Dimensioning 10/4 lumber for bench build...How to go about it?

[Nicholas Lawrence]

I have been using trewax on my floors. Definitely not slippery, but makes it much easier to clean up spills. Have not used it on the bench or tools. It does have a much lower odor than Johnson’s.

[Patrick Chase]

What is there to say?

Well, if you read carefully I said "no practical reason to use BLO to protect wood" (emphasis added retroactively), so there is actually quite a bit to say.

We finish wood for both appearance and protection, with different weightings between the two depending on the piece and the user. I actually use BLO and finish some pieces in BLO, but I do so in full knowledge that I am doing so purely to achieve a desired appearance, because BLO is basically worthless (and strictly inferior to modern options) as a protectant.

Based on Stan's references to "sickly yellow look" I think that he doesn't much prefer BLO's appearance either, so for him there's no reason to use it at all :-).

[Stanley Covington]

Well, if you read carefully I said "no practical reason to use BLO to protect wood" (emphasis added retroactively), so there is actually quite a bit to say.

We finish wood for both appearance and protection, with different weightings between the two depending on the piece and the user. I actually use BLO and finish some pieces in BLO, but I do so in full knowledge that I am doing so purely to achieve a desired appearance, because BLO is basically worthless (and strictly inferior to modern options) as a protectant.

Based on Stan's references to "sickly yellow look" I think that he doesn't much prefer BLO's appearance either, so for him there's no reason to use it at all :-).

Yea verily.

And don't forget the stink. Ever finish a cabinet's or chest's interior with BLO? The stink seems to last forever.

It continues to attract dust for months, too.

I have nothing wrong with planing some varieties of wood smooth and leaving it unfinished, even if exposed to the weather, in many applications. I have plenty of wood like that in my home. Of course, a quality finish can protect the wood and/or change/improve the appearance. But BLO does neither. Why bother?

I know guys who collect and even make flint tools and weapons for historical hobby purposes, but none of them commute to work in an oxcart or use BLO on their wood.

[Matthew Hutchinson477]

Update 2:

Did some more precise measuring today to see just how wide each subsequent board would be if I ripped the big boards into three pieces. They are barely over 9" wide now so by the time I rip them, do some more dimensioning, laminate, then ultimately flatten the bench top I would end up with under 3" of thickness. At this point, me not being expertly efficient with hand planes and dimensioning, I often end up having to take more off than I anticipate to flatten a board and I often end up with less thickness than I originally thought I could get. So with that in mind and not much extra wood to waste I know I wouldn't be able to squeeze 3" of thickness out of a benchtop.

When debating between 3" and 3-1/2" thickness for the top I did not take all that into consideration, and because I was on the fence about 3" being thick enough I'm gonna throw that idea out and just stick with 3-1/2" thickness. I'll only be able to rip each board once so it'll take more boards to make the top but oh well. I think that overdoing things is generally better than the opposite, and I'd rather my benchtop be a little too thick than the other way around. So. now that I've made that decision, I had to get another board because I wouldn't have enough to make a benchtop wider than 12". Lucky for me the guy who I got this stuff from had an awesome 8"x4"x80" beam. Shame he didn't have more beams that size otherwise I woulda made the whole top out of just 2 pieces but that's another story.

Anyhow, next decision to make...should I leave this beam its full width or should I rip it up to make boards that are the same dimension as the rest of the pieces that will make up the top? If I leave the beam it'll probably end up a little over 3-1/2" thick after planing which would be about perfect. The benchtop would then be made up of that beam and 4 other boards that would be 2" wide each. Would it matter where in the lamination sequence I put the slab? It might be aesthetically most pleasing to put 2 2" boards on each side so that the slab ended up in the middle of the top but perhaps there is some reason (related to dimensional stability) to keep the slab on one end and the 4 2" boards all laminated together on the other side.

[Brian Holcombe]

I think I’d just keep laminating as you are currently, one beam in the center is s bit strange imo.

[Warren Mickley]

After reading comments about linseed oil in this thread last week, I was thinking they did not jibe with my own experience.

I have used boiled linseed oil occasionally for many years. Although I bought my first quart in 1964, I have probably used less than a gallon altogether. However, when respondents start talking about no protection at all, I am wondering what they are doing.

I found a surface that I coated with linseed oil in 1974. It has not had any treatment since, never waxed. Water on the surface evaporated without penetrating. I then took a piece of birch, planed it and coated it with oil and let it sit for a few days. Water sitting on the surface evaporates rather than penetrates. The idea that people put it on wood in the 18th century and never noticed that it did not work, just does not hold water.

[Stanley Covington]

After reading comments about linseed oil in this thread last week, I was thinking they did not jibe with my own experience.

