Finish For Osage Orange ?

Re: Finish For Osage Orange ?

Guest

>Pretty much anything is fine. An oil will dull and darken it just slightly ... the same with about any wood. Depending on your sample, it can have a VERY bright color so you might want your finish to take a backseat to that and just use a basic clear finish of your choice. The wood will fade to a brown due to light exposure. A UV resistant finish like some poly's and lacquers will help slow that down. It won't stop it though.

I have (literally) tons of the stuff.

Heres what I've used

Dominic Greco in Richboro PA

>Roger,

Osage Orange is one of my best sellers. People seem to gravitate to the bright yellow color. (even thought I tell them up front it will mellow to golden brown is left in the sun!).

Here's what I use. I dry sand to 220 grit using a right angle sander and/or a Sorby passive sander. Then I make a solution of 50% mineral spirits and 50% varnish (with the alkyd resins) and wet sand from 180 all the way up to 2000 grit. Between grits, I wipe off the bowl with a rag soaked in mineral spirits to get rid of the swarth. After I'm done sanding, I wipe the bowl off with mineral spirits, and allow it to dry completely for several days.

What this accomplishes is this: The slurry from the wet sanding fills in the open pores of the wood giving you an extra smooth surface. Letting the bowl dry helps when it comes time to apply the finish.

For the finish: I recently started using Watco's Natural Danish Oil. On my last Osage Orange bowl, that is what I used. It "popped" the grain nicely, and didn't darken the wood appreciably.

I've attached a picture of a Osage Orange bowl i turned this past December. It was sold 10 minutes after I put it out for display.

I hope this helps you out.

See ya around,

Dominic

Re: Finish For Osage Orange ?

Bill Hale

>Hey Guest

Sign in and become a regular.

Your replies or questions will be appreciated.

Good turning and be safe

Bill