Mineral oil and bee's wax

[Matthew N. Masail]

so.... some of you here had the nerve to mention amagic formula that protects tools, lubricates plane bottoms and keep your hands young, without telling us how to make it! I think a trail is in order here, alternatively,
we can jump straight to the truth serum :cool:

[Mark Baldwin III]

I use a mix of mineral oil and bee's wax for my cutting boards. I just posted my recipe for it the other day: http://milwaukeemonastery.blogspot.com/2012/09/cutting-block-finish.html

[David Weaver]

I copied the mix from eddie castellin. It's just a 1 to 1 mix of light mineral oil (kitchen supply stuff, nothing stinky or with anything added) and beeswax.

Last I looked, beeswax is about $6 per pound for pesticide free beeswax on ebay, and mineral oil is about $14 a gallon if you can get to a kitchen supply place. (I got my beeswax from a seller 35beeman on ebay)

You can heat it in a double boiler, I just used a mason jar and sat the wax and oil in a half full pot of boiling water.

I guess you could use whatever oil you want.

Given it costs the price of a flat rate envelope to ship the bees wax, it's nice to get 2 pounds and have the second pound of beeswax to cut into sticks to lubricate planes.

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

I imagine everyone here knows this. And certainly both David and Mark have mentioned using a boiling water setup.

But just because I've heard some scary stories, I guess I'll bring it up to never heat wax directly; and always use a double-burner method, as it can readily become a fire hazard.

[David Weaver]

I imagine everyone here knows this. And certainly both David and Mark have mentioned using a boiling water setup.

But just because I've heard some scary stories, I guess I'll bring it up to never heat wax directly; and always use a double-burner method, as it can readily become a fire hazard.

Definitely double boiler, the flash point is around 200C for beeswax, below the smoke point for a lot of oils.

[Matthew N. Masail]

Thank you :)

[Kurt Cady]

do you guys use this oil/wax for all the coats on a new board or just the top coat? Seems too thick to soak in. When I finish my boards the oil soaks in for a few days, very heavy coats over a few days. Thanks for the info. Beeswax on order for the holidays

[Kenneth Speed]

Kirk,


I can't speak for anyone else but I don't use the beeswax mixture as a wood finish or even as a furniture wax, I use it as a lubricant and rust preventative and a bit as a wood preserver. I routinely wipe my tools with a rag liberally charged with the mixture before I put them away and I use the mixture as a lubricant on the soles of my planes, saw blades and screws. If I'm wiping down a saw, plane or chisel with the mixture, I figure there's no reason not to wipe it on the handles too.


Ken

[David Weaver]

I don't use it on furniture, either. Just wooden tools as a finish, turned stuff like chisel handles, as a rust preventative, a saw lubricant and a salve.

The original link I copied it from suggested using it as "sanding wax". I'm not an accomplished turner, so I have no clue why someone would do that other than to keep dust levels down. Maybe as a pore filler below shellac or something.

[Richard Jones]

David,

Sometimes it will help in taming some bad tearout..................


I don't use it on furniture, either. Just wooden tools as a finish, turned stuff like chisel handles, as a rust preventative, a saw lubricant and a salve.

The original link I copied it from suggested using it as "sanding wax". I'm not an accomplished turner, so I have no clue why someone would do that other than to keep dust levels down. Maybe as a pore filler below shellac or something.

[george wilson]

The OLD cabinet maker in Wmsbg,an off the boat Hollander,used a VERY thinned out shellac,a coat or 2,on his furniture. Then,he put on beeswax in a solvent I didn't bother to find out about.

It looked just as dead as anything I can recall,and really ruined the look of the mahogany. Beeswax is not transparent,and I would never use it on furniture. He seemed to think it was magic,or some such. About as interesting as his personality!!:)

[steven c newman]

241754I buy a can of this now and then....

[Kurt Cady]

do you guys use this oil/wax for all the coats on a new board or just the top coat? Seems too thick to soak in. When I finish my boards the oil soaks in for a few days, very heavy coats over a few days. Thanks for the info. Beeswax on order for the holidays

Anyone use beeswax/oil on cutting boards?

[Mark Baldwin III]

Anyone use beeswax/oil on cutting boards?
Yup. (see 1st reply). I prefer it over other cutting board finishes, and I spend a lot of time in my kitchen. It takes a few coats to get it just to my liking. After that, the occasional recoat keeps the board in tip-top shape.

[Stephen Parker]

I like door-ease stick lubricant. It's a mix of mineral oil and paraffin.

http://www.agscompany.com/lubricants/homehardware/185

[Kurt Cady]

Yup. (see 1st reply). I prefer it over other cutting board finishes, and I spend a lot of time in my kitchen. It takes a few coats to get it just to my liking. After that, the occasional recoat keeps the board in tip-top shape.

Do you use the beeswax/oil mix for all coats or just the top coat?

[Bob Jones]

no need to cook the wax. For non-food applications I use beeswax + turpentine + BLO in equal parts. Slice up the beeswax, add turpentine. Let that sit overnight in a sealed container. The turpentine dissolves the wax. Add BLO and stir. Presto. My #1 choice for finishes.