Getting a shiny finish on my hunter/skinner

[chr18426]

Howdy, fellas.
This is my first thread and I am glad to join this community. I am "building" my own hunter/skinner using a Damascus blade, bird's eye Cherry wood, and mosaic pins. I have practiced by building several cheapos and kitchen knives. My question is, How do I get a good polish/shiny finish on the wood?

I am using 400, 600, 1000, and 1500 grit sandpaper but cannot get a consistent shiny finish. Is there a wax or sealer out there that I am not aware of?

 

[mog555]

I use boiled linseed oil, it takes time but you end up with a nice finish that is easy to touch up.

 

[Amos Iron Wolf]

If you want shiney, go with Birchwood Casey's stock finish. It's boiled linseed oil based, but is pretty shiny when it dries. You can use certain tricks to knock off some of the shiny if you want.

For a somewhat faster drying BLO (boiled linseed oil) finish that has a nice luster to it, I mix up one part BLO and one part, either oderless mineral spirits, or oderless turpentine. To this, I add a wee bit of Japan hardner, found at art supply stores and used to speed drying when oil painting.

I've hand rubbed the above on several walking sticks and stock or two. I get a lot of pleasure out of the rubbing process. It is a process of rub in, rub off the excess, let dry, and repeat several times. BLO gets into the wood, hardening it and helping make it water resisitant. Several cycles of this will provide you with a deep, lusterous finish that seems to glow. To touch up over time, just rub some in now and then.

The old saying on oil gunstock finishes went, once a day for a week, then once a week for a year, then once a year for a lifetime.