recommend a finish for a whitewood bench please?

[jumps]

having read a number of bench build projects recently I got persuaded to knock something up when Wicks heavily discounted a batch of 72"x3x2 planed.

inevitably I then got carried away in construction and feel I should invest in the best possible finish to give it a chance to live a little longer!

I have been taking the appropriate WIP pics and will write it up including the finish - so the question is

How should I finish it?

I did a quick search through the finish board but couldn't find what I was looking for - if there's a thread I've missed please point me in it's direction.

thanks

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Danish oil and Osmo PolyX are easy or just linseed. PolyX possibly the quickest drying. Water based varnish is quick drying as well.

 

[marcros]

i would just slap some boiled linseed oil on it or a hard wax oil. I have not used the PolyX before. I hear good things about it though.

IMHO, it is more a case of making things like blobs of glue easily removable than to protect it. I would consider having a sacrificial top, although you could always plane and flatter a wooden top if you wanted every few years.

 

[AndyT]

I used boiled linseed oil on my softwood topped bench - easy and cheap but it does make it easier to keep clean while not being too slippery.
There are some pictures here https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/my-old-cheap-easy-bench-t82290.html

 

[sdjp]

If this is a bench, as in workbench, then the considerations are: not slippy, and easy to repair. Oil finishes work well for that, as others have mentioned. (I'd slap a few coats of boiled linseed oil on it).

If this is a bench, as in thing for sitting on [0], then different trade offs. You want something that's a film building, to prevent damage to the wood. Shellac will look better, but take maintenance (waxing regularly) to keep looking good. A urethane varnish will be lower maintenance. Either way, out of whitewood it wouldn't last long if left outdoors, no matter the finish.


[0] I don't think so; but for completeness...

 

[jumps]

Thank you all for your responses, which sort of help but also leave me with the original question unanswered in my mind. Philip and Marcos's responses almost exactly represent my thinking in asking the question!

I have BLO, Danish Oil and a Satin Varnish (Sadolin's Poly Ultra Hard) - I don't have Osmo's Poly-X Hard Wax Oil; but was wondering if I should invest in some here ie would it deliver significant advantages in terms of toughening up the surface (and the legs, hole edges etc).

being able to recoat, refinish etc easily is probably less of an issue than the ability to toughen it all up a little in the first place. But if the latter's not an option (short of impregnating with epoxy) then they rise back to being the key issue.

Andy - your thread was one of the prompts; having a 52 1/2 and having made a Moxon/Coates (I think I recognise yours from Douglas's workshop) made everything seem so obvious!

this is going to be like ordering in a restaurant - I just end up making a last minute snap decision!

Thanks for the responses.

 

[no idea]

I made one of my benches out of 2x3 and 2x4 B&Q whitewood and varnished it with quick drying floor varnish from Toolstation - cheap enough and a durable finish.

Having said that, I am making a bed for my son out of whitewood and am considering either Osmo gloss Polyx or a combination of Liberon fininshing oil and clear/neutral Black Bison wax. The bed finish doesn't need to be as durable as the bench but I want a toy safe finish on it.

 

[stuartpaul]

If you're looking to 'toughen up' the surface then you need something that's going to soak in a bit. Consider a spirit based varnish and thin down (15/20% ish). This helps the wood soak it up a bit more than normal.

Couple of thinned coats then a 'normal' one to finish off.

Won't make that much difference to the 'toughness' though!

 

[jumps]

If you're looking to 'toughen up' the surface then you need something that's going to soak in a bit. Consider a spirit based varnish and thin down (15/20% ish). This helps the wood soak it up a bit more than normal.

Couple of thinned coats then a 'normal' one to finish off.

Won't make that much difference to the 'toughness' though!

Indeed - I briefly considered extensive use of sanding sealer for this reason.

Quick trials on some scrap have me favouring the ultra hard varnish option. The finish should be going on next week now

 

[condeesteso]

I'll look forward to seeing the pics Jumps! Over the years I've tried many different finishes on benchtops and I'm still undecided, but fast to apply and dry is high on my own list. I do rate Osmo very highly indeed - I just don't think there is a single best finish. One of many others I've used happily and it does the job very well is acrylic varnishes (satin or matt). Very fast drying so you can build a few layers really quickly. I don't have the patience for linseed, and it doesn't give me anything better in return.
Cosmetics/colour may matter - the oily ones darken and tone of course, I find Osmo does verly little darkening, and acrylic even less.
My own view these days is use whichever of these is close to hand, I'll be re-doing it anyway quite soon!!
btw, a big fan of the 52 1/2 (that is the 7" QR isn't it?) - have one on my second 'mucky' bench and it's a treat - very fast, ample capacity and grip (always assuming the QR is in good nick). I wouldn't bother with a 53 again, too clunky and heavy and slower to use I find - OK just seconds slower but it all counts :lol:
That vice btw, only onto v5 now and it's very like Andy's. I call it the d-vice now (double screw, that's what J Moxon called them, it was Chris Schwarz I believe who dubbed it the Moxon, and it seems to have stuck).
'bout time you popped round I think :?:

p.s. also think an mdf sacrificial top is a great option, depending on how you feel about look v practicality.

 

[jumps]

I'll look forward to seeing the pics Jumps! Over the years I've tried many different finishes on benchtops and I'm still undecided, but fast to apply and dry is high on my own list. I do rate Osmo very highly indeed - I just don't think there is a single best finish. One of many others I've used happily and it does the job very well is acrylic varnishes (satin or matt). Very fast drying so you can build a few layers really quickly. I don't have the patience for linseed, and it doesn't give me anything better in return.
Cosmetics/colour may matter - the oily ones darken and tone of course, I find Osmo does verly little darkening, and acrylic even less.
My own view these days is use whichever of these is close to hand, I'll be re-doing it anyway quite soon!!
btw, a big fan of the 52 1/2 (that is the 7" QR isn't it?) - have one on my second 'mucky' bench and it's a treat - very fast, ample capacity and grip (always assuming the QR is in good nick). I wouldn't bother with a 53 again, too clunky and heavy and slower to use I find - OK just seconds slower but it all counts :lol:
That vice btw, only onto v5 now and it's very like Andy's. I call it the d-vice now (double screw, that's what J Moxon called them, it was Chris Schwarz I believe who dubbed it the Moxon, and it seems to have stuck).
'bout time you popped round I think :?:

p.s. also think an mdf sacrificial top is a great option, depending on how you feel about look v practicality.

excellent summary Douglas - thanks.

I'm only building the bench so I can invite you round for tea - your benches, and you have probably built another by now, make everything else I see look second class; including the LN ones! (actually I'm building a new workshop for the tea but thought I would start with a bench for a bit of fun in this weather).

I've just got to the bottom drawer of your old green chest (as in opened it to put something in) and found an MT center in the back - 2 or 3MT? so I need to return it to you anyway - if you are in sometime next week I can pop it round and catch up?

 

[condeesteso]

indeed Jumps, will pm. Can't comment on benches, just know what ~I like! And have a new all-hornbeam bench ready to start v soon, should be a bit of a brick, that one.
The centre will be Myford I expect, drawers came with that.
Just a point on logic - mid winter so you decide to build the bench. Come Spring I expect you'll start building the workshop to go over it? Did you ever consider the other way round?

 

[jumps]

Just a point on logic - mid winter so you decide to build the bench. Come Spring I expect you'll start building the workshop to go over it? Did you ever consider the other way round?

bench build under lean too almost sheltered with a heater on the wall

v

workshop build outdoors

yep, considered it for all of 1min =D>