What is the best application of BLO on Cherry

[Wayne Copeland]

I have just completed a rocker style cradle for a new grand-daughter that is scheduled to arrive in about six weeks. I am planning on applying BLO for a finish, as I want it to darken naturally and do not want to take a chance on stains. What would be the best application/process of applying BLO. Note: After applying material, the cradle will be in 50-60 degree temps in my shop for a few days while I tend to other projects. Any advice will be appreciated fellas. Wayne

[Mike Henderson]

As long as cherry is in the light, it will darken. Even if you put a stain on it, it will darken under the stain.

But I question why you chose BLO. BLO does not provide much protection. There are wipe on finishes that will give you more protection, such as a wipe on poly. No wipe on will give you as much protection as a spray or brush on finish, but wipe on poly will provide more protection than BLO.

No matter what finish you put on cherry (other than paint), it will darken as long as it's in the light.

Mike

[Mike McCann]

you really need to put something over the BLO. shellac works very well as a wipe on. just get a can from lowes or home depot

[Scott Holmes]

As stated BLO is not a durable nor protective finish.

Mike why do you say no wipe-on will give the protection of a sprayed on finish? Poly, a varnish, is still a varnish whether it is wiped-on, sprayed on or brushed on. The thinner evaporates and all that's left is varnish that will then cure over the next 30+ days. Granted you will need more coats of wipe on but the product left on the wood is the same.

BLO will cure to a rubbery in-the-wood gel nothing more. An oil/varnish blend (aka Danish Oil) is in between these two finishes as far a protection is concerned. Yes the varnish will provide much more protection than the oil/varnish blend which is also an in-the-wood finish.

Wayne: FYI Marine varnish and Spar varnish provide LESS water and water vapor protection than regular interior varnish. Many believe otherwise, they are mistaken.

EDIT:
Wipe the BLO on just enough to get the wood to change color, there really is no need to flood the surface with BLO let it set for a few minutes then wipe it dry. Give it a few days maybe even a week or two with the temps you indicated. Then seal with shellac (de-waxed) is better at sealing the wood than the shellac that still has the wax. Then top coat with something water-borne or a varnish. Show us the pictures when you finish.

[Steve Schoene]

Personally I like the oil/varnish approach for such objects. They really don't take a lot of abuse, most the storage time between children in the family. Varnish is certainly more durable, but as a film finish it is quite a different look.

[Wayne Copeland]

Thanks for the recommendations. I applied the BLO to 220 grit sanded finished cherry and it looks awfully blotchy. Excess was wiped off after 5 or so minutes. I am in the process of letting it dry out and plan on putting shellac on it, but it looks so blotchy that I am about ready to trash can the piece or paint it.

[Scott Holmes]

Cherry can do that... it will mellow and be beautiful in a year or so. Let is "tan" in the sun...

[Mike Henderson]

Mike why do you say no wipe-on will give the protection of a sprayed on finish? Poly, a varnish, is still a varnish whether it is wiped-on, sprayed on or brushed on. The thinner evaporates and all that's left is varnish that will then cure over the next 30+ days. Granted you will need more coats of wipe on but the product left on the wood is the same.

You're right. I guess I was too terse in my response. If you're willing to do enough wipe on coats, you can get very good protection. In my mind I was comparing one coat of each. You can build the finish much faster with spray on coats.

Mike

[Kent A Bathurst]

Thanks for the recommendations. I applied the BLO to 220 grit sanded finished cherry and it looks awfully blotchy. Excess was wiped off after 5 or so minutes. I am in the process of letting it dry out and plan on putting shellac on it, but it looks so blotchy that I am about ready to trash can the piece or paint it.

That sucks.

I recently did a small Cherry piece, with inlaid pewter - a printer stand that sits on a desk, with cubbyholes below for various sizes of paper, envelopes, etc.

Barely dampened a rag with BLO, and rubbed it on. Just damp enough to get down a thin layer.

After an hour so so, I started with shellac. Built it up enough so that I could rub it out.

No issues with blotching. Maybe I just got lucky with the piece of wood I was using?

I hae a couple side tables in the works - the drawer fronts will be some stunning curly cherry. Hope to not have this issue.

Kent

[Jim Becker]

One person's blotch is another person's figure. It's the nature of things when you apply oil to the wood... ;)

While BLO isn't considered a very "durable" finish by many folks, it still has it's place, including in fine furniture. Thos Moser is one example of that. When I do choose to use BLO as "the" finish, it's usually a BLO/bee's wax mix from Tried and True. The end result is silky smooth and it's easy to maintain over time. My wife's desk was finished that way when I built it...in 1997...and it still looks wonderful today. I wouldn't use this kind of finish on a piece that's expected to handle a lot of "Moist" things...such as a kitchen table...but it does work nicely for other types of projects if you are thoughtful. I most often use a very light application of BLO to highlight the figure, especially on cherry, and then follow with a barrier coat of de-waxed shellac and then whatever top coat I choose to use. (Typically a water borne spray like EM6000 from Target Coatings) Sometimes I just use the shellac over the oil if I deem that appropriate for the project.

[John TenEyck]

Sorry to hear about how it blotched. You might be able to reduce the effect by wiping it with a sopping wet cloth with mineral spirits. My own testing showed absolutely no benefit of using BLO on cherry in terms of color/depth. Varnish alone gave the same color. Of the woods I tested it on, walnut was the only wood that showed a color/depth enhancement by wiping it with BLO.

John

[Wayne Copeland]

I am about ready to mix my garnet shellac flakes, but would like to know what cut you all recommend. I would prefer to apply the shellac as a wipe on for the first coat or two as a 2 lb. cut, then add some more flakes to increase the shellac to a 3 lb. cut and brush it on. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[Steve Schoene]

Brushing on shellac is not at all like brushing on varnish. I find it works best with different brushes, such as the watercolor wash brush with Taklon gold "bristles". This brush doesn't have a big reservoir but lays on brush stroke free shellac. 2 lb. cut works well for this kind of brushing just as for padding on shellac. What ever brush you use you much work quickly, working the brush only in one direction, and never trying to go back to fix a missed spot or defect. Those issues should be either fixed by a bit of sanding when the coat is dry, or with misses, just covered in the next coat. That's a reason to use thin coats.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Steve is exactly correct in every detail. Those Golden Taklon brushes lay down an amazing surface, and seem to unload almost before the brush hits the target. So - you gotta move fast.

"Never go back" is important, and requires attention - kinda knee-jerk response for me, so I have to keep telling myself not to do it.

Me - I prefer using padding cloth to apply. This is not the same as doing a true "padding" - kinda poor man's version.

I hang around the 1.0 - 1.5 #cut, for no particular reasonexcept I always have a qt of extra-pale that I use as general sealer, and for small finishing. But - If I have a larger thing, I will mix up some 2# +/-. You'll notice that I am not especially picky about decimal-precision on the mix.

On mixing - I do it in the reverse - I mix up the heavy cut, and then dilute as needed to get to lighter cut. That way, I only have to fool wih dissolving and straining one time - Be sure to strain the shellac, of course.

[Jim Becker]

Honestly, unless it's a small project...I spray the shellac. I did teach myself effective brushing technique, however...which as has been noted is very different that one would do with a slow drying varnish. Get it on...and go away...never go back!