Walnut oil question

[Trevor Mills]

I use walnut oil for my salad bowls but notice they sometimes develop a kind of crusty surface after they've cured for a time. Easy enough to polish, but I wonder if it's avoidable. I tend to saturate the bowls with lots of oil and wipe off the excess. Would it be better to apply lighter coats, letting it cure between applications?
I get my WO from Lee Valley but would like to find a cheaper source.

[John Grace]

I've used walnut oil for several years but haven't experience the same question you have. I apply my oil, many thin coats, with the piece on the lathe turning at speed. I get my products from the link below...

http://www.doctorswoodshop.com/

[Tony De Masi]

I saturate my "user" bowls as you do. Usually two coats 24 hours apart. I go through a lot of walnut oil and used to get the Mahoneys. But his product had gotten too dark in color for me. I mine at the below link, in the five gallon bucket, and very light in color.

https://bulknaturaloils.com/walnut-oil.html

[Thom Sturgill]

Another vote for Doctorswoodshop. Very finely filtered so no nut proteins to cause allergy issues. Worth a visit to his site to see his videos.

[Stan Calow]

IME walnut oil doesn't cure in a length of time to allow drying between coats practical. It certainly takes much longer than BLO, more like mineral oil. I tested some once by putting some on a glass plate next to an equal amount of BLO. The BLO dried completely in about 5 days. The WO was still liquid after a month. I think it reacts differently when absorbed by wood, but still does not dry to a hard finish.

[Roger Chandler]

I have used Mahoney’s, but prefer Doctor’s Woodshop Walnut oils. Use them a lot, and they dry quicky, apply nicely, and do harden so two or 3 coats in about a six hour period make for good results. My first coat is usually heavy...I pour it in the bowl, wipe it around for coverage, and then let it soak in. Before it dries completely, a second coat, not as heavy, and so on....

[Harold Walsh]

I've bought walnut oil from Woodcraft and walnut oil from the grocery stores. Cheaper in the grocery stores.

[Roger Chandler]

I've bought walnut oil from Woodcraft and walnut oil from the grocery stores. Cheaper in the grocery stores.They generally do not polymerize from what I have heard reported.

[Harold Walsh]

I really don't know about that? If it's walnut oil, how could it not be the same unless something else is mixed into Mahoney's? I've used both on bowl turnings and have had no issues with either. Just saying.

[Brice Rogers]

Harold, I went to a demonstration by Mike Mahoney. He said that they do some sort of heating process to slightly change the oil to make it polymerize/dry/cure more quickly. He said that the grocery store stuff takes a lot longer to cure/dry.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

kind of like the difference between raw linseed oil and BLO. Stuff for woodworkers is treated to finish faster. I often use stuff called Linspeed to finish items that are handled a lot. Gun stocks, handles, etc. Linspeed dries in a few hours unlike either boiled or raw linseed oil.

[Reed Gray]

Walnut oils that are for eating are 'processed' differently than walnut oils that are for use on wood items. Both are heat processed to deal with the proteins that cause allergies. I don't know the specifics though, but Mike Meredith, the Doctor, did explain it to the point where it made sense... I slop it on thick, sand out the next bowl, and then slop some more on. Let sit over night and wipe off excess. I switched to the Doctor's product because I like it more. Well, he is from Oregon as well....

robo hippy

[Thom Sturgill]

I've bought walnut oil from Woodcraft and walnut oil from the grocery stores. Cheaper in the grocery stores.
Not filtered and thus could set off nut allergies. Not recommended. If you want grocery store oil, try olive oil. It does not cure, but takes years to go rancid, and for kitchen bowls that get cleaned periodically, it works great and can be renewed by the user.