I have used boiled linseed oil occasionally for many years. Although I bought my first quart in 1964, I have probably used less than a gallon altogether. However, when respondents start talking about no protection at all, I am wondering what they are doing.

I found a surface that I coated with linseed oil in 1974. It has not had any treatment since, never waxed. Water on the surface evaporated without penetrating. I then took a piece of birch, planed it and coated it with oil and let it sit for a few days. Water sitting on the surface evaporates rather than penetrates. The idea that people put it on wood in the 18th century and never noticed that it did not work, just does not hold water.

The BOL discussion centered on its ability to protect laminated wood, like a benchtop or glulams, from damage when exposed to water and weather long-term. This of course is not typically the case for interior woodwork or even benchtops in most cases. The point is that, while BLO is fine for finishing one's workbench, it has limitations.

[ernest dubois]

I was in on that discussion so feel somewhat addressed by the query from Warren Mickley. Without making a provocation at all, it's a road I don't wish to back track unless there is some pointed and specific use where something sensible could be said, that as a user - I have liters and liters, (gallons and gallons) pressed just up the road by the flax farmer for me and stored up which I dip into regularly - I had some knowledge/experience concerning.

[Phil Mueller]

I agree Stan. I have one cherry sofa table (sits between the sofa and wall) that was left unfinished. I was planning to finish it once the weather warmed up...that was about 3 years ago. Has now warmed to a nice medium brown and seems fine just as it is.

[Patrick Chase]

The BOL discussion centered on its ability to protect laminated wood, like a benchtop or glulams, from damage when exposed to water and weather long-term. This of course is not typically the case for interior woodwork or even benchtops in most cases. The point is that, while BLO is fine for finishing one's workbench, it has limitations.

Yes, I'll admit to exaggerating a bit in the heat of the argument when I said "basically worthless". BLO clearly does *something*, and they used it in the 18th century because it was the best practical option at the time.

Stuff that I've finished with BLO and Tung oil hasn't held up nearly as well as similar objects that were finished more along the lines of Stanley's gunstock/benchtop technique. By a similar token, it's interesting to note how much oil-finished 18th Century furniture ended up getting shellacked at the very first opportunity.

[Pat Barry]

I wouldn't want any fine furniture to be unfinished. Fingerprints, spills, water spots, wear, etc all will ruin the piece. That's a primary reason for finish and BLO does well, not perfect, but far better than bare wood.

[Warren Mickley]

Yes, I'll admit to exaggerating a bit in the heat of the argument when I said "basically worthless". BLO clearly does *something*, and they used it in the 18th century because it was the best practical option at the time.

Stuff that I've finished with BLO and Tung oil hasn't held up nearly as well as similar objects that were finished more along the lines of Stanley's gunstock/benchtop technique. By a similar token, it's interesting to note how much oil-finished 18th Century furniture ended up getting shellacked at the very first opportunity.

Shellac was widely available in the 17th century. It is mentioned in Diderot and Roubo. It became fashionable for furniture at the beginning of the 19th century and was applied to old 18th century furniture at that time, not "at the very first opportunity".

In my experience linseed oil does not need to be replenished annually, does not attract dust, and does not continually darken over time. Recent analysis has suggested that Stradivari used linseed oil as a first coat.

I once read on another forum that linseed oil would turn black over time. I went right upstairs to check on a piece of furniture I made in 1981. When I asked the fellow (a lawyer) what century it would be when it turned black, he suggested that I was not welcome on that forum.

[steven c newman]

Oh, I forgot..there iS a saw bench on my back patio, has stayed out year round in all kinds of weather.....out of Pine, no less...finish? NONE. never had, never will. Hasn't needed it. do you want a picture? And, it is still in use, BTW.

[Stanley Covington]

Oh, I forgot..there iS a saw bench on my back patio, has stayed out year round in all kinds of weather.....out of Pine, no less...finish? NONE. never had, never will. Hasn't needed it. do you want a picture? And, it is still in use, BTW.

Thanks Steven. Sincerely. Good to know. A picture would be nice.

Is it abandoned on the porch, or do you use it there? Does it get wet when it rains/snows?

Do you think it would have benefited from a BLO finish?

[Phil Mueller]

Just watched an interesting video on traditional french polishing. The instructor (sorry, can’t remember his name...1000 videos on french polishing), claimed that original french polishing was done by first burnishing the wood with a straw bundle, grain was filled with wax, and then polished out with a spit shine.

His point, as may be related to BLO and other historical furniture finishes, is that furniture builders back then needed to generate volume to make a living. Quick, easy, fast finishes were desired. Doesn’t mean even they believed it was the most protective or durable, just looked reasonably good.

These historic finishes tend to produce a reasonably good look with a minimal amount of trial and error. As a hobbyist, I’ve graduated to these, only for that reason. I have no doubt modern finishes are more durable.