Bowls got sticky in storage

[kevin nee]

Hello, I have stored some bowls in a large plastic container. I am doing an event tomorrow (selling my turnings) I was preparing to load the truck and found that some of the bowls were a little sticky. I used 1000 grit paper and sanded then wiped with a paper towel. This worked fine but was time consuming.The finish is walnut oil. The walnut bowls were the stickiest. The items were wrapped in t-shirts or the like. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance, Kevin

[Shawn Pachlhofer]

an oil finish is not a film finish.

Oil penetrated the wood, and likely due to heat, is now seeping out of the wood.

maybe wipe down with a fresh coat of walnut oil?

[Bill Blasic]

When I use walnut oil it has always been Mahoney's and I have never had a problem. My last show of every year is at the end of November and the plastic cases are not opened till the next May. I have found that Mahoney's oil hardens/dries very quickly.

[Eric Gourieux]

I've had the "sticky" problem with Mahoney's before. For some reason, one bowl seemed to weep oil for a week or more. At that time, I was told that I should set it out where the UV light would help harden the oil. Perhaps your pieces weren't quite hardened or "cured" when you put them in storage.