Finishing/sealing wood handle

T

The_Dave

Joined
Dec 5, 2008
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181
Gentlemen,

I'm having trouble finding out exactly what's needed to finish/seal the handles I'm working on. The wood is Zebrawood, if that helps. Apparently Zebrawood has a fairly open grain and so it'll need to be sealed but I have no idea what to use.

I would prefer not to have to buy the sealant/finish online, so if you folks could recommend something that I could find at a retail store, that would be fantastic.

Thanks so much,
Dave
 
I just sprayed a couple wood handles with varathane spray, it's a durable poly-coat I got for maybe $6 from the hardware store. Spray-dry-sand, spray-dry-sand, spray-dry-good to go.

If you don't want a shiny finish you can go with tung oil (coat-dry-sand, etc). For fancy rifle stocks I believe they coat with a combination of tung oil, mineral spirits and beeswax. Tung oil you can get at a hardware store but the 3-way-combo may require a trip to a woodworking store.
 
I bought some Star Bond at a knife show. It is super glue on steroids. It penetrates deep, but my lignum vitae wood is so dense, it did not penetrate much, but looks good. It probably is an internet buy though, sorry.
 
I have used zebrawood for knife handles before. Here is the process I use to finish un-stabilized knife handles.

I first seal the wood using a thinned down unwaxwed shellac. I use Zinsser seal coat cut 1:1 with denatured alcohol. You can find this at Lowes where I live. This is a very thin mixture and soaks in well. I like to apply a heavy first coat and wrap it in plastic wrap to allow it to soak in as much as possible before drying, this stuff dries really fast. I apply this 4 or 5 times sanding between every few coats. Once this hardens overnight you can apply your favorite final finish. I use a rub on poly from General Finishes and finish with a few coats of wax buffing between coats.. This makes a durable finished which can be touched up by applying anothe coat of wax.

The best solution is to have the wood stabilized before you use it.

Greg
 
Dave,
I would guess you are a newbie... so keep it simple and inexpensive and your mistakes will be inexpensive! I recommend google 'zinsser', select the zinsser website and look through their products to find their Clear B-I-N Sealer, it is the un-waxed shellac formulation referred to above. This will help you identify the product on the shelf when you see it.

A clarification about my comment above about keeping it simple... I read an article last night on using tung oil to finish a gunstock.. multiple applications of tung oil with a 5 day drying period between applications! I just rehandled a bread knife this week and used a 50/50 mixture of polymerized tung oil and turpentine to finish the handle. Three days later and it still weeps a little oil... sigh!

I have used Birchwood-Casey Tru Oil before and like the results. It was a little thick and tended to build up on the wood quickly. Next time I may thin it with the recommended thinner. It can be found at Walmart and at Bass Pro Outdoor Shop.

Greg's comments look pretty good. I may try his technique. There is a local knifemaker that, I believe, dips his handles in one of the Minwax polyurethane products. I don't recall which one but I think the key is the process is fast, dries quickly, the handles are weather resistant, looks good and allows him to complete his knives and get them out to customers. Simple is good!

Good luck..
 
Thanks for the replies!

jorasco, I am indeed a newbie. I'm putting together three folders for the family, and my woodworking experience is limited to basic construction so this shaping/sealing/finishing stuff is new to me.

I'm going to visit the local hardware stores to see what I can find and had actually had my eye on a Minwax product that jorasco might have been talking about, I believe it's called Wipe-On Poly (water based). Might this be a good product to use?

Anyway, thanks all for taking the time to answer.
 
Dave,

I don't have any experience with the Wipe-On Poly, so I will let someone else address your question.

I realized I failed to mention a tip. I use Home Depot/Lowe's paint stirring paddles, both large and the small, to practice shaping handle material. Of course, the paint paddles are free.

Good luck...
 
The_Dave said:
Thanks for the replies!

jorasco, I am indeed a newbie. I'm putting together three folders for the family, and my woodworking experience is limited to basic construction so this shaping/sealing/finishing stuff is new to me.

I'm going to visit the local hardware stores to see what I can find and had actually had my eye on a Minwax product that jorasco might have been talking about, I believe it's called Wipe-On Poly (water based). Might this be a good product to use?

Anyway, thanks all for taking the time to answer.
Click to expand...

Wipe on poly.... it looks good and works well but I would not use it for a 'user' piece of wood , ala knife handles or gun stocks , etc... more for furniture IMO.



Phillip Dobson Quote:
Originally Posted by Tostig
Tung oil will work , I often use Birchwood-Casey Tru Oil gun stock finish.

I prefer the look of an oiled finish. For a little extra protection and shine, add a coat of wax when you're done.
Click to expand...

Hmm , never tried that before , I'll give it a go. Thanks for the reco :)


Tostig
 
Gentlemen, thank you for your help. Here's a picture of the finished products. I used boiled linseed oil to seal and a clear gloss poly to finish. These knives went to my mom, dad, and brother.

IMG_0183.jpg
 
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