Finishing your unfinished Kukri handle

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SweetCosta is right...
Besides the grain filling part, which just about any oil has...what sets lemon oil apart is the "antiseptic" properties.
Lemon oil will kill mold, bacteria, and repel bug infestations. All killers of wood. This is why the old guitars are still around.
Best of all, Lemon oil is cheap and readily available at most stores. But as SweetC said... the organic, hippy grocery stores are the best place to look first. Their oils are usually a little better quality, and they only carry the real thing.

Wood's own natural oils are the best defence against these enemies.
One more! I just thought of another oil that has the *exact* same properties as lemon... Cedar oil. That one smells really nice! And the old-time mountain folk will always make their kitchen cutting board out of cedar wood as it kills bacteria naturally.

SweetC, I know your Granny has a well used cedar cutting board too.
 
Shinook said:
Lemon sounds cool, but I have more questions... ;)
Is lemon oil preferable to mineral oil? how does it react to metal?
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Well, less than the oxygen in the air for sure. *Any* high carbon steel blade needs regular care to prevent rust, no matter the oil used.
I wipe down the strings and rosewood fretboard all together with lemon oil, and the steel in the strings isn't affected by the oil that i can tell.
But the strings do rust where my salty fingers press on the strings though.

So *you* are a much worse danger to your knife than what oil you use. You and your greasy, dirty, salty, monkey hands.
 
I am the spam-a-saurus today sorry!

But has anyone ever tried a plain ole' rosin bag on the handle? Pine tar also has the antiseptic properties too, and provides a strong grip.
Not something that will soak up into dry wood and full out the grain "tubes", but it would be good to seal the wood up for your regular work use and maintenance after you get the wood "reinvigorated" (for lack of a better word) with oil.

I know it works great on baseball bats and axe handles at least.
 
The re-occurring theme here is know your ingredients. Many commercial oils are predominantly linseed oil with some of the other oils added. Pine tar was a traditional finish for Scandinavian knife handles or a long time.
 
I like to do coats of tung oil while I'm doing the fishing sanding ( from around 400 up) then I usually finish it off with a rub on polyurethane, seals it up very nicely and a basically maintenance free finish
 
Any particular reason why, if you were willing to deal with the consequences (seepage and long drying time), that you couldn't just dip the whole handle in a 50/50 oil / solvent mixture and then let the excess drain out / off for a few days in a paint roller pan?

I've got lot of kukris and this is the lazy way that I've been thinking about getting them all done quick, and at once.

Also, can you use the same finish on horn that you use on wood?
 
Hi Maniacal Pete. Hand rubbing Tung Oil helps the oil penetrate and warms it slightly so it can go through a change in consistency letting you know it's time to wipe the excess off.

On Horn maybe. "As the penetrating power of tung oil is excellent and it will adhere to porous minerals, it is often used by stonemasons on granite or marble installed in kitchens, bathrooms, and other staining fluid environments. Applied at a 1:5 ratio, it seals the surfaces permanently, while also giving a finish like that of wet stone to the product.
The non-yellowing nature of tung oil is vitally important for its satisfactory use in these applications."
 
I think I'm going to go with Danish Oil. It's easy, and I have it one hand. And it's easy...;)
I've been very happy with it on other projects(bench, walking staff, and so on). And while I think tung ok would be great, I just don't have the patience for it. Plus, the Danish Oil is already paid for...
Now I just have to decide if I want natural, golden, or cherry... :rolleyes:
I'm leaning towards natural for my neem handled Chitlangi.
 
Shinook said:
I think I'm going to go with Danish Oil. It's easy, and I have it one hand. And it's easy...;)
I've been very happy with it on other projects(bench, walking staff, and so on). And while I think tung ok would be great, I just don't have the patience for it. Plus, the Danish Oil is already paid for...
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All good reasons for using Danish Oil.

For me Tung Oil is great for people who what furniture, structures, valuable wooden items, etc. to be tough, resistant to weather, look good, and most importantly last for 100's of years. And that is what's so amazing about this natural oil called Tung.
Beijing bouddhist monk 09.JPG
 
So far the Natural colored Danish Oil is looking great on my Neem handled Chitlangi. When I'm done(when it won't take any more) I'll post pics.

I'd like to put it on my BAS and Ganga Ram, but I'm not sure how to go about it since I've been using mineral oil on both of them. Any suggestions? How does mineral oil effect Danish Oil or Tung oil?
 
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Pics!

Before- Neem wood without finish
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After- Neem wood with Watco Danish Oil, Natural
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It took longer than normal for the Danish Oil to dry, but I really like the results. I'll probably add a couple more coats of Danish Oil to it as I go, but it really has a nice feel now.
 
I really like Minwax Tung Oil Finish. Now let's be clear what that is...and it ain't Tung Oil. It is a product designed, I think carefully and in good faith by and large, to achieve some semblance of a Tung Oil result much quicker. It is some linseed oil (ironically), some varnish, and some mineral spirits. The oil slows down the drying of the varnish. You slather it on and let is sit about 10 minutes and then buff it off. They you let it dry for 24 hours and do it again as many times as you wish. You can do it 20 times if you want. I recently did a nice little piece of furniture and 2 coats did just fine.

I believe Formby's makes a similar product and I believe Danish Oil is a product of the same general sort.

I was at first a but put off by the use of the word "Tung" when that's not what it is but, again, it good faith (good faith for a Marketing Department anyway) I think they are giving folks a good product that really does imitate some of the qualities of real Tung oil.

The old adage about Tung oil is this: Apply once a day for a week, once a week for a month, once a month for a year, and once a year until doomsday.
 
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