Birch Ply

[custard]

I've found that birch ply test sample,

Reading from left to right,

Osmo 3186. Described as "Matt". A better description might be "intense". This is the one I found a bit chalky.

Untreated Birch Ply.

Osmo 3044. Described as "Raw Untreated Oil". In real life (as opposed to a carp phone photo) it does a fine job of preserving the underlying colour of fine grained, paler timbers, plus it delivers excellent stain protection while still remaining nice and matt. Where it falls down is UV protection, but frankly so do almost all other products outside of a professional spray shop with deep pockets.

Untreated Birch Ply.

Osmo 3111. Described as "Satin". It's not materially different in glossiness to "Matt" (like all Osmo products they're compressed into a fairly narrow "gloss to matt" spectrum), but it's less intense and not nearly as chalky. Looks great on bleached Oak!

A note of warning, these effects vary substantially on different timbers. Osmo descriptions may be a bit rubbish but their sample sachets are brilliant, so always always always run your own tests on your own timbers.

 

[Chris152]

I've just applied a third and final coat of Osmo 3044 to a pine table top - very pleased with the finish, though the white particles in the medium affect a band of red I'd painted on the table turning it a little pink. Maybe that'll reduce with time or maybe not.

The finish I get when sanding with 320 paper between coats is great - once the final coat has dried, should I carefully sand again and then leave it, or do I just leave the final coat unsanded?

Also - Yorkshiremartin, what made you decide to apply with a lint free cloth? I just used a brush but I'd be interested to know.

Thanks.

 

[custard]

The finish I get when sanding with 320 paper between coats is great - once the final coat has dried, should I carefully sand again and then leave it, or do I just leave the final coat unsanded?

Unsanded.

There shouldn't be any need to sand Osmo between coats if the surface preparation was done correctly before finishing. All you might need is some de-nibbing, but all that means is a couple of light strokes with a completely worn out sheet of 320 grit, or even the ungritted reverse side of a sanding sheet, or just get a scrunched up brown paper bag and wipe that across the surface.

The white particles in 3044 (and 3186 and 3111) are pigments and won't fade.

 

[Chris152]

Ok, thank you Custard.