WEEK COMMENCING 30 APRIL 2023

Hi

About last week’s Newsletter…as we start another Bank Holiday Weekend, it was pointed out to me that my comment last week about the effect of all of these Mondays off on productivity could be misconstrued as me being a bit of a misery about it all! That wasn’t the case, I enjoy them as much as anyone else, and am looking forward to this week’s one as well.
Also, the eagle-eyed among you may have noticed that the date at the top was wrong. As you probably expect, I use a template for the Newsletter with a ‘dummy’ date at the top, which I change every week. Last week’s Newsletter, for some unknown reason, took three attempts to get right – the layout kept being disrupted. On the third, final, attempt, the layout came out right, but I forgot to change the date, sorry!
Finally, on this subject, it was suggested that I might have implied that a sealer should be used beneath an oil, which, of course, is not the case. I think you know that already, but I mention it just in case…

So we move onto the questions, and the first one out of the box this week is about our Tung Oil. Is ours a pure, unadulterated Tung Oil, or are there solvents and driers and even other oils added to it? The answer is that our Tung Oil is completely pure. If it wasn’t, we’d feel obliged to say so on the can, but apparently other suppliers (I think it’s a particular thing in the USA) aren’t as transparent. We will change our labelling to say that it’s 100% Tung Oil. If you want a version with driers and solvent, then Finishing Oil is the one to go for.

Someone else asked for a suggestion for finishing African Blackwood, apparently a very oil wood, which they were using to make a bagpipe. They wondered if Friction Polish would work. Friction Polish is very good at sticking to surfaces, so it would probably adhere to the timber, but I don’t think it would stay looking its best for long with the amount of handling it would get. My usual suggestion for oil timbers is an oil finish, and in this case I suggested the gloss Hard Wax Oil, which I’m sure would make a good job of it. I’m hoping for a report, and possibly even some pictures to share with you, of the result.

The last question of the week asked if our sealers could be over painted with acrylic and oil based paints. Much will depend on the paint, so as always a test piece would be strongly recommended, but I reckon both the Cellulose and the Acrylic Sanding Sealer (brush or spray versions) would be OK for this. The Shellac Sanding Sealer would probably be OK, but I have a feeling that there might not be as much adhesion, so if the painted item was handled a lot, the paint just might be dislodged, spoiling the effect.

Well that makes a change, three short answers this week!
I enjoyed my visit to Hampshire Woodturners on Wednesday, my apologies to them for running over time and making them all stay late! I hope you enjoyed it regardless.
Next weekend sees me at the NEC in Birmingham for the Makers Central Show, I’ll tell you more about that next week, but if you’re one of our European readers, there’s a big show being held by Neureiter Maschinen, one of our Stockists in Austria. The show is on 12-13 May, and our very good friend Stewart Furini will be there, deputising for us, and showing his fantastic decorating and finishing techniques. Do pop in and see him if you can! And safe travels, Stewart, have fun – I’m sure you will.

And I hope you enjoy the long weekend too, whether you’re watching the spectacle of the Coronation, or doing your best to enjoy it. Whatever you choose, I’ll be back here next week with more questions – and less news!

Cheers

Terry