stain beech butcherblock Different Finishes for the Beech Butcherblock

[Wei Yang]

I just brought the ikea solid beech butcherblock tabletop (VIKA BYSKE) and legs for a computer desk and I'm wondering what the best way to finish it. I also would like to make it a little darker than it is currently because i don't like the yellow tint that i've seen with some of the finished beech pictures online.

I've looked through a lot of resources on the internet and it seems like there are a ton of options available and I am quite confused on the best one to use. So far, I've made a list of some of the stuff people have talked about:

danish oil
ikea Behandla wood oil
tung oil (Polymerized??)
salad bowl finish
minwax oil stain + waterlox
minwax oil stain + Polyurethanes
minwax oil stain + one of the oil finishes
mineral oil + beeswax

Could someone talk about the differences between the finishes and their colors? Also, what would be the best option for me? I would prefer the final product to be really durable since I'm going to be banging a mouse, dropping notebooks and keys, leaving water cups and writing papers on it. I'm not allergic to any tree nuts and I don't need it to be food safe (although I don't want to die if I employ the 5 second rule). Also, I haven't found any good woodworking stores (other than Home Depot) that are less than 45 mins away from Chicago so if anyone knows of one, it'd be great!

[Steve Schoene]

The top does have a finish applied--well sort of a finish. It is a linseed oil finish, which offers zero protection from water stains or anything. That's roughly what you would get with the Ikea Behandla wood oil which is linseed oil, emulsified in water, for some unknown reason.

All of the finishes on your list are basically amber in color, and will have very little darkening effect compared to the linseed oil which has already been applied. I would rule out a few things. Eliminate Salad Bowl finish as being a marketing scam. Rule out Tung Oil. If it is pure tung oil, it is difficult to apply, very slow drying, and only the tiniest hint of more protection. Polymerized tung oil is a bit more protective, but also difficult to apply.

"Danish oil" will offer more protection from waterspots than just oils, but it won't be bullet proof. You can get a small amount (not very much, though) of color change using a tinted danish oil, such as Watco. Danish oil is just a mix of varnish and oil, with thinner added to aid application (and in commercial versions to lower costs) The key is that you must wipe off any excess from the surface, not allowing any film to build on the surface.

For more color shift--though still not really dramatic, a wiping stain can be used, I'd choose a brand other than Minwax. Then top coating with Waterlox varnish makes for a very good desk top finish. An even harder top coat would be Behlen Rockhard. If you preferred to wipe on the varnish you could thin the Behlen to wiping consistency with mineral spirits or naphtha. You can also use other good varnishes such as Pratt & Lambert 38, Cabot Varnish (8000 sku not polyurethane), McCloskey Heirloom which still may be on shelves. Sherwin Williams makes an alkyd varnish in their FastDry Wood Classics line. I'd bet you have a Sherwin Williams store closer than your nearest Home Depot.

Chicago should have an extremely wide array of sources for finishing materials. Resorting to Home Depot shouldn't be necessary. You have a Palatine IL woodcraft store, and a Schaumburg IL Rockler store. I'd bet you have dozen's of high quality paint stores, most of which will have stains and varnishes.

[Wei Yang]

Thanks Steve! That really clarified a lot of questions I had.

I had previously tried to stain the table (small part on the bottom) but it didn't come out well and was all blotchy and uneven. Granted it was minwax but are the "wiping stains" you mentioned a special product that will go though the layer of linseed oil that's there already? I did a bit of sanding with 150 and 220 grit sandpaper before the staining but perhaps it wasn't enough?

What about polyurethane? Should I avoid finishing products with that in it?

Also, do I need to thin all varnishes before using them? Are they normally not wipe on?

[Wei Yang]

Following your advice, I bought some Behlen Rockhard Table Top Finish (with reducer) and General Finishes Pre-stain conditioner and Mahogany wipe on oil stain. I followed the directions but it doesn't seem to come out well. I've started another thread about it: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?p=927209#post927209