Danish Oil

[Lasse Hilbrandt]

I hear more and more often people recommend Danis Oil as a good finish for tabletops.
My own experience with Danish Oil is more than 20 years old where I for a short period of time used it for knife handles. I stopped using it because I found that as soon the knife handle got wet the finish desolved and needed to be sanded and re finished again.

So from my own experience Danish Oil would not be suitable for a table top that would be cleaned with a damp cloth once and a while.

Whats your experience with Danish Oil ?

[Jim Becker]

Nearly 100% of the "Danish Oil" that I've had contact with was simply a wiping varnish, not "just" oil. But this is the US where marketing labels are what they are. And many, many folks use wiping varnishes or home-brew oil-varnish-thinner mixtures for tables. You need to apply many coats because they are individually thin, but the method is easy to get a great result.

[Lasse Hilbrandt]

For me Danish Oil is a blend of varnish, oil and mineral spirits

[Jim Becker]

Then it is as I described, more or less. It's pretty popular with many folks.

[Lasse Hilbrandt]

Then it is as I described, more or less. It's pretty popular with many folks.

But do you consider it a durable finish ?

[Phil Mueller]

Not durable on its own for a project that will get a lot of use like a dinning table or coffee table. But, IMO, fine for an occassional table like an end table, entry table, sofa table, etc. It’s also great for things that get little use, like picture frames. I don’t believe I have ever done a project with only Danish Oil, though. I use it primarily to enhance the grain, then finish with either wax or some other film forming finish.

[Jim Becker]

Durability is "relative". For a hard use item, there are undoubtedly better choices. For general furniture use, it will work just fine. What's in the mixture and the ratios makes a difference, too. There's no right or wrong answer on this.

[Bennett Ostroff]

I've never seen wiping varnish labeled as Danish oil. In my experience Danish oil is an oil/varnish blend which always gets wiped off and does not form a hard finish like (wiping) varnish. Very different. Some oil/varnish blends have more varnish than others (like Minwax Antique oil) and will produce a very minor build after many many coats. But that's not the purpose of that finish. You will get water rings on a Danish oil finish, and scratches are likely to penetrate the actual wood since there's virtually no film. If you're looking for a low-maintenance protective finish for a dining table, then a varnish (such as polyurethane) will do the trick and is fairly easy to apply.

[Stan Calow]

Perhaps Danish Oil is something else in Denmark? I like tinted DO because its an easy way to add color without stain/dye, but not for something that will get wear or will get handled (like a handle).

[Lasse Hilbrandt]

I think Danish Oil is the same anywhere. I have no idea why its called DO. Its not a common finish in Denmark.

[Thomas Canfield]

I do not claim to be any type of expert on Danish Oil, but have always heard and read that it is a blend of equal parts of Boiled Linseed Oil, Mineral Spirits, and Varnish. That being said, there can be a lot of variation in blends with different types of Mineral Spirits and Varnish even if BLO is somewhat consistent which is not always the case. I blend a souped up mix of 4:4:5 parts with extra gloss varnish in mix based on recipe picked up from Elmer Adams when visiting HI. Of course, my blends do not have the same component brands that he used so again variations. I do buff with Tripoli before and after each of 3 or more coats wiped on/off and application of Renaissance wax finally. The resulting surface does hold up well, some after 10 years display/use in home.

[Robert Engel]

Danish oil is a great finish for a beginner because it is foolproof.

I still use it on various items like boxes, and some types of furniture.

[Prashun Patel]

foolproof except for the rag disposal thing.