Wax On Wax Off

[Stew Hagerty]

I was wondering what everyone's favorite wax is and why? I'm not a turner so Friction Finishes doen't interest me. I have several projects for Christmas that are going to need a nice wax finish.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I use Johnson's since I have it on hand.

[Prashun Patel]

I've been using Lee Valley's Restorer's wax recently. It's an analog to Rennaissance Wax but a lot cheaper. There are small abrasives in it and it is said to prevent fingerprints better than 'regular' paste wax.

[John TenEyck]

Generally, I use Butcher's Bowling Alley wax as it's clear and much harder than Johnson's. It's available at HD around here.

[Jim Matthews]

One note about the waxes mentioned - they have a solvent (Touluene?) to promote application and quick drying.

They STINK while curing, and should be applied where open air ventilation is available.

[David Helm]

My favorite is Mylands. Comes from England and does a beautiful job.

[Gil Knowles]

My favourite is Minwax finishing paste wax. I use it on almost everything I make, it gives a good hard durable finish.
A can lasts a long time.
Gil

[Howard Acheson]

One note about the waxes mentioned - they have a solvent (Touluene?) to promote application and quick drying.

They STINK while curing, and should be applied where open air ventilation is available.

My understanding is that the only commonly available wax the contains toluene is British made Briwax. It's primary intent is for use as a restoration wax and the very aggressive solvent toluene is an excellent cleaner of old finishes. Briwax also make a non-toluene containing wax called Briwax 2000. It uses mineral spirits as its solvent. Toluene has lots of heath concerns and proper precautions and use with proper ventilation is required.

For woodworking, the biggest problem is that toluene will damage new finished surfaces where the finish has not fully cured. It's a very aggressive solvent and a wax containing toluene should not be used on a finish less than a year old or damage may occur.

All that said, wax is a very poor "finish". It offers no protective qualities or durability. It is very soft, easily damaged by water and heat and requires frequent re-polishing to maintain appearance.

Waxes like Johnson, Minwax, Trewax and most others use mineral spirits. If there is any question about what is contained in a particular wax, ask the seller or the manufacturer for a MSDS.