Finishing with mineral oil

[Peter Blair]

I have never done any testing but I had read that it was difficult to put a lacquer finish over an oil but a contact in Ireland uses mineral oil to bring out the color of his carvings and the coats with spray on lacquer. Anyone have any experience with this or a similar process?

[Don Stephan]

Adhesion test on flat surface is easy, there should be multiple descriptions on the Internet describing how to do one. Really scrubbing the wood well with clean paper towels after applying mineral oil may remove much of the surface oil. Perhaps on 3D carvings the lacquer forms a coating on top of the oil that isn't adhering but can't slip off because of the 3D shape.

[Brian Tymchak]

I asked a similar question several months ago. You need to add a coat of dewaxed shellac or vinyl sealer over the oil before using lacquer. If you are looking to pop figure I would use some other oil finish besides mineral oil, which never fully cures. I used Woodcraft Tung oil recently on some crotch veneer. Shellac by itself will also pop grain.

Here's a David Marks post (https://djmarks.com/davids-blog/archive-articles/applying-a-durable-lacquer-finish-over-an-oil-finish/)that I found helpful.

[Edward Weber]

I have seen people do it but I personally think it's not a good idea, even if it works for a short time.
Mineral oil is a non drying oil, trying to put a top-coat over it and have it adhere is just not a good idea IMO.
There are plenty of drying oils to choose from that will fully cure (it may take some time) that you can safely seal over.

[Peter Blair]

Brian, this was my thought but apparently it is not necessary?

[Peter Blair]

Edward this is the common idea and as far as I know it is true BUT this gentleman in Ireland seems to have the proof that it will work. It may as you suggest break down in time as you suggest. I am not planning on using this process anytime soon but just wondered if I had missed something along the way. Thanks for the note.

[Brian Tymchak]

Brian, this was my thought but apparently it is not necessary?

I think Don may be on to something. Lacquer shrinks as it cures so the shape may very well be holding the finish on as a shell.

[Richard Coers]

The question for the Irish guy is how long between the mineral oil and the lacquer. Mineral oil takes months to somewhat dry. It is highly refined product of petroleum, but since it's used in skin creams they don't want it to dry as a film. Experimentation will be your friend.

[Peter Blair]

Thanks for chipping in everyone. I guess he is flying in the face of meaning. He applies a coat or two of mineral oil, wipes off as much as he can and the next day sprays a coat of Lacquer or more depending on what he wants the final item to look like. I do not plan to use this process and would never have even considered it and when I challenged him with my thoughts he simply said it works for him.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

In my OPINION, Mineral Oil (I used pure medical) does nothing for the looks of wood other than making it look wet. I think any other oil makes grain pop more than MO. In addition to the other problems mentioned, I gave up using it.