Best finish for a pine table

[GardenKit]

Thanks Wes. Its had 3 coats so far. If i carry on with oil would it be best to use natural oil now that I have achieved the colour I want?

Thinking it may seal in the stain which seems to keep coming off on the cloth.

[NFG]

Best finish for a table is a bottle of good claret ,,couple of t.bones a candle and a beautiful lady opposite.enjoy the moment.whether varnish oil or whatever won't really matter as you won't be looking at the table.happy christmas

 

Excellent choice.

 

I think with danish oil you need a few coats, polyurethane may end up too glossy. Think I'd be tempted to have a go with waxing it, may have to buff it a bit.

 

N

[WesD]

Thanks Wes. Its had 3 coats so far. If i carry on with oil would it be best to use natural oil now that I have achieved the colour I want?

Thinking it may seal in the stain which seems to keep coming off on the cloth.

 

 

Try buffing first with the cheap cloth I find after a few coats the colour stays the same. Just scrunch the cloth into a ball and rub in circular motion, make sure it is the blue and white one described as they do an amazing job! It may take a good bit of buffing though if it's already had 3 coats, you may get it to a finish your happy with if not when buffed to where it stops improving be brave add another coat of danish wait 24 then rebuff. I usually find 3 coats plenty on hardwood 3-5 on soft.

 

Sorry if it seems like I'm teaching how to suck eggs not intended.

 

 

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[WesD]

 

That is my window bottom in kitchen it's sycamore granted but that was 3 coats using my process described about 5 years ago.

 

 

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[Ian Leach]

Wax on wax off.

[GardenKit]

Elaborate please Ian

[Mike Dempsey]

Hi Barrie, For a table in a house with 4 kids you are going to need a bomb proof finish which can easily be sorted every couple of years if necessary. Kids will spill all sorts of things on it from fizzy drinks to tomato sauce etc and mum will use all sorts of chemical sprays etc to clean it up and doesn't have time in a busy household to read all the instructions on the side of the spray/bottle etc. For situations like that I would use a yacht varnish. First coat should be diluted with 10% white spirits and allowed to dry in a warm room. A light sanding with 320 grit sandpaper and the dust wiped off and removed. Second coat should be full strength and allowed to dry properly again with a light sanding with preferably a 600 or higher grit wet and dry paper (used dry) Again wiped down to remove the fine dust. Third and final coat should again be allowed to dry properly but should be sanded down. You don't need to give it a wax finish as it should be silky smooth.

Its all about giving the end user an easy time in looking after it. I was once asked to make a restaurant 60 tables and they insisted that they wanted an oil finish. I turned the job down as I insisted on a spray lacquer finish as they would be cleaned a dozen or more times a day and within a week they would have looked terrible. I didn't want any comeback and they wouldn't sign a disclaimer. I walked away as I'm not stupid!

[TIMON]

As others have said, wax isn't a practical finish for a dining table.

I would recommend a modern acrylic finish. There are acrylic finishes out there that can be applied with a brush.

 

Check out Mylands or Morrells or Bona.

[GardenKit]

Thanks Mike. I think that's what I will do. Can I apply it over the oil though.

[Woodworks]

You should be able to varnish over oil but make darn well sure it's dried fully first. I would give it a few days at least. Again I would not use acrylic varnish on a pine table unless you want a very pale table. Always thought a well done Poly on pine is hard to beat and I mean the sort you clean the brush with white spirits. Apparently there are now polyurethane varnishes that are water based but never tried them myself.