First Coat of Finish

The first coat of finish went on last night! I still need to add the web frame to the inside of the base, but that will be hidden under the vault floor and doesn’t need finish.

I use the same finish for all of my furniture, which I learned in my first woodworking class, known as the Sam Maloof finish. Sam was a famous woodworker who’s chair design you may recognize:

The finish is three parts that mix before applying:

• 1 part boiled linseed oil

• 1 part tung oil

• 1 part spar varnish

You can get nearly the same formula in a can of Sam Maloof Poly/Oil blend finish. It’s a beautiful golden honey colored finish that makes woods like sapele really pop. Another benefit is the ease of application: wipe it on, wait an hour, then wipe it off. Many other wood finishes are famously finicky: either you brush it on, trying to avoid brush lines, or spray it on, which needs a particular technique and a certain amount of overlap, and usually just sits on top of the wood and can easily scratch off. This oil finish sinks into the wood and even a scratch or a dent in the surface doesn’t penetrate the finish.

I could finish the whole inside of the frame but again, it will never been seen, and isn’t needed to protect from fingers, glasses of water, etc. I will finish the entire bottom, but I’ll wait until the legs are in place—the support frame that’s under there now gets in the way!

The more coats of this finish you apply the more protective it is. Sam would apply 5 or more, but I haven’t noticed any visual difference after about 3 coats, so that’s probably the max I’ll do. You wait about 24 hours between coats to give the previous one a chance to fully dry. After the final coat, wait another 24 hours, then rub everything down with #0000 steel wool. Finally, apply a coat of Howard’s Feed ‘n’ Wax which gives everything really deep luster and smells amazing.

You can refresh the finish every year or so if it starts looking dull by doing another coat of Howard’s. The wood itself will darken over time, but still retain the amazing chatoyance in the ribbon grain.

#wood #woodworking #gaming #boardgames #finish #oil