Hi

How has your week been? Lots going on this week; our quiz on Sunday (details below) and lots of preparation for the Woodturning Weekender, which is only a little over six weeks away. Book soon if you want to come!
But I have to tell you about this… I checked one of our YouTube videos (the one about using abrasives) during the week, as I wanted to direct a customer to a certain part of it. I discovered that Google/YouTube had ‘helpfully’ split it into chapters, to make different parts easier to find. There was an intro, a piece with me describing different abrasives, followed by a chapter called ‘cutback abrasives’ which I realized should have been ‘cloth-backed abrasives’. Obviously, the chapter titles were being computer generated based on what it thought I was saying. Next came hookbacked abrasives, Net Abrasive and… Night Pads. WHAT!? I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry, although everyone else around me knew exactly what to do and were rolling around the floor. The chapter title should have been ‘NyWeb Pads’. I then spent 20 minutes trying to work out how to correct it. Clean your ears out, Google!

Let’s do some questions…
I was asked about using abrasive pastes (such as Cut’n’Polish) this week to reduce sanding dust. Was it necessary to remove any wax residue that could be left behind, using white spirit or meths? To be clear, these pastes use wax as the carrier for the abrasive, so a coating of wax will be left behind. As such, only wax or Friction Polish should be applied over the top of it.
White spirit is the solvent for wax and would remove some of it, meths will have very little effect. To ensure all of it has been removed, the surface should be sanded, and this seems to defeat the object.
Especially as the questioner went on to ask about applying Food Safe Finish after. The simple answer is to use the Food Safe Finish as a lubricant for a sheet abrasive. This will give a smoother cut, and prevent clouds of dust being sent into the workshop. An example of it can be seen on this video. (You can check, I’ve changed the chapter titles!).

Another question came in about some lime carvings. They were a couple of years old, and had been left untreated. Sadly, they’d started to collect dust over time, and were no longer looking at their best. After cleaning them up, what would be the best way to treat them to keep them clean, without affecting the appearance too much?
I’d been sent photos as well, and these showed that the carvings were quite intricate in places, so I suggested our Cellulose Sanding Sealer aerosol. It will be easy to apply to all the hard to get at areas, and will dry pretty much clear. A coat of WoodWax 22 over the top of it would really seal the deal, keeping the carvings looking great for a long time.
Keeping the surface clean, or at least easy to clean, is just one of the jobs a good coating does, never underestimate the importance of finishing!

Finally, remember the old Morris Minor Travellers? They’re the ones with all the timber on the back half. We were contacted by someone this week, asking for a friend (they claimed!), about how to protect the wooden frame. It had been oiled, would Microcrystalline Wax on top of it be a good idea?
I don’t think it would. Whilst that wax is very water-repellent, it wouldn’t stand up to a British downpour. It’s ideal for household items that might get wet, but not really outdoors. I felt the oil would probably provide a lot of protection, and asked for details of it.
If the vehicle was only taken out for shows, the wax would certainly help it look good, but maintenance would be required if it got very wet.

And that’s where we’ll stop for this week. Don’t forget our quiz on Sunday evening. Come and join us for a bit of a laugh, and stretch your brain cells at the same time. Find it on YouTube here. It’s free to take part, just turn up before 7.30!

I hope I’ll see you there

Terry