Four cedar bowls

[Paul St.Onge]

I have rough turned four cedar bowls and am needing suggestions on what type of finish to put on these. I usually do a danish oil on most of my other pieces, but have not ever used it on cedar. Dont want to ruin the look of the bowls with a finish that will take away the look of the wood. any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

[daryl moses]

I've used WOP [wipe on poly] on Eastern Red Cedar bowls with good results. It did take quite some time to dry though.
What type of Cedar is it?

[Gary Baler]

I usually use lacquer on cedar. Lacquer does not seem to be affected by the pitch. Oil based products can be. Have some pieces that are several years old and finish is good.

[Aaron Craven]

I've used wipe-on poly, oil, and wax. Oil (BLO in my case) doesn't seem to work well in my opinion... it darkens the wood more than I like. WOP gives a beautiful shine and nice color. However, if I want to keep the look of the raw wood, a wax finish is an excellent (though less than durable) finish. It doesn't change the color of the wood much, but keeps it from losing its color too quickly and makes a finish that feels and looks very nice. Overall, I think WOP is my favorite finish, but it's a lot of work to build up a nice luster finish (10+ coats over the course of a week, usually).

[John K Jordan]

I have rough turned four cedar bowls and am needing suggestions on what type of finish to put on these. I usually do a danish oil on most of my other pieces, but have not ever used it on cedar. Dont want to ruin the look of the bowls with a finish that will take away the look of the wood. any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

Paul, on the right of the menu tab bar near the top of the screen is a search box. This will search within Sawmill Creek.

I typed in "cedar bowl" and got these and more hits. There are lots of finish options. I put some pictures in one thread of different looks with a finish I often use on ERC, beeswax:
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?256139-Eastern-Red-Cedar-bowl&p=2706316#post2706316

But you should read the whole thread:
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?256139-Eastern-Red-Cedar-bowl

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?199431-Finishing-Cedar-Bowl

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?16818-Cedar-Bowl

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?179169-Cedar-Bowl

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?85001-Aromatic-Red-Cedar-Bowl

JKJ

[Randy Heinemann]

I know a bowl turner who uses a mix of beeswax and mineral oil (I think 3 parts beeswax to 1 part mineral oil) and swears it's extremely durable. He wipes it on and lets it set for . . . well, as long as he wants, then just wipes it off. He says he has a bowl he has used for food for over 5 years washing it out with warm soapy water after each use and the finish is still like it was when he made and finished it. I started turning about 8 months ago and, since I live reasonably close have started using his beeswax/mineral oil finish. It works well and is very easy to put on. It really gives the wood a rich color and brings out the grain. Obviously I don't have long-term personal experience with it, but I've seen his bowls and it appears to be very durable as well as looking great.

[Paul St.Onge]

Thanks for the input. I have four bowl blanks, maybe four different types of finishes? :D