Teak Oil Refuses to Cure on Padauk: Now What?

[Duncan Purcell]

Howdy! Non-craftsman newbie here, looking for help. I bought some gorgeous padauk lumber recently to make a custom rack mount in which to house some musical gear: basically a strong, four-sided box with open front and back. I had read about padauk giving occasional grief over which glue to use, so just before I glued and clamped it all together, I gave a good sanding to the dado channels and the two side panels at the joints. Success. Next, under advisement, I finished it off with two coats of teak oil, and too late I learned that the oils in padauk will interfere with finishes as well as glues. Days later it is still not dry. If I run my finger along the edge, I still get a thin layer of oil on my finger, even after wiping the whole thing down repeatedly with old T-shirts.

Any thoughts on how I can repair this? Do I need to sand all that teak oil out? Is there a product (acetone or paint thinner, maybe?) that I could simply apply to it — and what would that do to the finish? Or, is there some other clear finish I could simply apply over the teak oil? The thing looks beautiful. But it's no good to me like this.

Thank you for any replies!!

[Jamie Buxton]

Teak oil is apparently just oil, which is not intended to cure hard. (https://www.popularwoodworking.com/w...il-what-is-it/ . The author extensively tested a bunch of teak oils, and calls them snake oils.) In your padauk case, perhaps what has happened is that the paduak is so dense that the teak oil cannot soak into the wood, and the oil just sits on the surface. I'd rub the piece down as much as I could, and apply a wipe-on solvent-borne varnish. The teak oil is pretty similar to the resins and solvents in the varnish, so any remnants shouldn't bother the varnish. You might try this process on a scrap or the box's bottom before you do it to show surfaces.

[Duncan Purcell]

Thank you, Jamie. Do you recommend any particular product or brand?

[Jamie Buxton]

Thank you, Jamie. Do you recommend any particular product or brand?

Minwax Wipe-on Poly or Waterlox Original Sealer and Finish.

[Mike Hollingsworth]

I'd wipe it all off with lacquer thinner then reapply the teak oil. Immediately wipe all of it off with a paper towel to leave a thin finish that will probably dry overnight.

[Barry McFadden]

Minwax Wipe-on Poly or Waterlox Original Sealer and Finish.

I use wipe on poly for most of my turnings. After I discovered it would take forever to dry (if at all) on Paduak, for future turnings with Paduak in them I spray on a coat of Zinsser Shellac first and then put on the wipe on poly and it dries well.

[glenn bradley]

I’m with Barry. I use shellac on padauk with good success.

[Duncan Purcell]

Thank you for all of the replies!

I've applied some elbow grease and 220-grain sandpaper to the entire piece. Now it's good and dry, at least. But I'm proceeding with caution. I will be well-familiar with all of the products and approaches suggested above before I apply any further liquid(s) to the wood. Thank you kindly, one and all, for your thoughts and suggestions. Frankly, I should have done some further reading about finishing padauk before treating it like oak.