Finishes for Walnut?

[Tyler Anderson]

Hey,

As a disclaimer, I'm new to woodworking and this is my first real project, but I've tried to do my homework and hope to be able to get into it more. Any help would therefore be GREATLY appreciated.

I'm currently working on making a coffee table. I want the top to be a "natural" look, with the curves of the outside edge of the tree and the imprefections left in the wood. The pictures below are of the wood I am using - American walnut, air dried. If you look at the first picture below, I'm using the area approximately centered around that bulge where the branch comes out for the table top, with the two pieces laid together as shown.

I'm struggling with what the best finish would be to put on the table. Wipe-on poly was recommended to me, but from reading through the forum, it sounds like everyone uses some sort of oil base with it. I've also seen references to both water and oil based polys.

What I'd like in the end is something that really brings out the wood (no dyes) and shows the grain/pores. I would like to keep the natural color of the sapwood around the edges as well. I don't want it to be glossy (I understand I can use 0000 steel wool to get rid of gloss), although I wouldn't oppose a little bit. While I don't forsee this being an extremely heavily used table, I'd like something somewhat protective, as I'd like it to last quite a while (protection against water stains is always good).

The other difficulty is that as I'm currently in grad school, I don't have tons of room/time/money to do anything crazy, so simpler is better (to an extent). I don't mind putting in some hours though if it'll mean a much better finish. That's why the sound of a wipe-on poly appealed to me.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!!

Thank you,
--Tyler

P.S. If you have opinions on sanding vs. scraping vs. using a smoothing plane, please share those as well.

[Steve Schoene]

The finish of choice in your situation is an oil/varnish mix. The most common commercial variety is Watco. It would be applied by wiping it on generously letting it soak in for 10-15 minutes and then vigorously wipe off any remaining on the surface. Let this cure overnight and repeat the process. You would get an "in the wood" finish that will have considerably more moisture resistance than oil alone.

A wipe on varnish will build on the surface and provide more protection. If you do decide to use a film finish I strongly suggest you avoid polyurethane varnish. It is hard to rub out to an even sheen. You can mix your own wiping varnish by adding mineral spirits to a good brushing varnish such as Behlen's Rockhard. Shellac is also a wonderful finish for walnut, bringing out the warmth of its colors.

The surface does need to be scrupleously prepared. A good finely set smooth plane with a VERY sharp blade will leave a wonderful surface. Walnut planes well. Unfortunately, the colors and shimmering depth you see immediately after planing air dried walnut--orange and purple and chocolate will not stay long, no matter what the finish. It's a bonus that only the craftsman gets to see. If you sand, go to about 400 if you intend to use an "in the wood" finish. You can stop at 220 if you use a film finish.

I don't remember having either time or money during my grad school days, but good luck , you have a lovely piece of walnut. You may want to join the too halves with some butterflys inset into the surface.

[Jim Becker]

Although different in part than Steve's general recommendation, my finish regimen for black walnut is generally BLO, de-waxed shellac and then another top coat if the project demands it. That could either be Target USL or an oil-based varnish...I don't tend to use the latter much in my shop. Frankly, I love the look of just the oil followed by the shellac and have several pieces finished that way. If you view my thread about the walnut natural edge bench, you'll see the effect. (General Woodworking Forum...use advanced search)

[Bob Reda]

I agree with both Steve and Jim. The wonders of shellac are endless. But I would even add to put the watco or BLO on with a sythetic pad and rub it into the wood. By working it into the wood with a pad it will create a slurry that will fill some of the pores and produce a nice sheen to the project.

[Mark Patoka]

On the few walnut projects I've done, I've used General Finishes Arm-R-Seal. It's a thinned wiping varnish that I've found brings out the grain without getting a heavy build like polyurethane but should offer the protection you're looking for.

The previous recommendations of using BLO, Watco and shellac are also very good and should get the results you want.

[john whittaker]

Hello Tyler and welcome to the creek,

I've been finishing several different walnut project over the past few months and experimenting with several finishes. The good news is... no matter what I have tried, the finish looks good. Hard to mess up walnut.

But in keeping with your "simpler the better" & "not much money" I'll recommend a finish called Tru-Oil, which is commonly used to finish walnut gun stocks. It's a very easy to apply, wipe on type finish, offers good protection, and is very clear as compared to poly. Since this is a table top you may want to fill the pours which can be accomplished by applying the first several coats using wet/dry sandpaper (approx 220 - 300 grit) which forms a slurry and fills the porus wood. Once the pours are filled you will need a few more coats and you can even thin with mineral spirits on the final coat to get a very smooth application.

Not sure exactly what is in Tru-Oil as it is a propietary mixture, but it applies and acts like an oil/varnish type of finish, much like Watco, so you can substitute Watco and apply the same way. The oil really brings out the grain and add that rich look...and the varnish offers the clear protection you want.

Good luck, you have some nice looking walnut to work with.

[Steve Schoene]

I believe Tru-Oil is a mix of polymerized linseed oil with some linseed oil added and which is then thinned with mineral spirits. Polymerizing linseed oil does make it more water resistant and protective than pure linseed oil which offers virtually no protection from water staining.

[Mike Armstrong]

Everyone probably has a favorite technique. I just finished a reliquary for a good friend of mine using his 60-yr-old walnut from the family farm that'd been floating around various garages/attics all this time. I'm a fan of Liberon Finishing Oil. My typical routine is 3 hand-rubbed coats. First coat rubbed in with 220; then 320; final coat with 400. On some projects, I'll do a 4th with 600. The feel of this finish is hard to beat, especially on something that will be touched/handled a lot. You can PM me for more specific details about application, drying times, etc.

Mike

Box 028c.jpgBox 021c.jpg

[Jeffrey Schronce]

On the few walnut projects I've done, I've used General Finishes Arm-R-Seal. It's a thinned wiping varnish that I've found brings out the grain without getting a heavy build like polyurethane but should offer the protection you're looking for.

The previous recommendations of using BLO, Watco and shellac are also very good and should get the results you want.

I agree on the BLO and shellac finishs, particularly a garnet shellac.

However, if a nice smooth, soft to the touch finish is what you are after, with minimal efforts, General Finishes Arm-R-Seal is awesome.