rather than the finish. Just another factor to consider—there’s no right answer. :)

-- Reasoning will never make a Man correct an ill Opinion, which by Reasoning he never acquired. --Jonathan Swift (1721)

Good job! Run the experiment yourself and see.

In my current bookcase build, I tried doing the first of the plinths without any oil, just shellac. The color is maybe a little less intense, but the time savings of not having to wait for the BLO to cure has been huge, and I find I’m happy with the finished color of four-ish coats of blonde shellac on pine. Wouldn’t have known that if I hadn’t tried it.

- Dave Polaschek

I did a similar experiment with curly maple , i had about 8 different test pieces with various combos of different finishes. Using BLO vs shellac was a bit different in chattenoyance and color/tone side by side, but if you looked at them separately they both looked good. Using BLO and then Arm-r-seal side by side with just Arm-r-seal looked identical. This test was actually made me toss my danish oil and start just using ARS on most projects. But yeah its definitely a good test for anyone to do since everyone has different taste for what looks good.

This is something you may want to try, works great with just a rag and wiped on?

- Andre

-- working with my hands is a joy,it gives me a sense of fulfillment,somthing so many seek and so few find.-SAM MALOOF.

Looking into something other than BLO for the walnut cellarette I’m building, as a test piece turned the walnut darker than I want.

Its a Glen Huey project and he loves BLO followed by a couple of coats of orange shellac. I ordered some orange and garnet shellac in flakes. **

Test areas with BLO followed by 2 coats of orange and garnet – too dark. Then areas of orange and garnet followed by BLO. Then areas with the shellacs only.

Gonna go with the garnet as the orange imparted a yellow cast I don’t like. Skip th eBLO.

• Note: The fresh 1/2 pint can of Zinnzer I picked up at Rockler had a dark brown ring under the lid and was cloudy. There is NO date code on the can anywhere, even though the label says not to use it if the date code is over 3 years past. Looked at a quart can on the shelf that is about 9 months old – no date code. I got in touch with Rustoleum, parent company of of Zinnzer. They insisted the date codes were present and finally asked asked that I send them photos of both cans, tops and bottoms – as if I am blind. Having spent my life in manufacturing, I fully understand the requirement to be able to trace a product to a manufacturing run. If there is a liability issue (company is sued), it becomes a critical issue. Watch to see if this gets fixed.

It depends what you plan to do with the bowl but my go-to finish for bowls that I don’t expect to be used for food or ever get wet is Mylands High Build Friction Finish. I think that it is a mix of Shellac, BLO and wax. It is best if you spend a little extra time sanding to higher grits—I usually burnish it to at least 800 grit but sometimes go all the way to 2000 so that the wood looks shiny even without a finish. You wipe on liberal coat and before it dries, buff it at high speed with a clean cloth making sure that you apply enough pressure that friction causes it to heat up. I sometimes apply a second coat but in general it is pretty much done after the you buff it. You can lightly handle it immediately but may be slightly tacky so it is best to give it a few hours to completely set and cure. After that, it is ready to go.

-- Nathan, TX -- Hire the lazy man. He may not do as much work but that's because he will find a better way.

one thing to remember is any finish once it’s cured is food safe,i think too many worry about that for no reason.now if the surface is gonna be used too cut on,as in cutting board you need to use a mineral oil or oil wax combo that can be easily recoated,otherwise use what you like.

-- working with my hands is a joy,it gives me a sense of fulfillment,somthing so many seek and so few find.-SAM MALOOF.