Finish didn't stick to Peruvian Walnut (Nogal)

[Mark AJ Allen]

I'm not sure why but I finished a panel of this wood with some tung oil coats + Urethane. It didn't stick ... I could scratch it right off with my fingernail. Perhaps the wood is got alot of natural oils in the first place? I don't know. What I do know is that I want SOME kind of finish for this. It's going to be the top of a end table in a living room so it's going to have drinks and potentially alcoholic beverage sitting on it.

Can anyone suggest a semi or glossy finish that will take to this wood for this purpose?

[Jamie Buxton]

That's odd. I've put varnish directly on Peruvian walnut, and it stuck just fine. Maybe the tung oil stayed oily?

[Mark AJ Allen]

Is it possible that my tung oil is 'old'? It looks like it's separated out a bit ...

Regardless, is there any way I can repair the raw wood surface if it's damaged to take a new finish?

[Jamie Buxton]

..Regardless, is there any way I can repair the raw wood surface if it's damaged to take a new finish?

Well, at this point, you don't have a raw wood surface. You have wood with a failed finish on it. I'd remove the failed finish, so I have a raw wood surface, and then put a new finish on it. I'd probably scrape most of the failed finish off with a cabinet scraper. You might could try a sander, but if the failed finish is soft, it is likely just to ball up on the sandpaper. The tarry old finish is likely to crud up the scraper, so you may be wiping the tar off, taking a few strokes with the scraper, then wiping that tar off. After most of the old finish is gone, then you can probably go to the sander. Your goal is to get mostly wood showing. You don't have to be 100% clean; some old finish down in the pores isn't likely to be a problem.

[Prashun Patel]

Before you strip and create more work for yourself, post a picture so we can see what's going on.

When you say 'tung oil and urethane' do you mean they were mixed into a blend, or did you put on the tung oil, then the poly varnish. If the latter, how long did you wait between? There could be adhesion problems of the urethane varnish or the tung just might not have been dry enough to topcoat.

If they were blended into an oilvarnish mix, then it can be problematic if you try to paint it on and leave it, like a hardening varnish. An OV blend can dry gummy and sticky; it's intended to be applied liberally, then wiped completely off.

Also, how did you prep this? If you sanded, how did you clean it prior to finishing? It is possible that there was prior surface contamination.

When you say 'separated out' what do you mean? Pure tung oil won't do that, so I'm thinking you are indeed using a blend. Separation alone is not evidence of going bad. If the bottom layer is gelatinous or lumpy then it is indeed going bad.

Please also describe how you applied it. Did you wipe it on or brush it on?