Expert: Jamie Yocono - 12/18/2009

Question
Jaime,

I recently built a chess set for my brother as a gift.  Being a frequent visiter of this site, I had a quick question for you.  After reading several of your responses, I decided to use Watco Danish oil.  I have previously used waterlox on several of my little projects and had been thrilled with the look/protection that it has provided.  I had not previously used Watco danish oil, but decided to use it on this chess set/board.  It looks great; however, I used oak and cherry as the two woods as that was what I had readily available.  My concern is that oak is fairly porous and tends to splinter easily.  Watco doesnt seem to build any surface film at all, whereas my use of waterlox in the past has built a  very thin surface layer that seems as if it would prevent future splintering, etc.  Can I apply a coat or two of waterlox over the watco danish oil?  From what I understand, watco is linseed oil based and waterlox is tung oil based.  I wasnt sure if there would be any problems attempting this.  Please advise.  Best Regards, and Happy Holidays.  -Zach, in Virginia

P.s.  I have heard several people mention that they use wax over watco; however, I am not a big fan of wax and I am trying to avoid that route.

Answer
Zach,

I am pretty sure you can apply Waterlox over Watco, as long as the base coat of Watco has cured. How long does that take? Hard to say, but I would think at least a week of drying time would be reasonable.

In fact, many people apply Watco to wood, to bring out the color, and later apply polyurethane over it, for more protection. That's a fairly common application, and one that gives you the best of both worlds.

It's been a while since I used Waterlox, but when I did, my main complaint was that you needed a dust free environment to apply it. Which I never have! Also, at the end, after it's cured, there was always the chance that you could feel little pieces of dust or grit in the finish, which required either a steel wool rub-down, which I don't like to do, or a pumice and oil rub, which is laborious. I really like that sheen you get from Waterlox, but I feel like I get a similar sheen from Watco and wax.

The pieces that I build that require the most protection are tables, and for those table tops, I usually apply 3-4 coats of Watco to them. On the table bases which receive far less abuse, two coats are fine. After the tops have those 3-4 coats, I will wax them with a good paste wax, which you mentioned that you really don't like. But I'll tell you - the wax makes that wood feel amazing, and you can actually see water beading up on the wood. (I'm a big fan of coasters!) I'm not why you're not a big fan of wax, but I couldn't be without it in my arsenal of finishing supplies. Ever try Watco wax? It's a liquid one, and comes in two colors, for light or dark wood. It's amazing stuff, easy to use, and really adds a dimension to the wood.

OK, hope this helps. Good luck write back if you have more questions.

Jamie Yocono
Wood It Is! Custom Cabinetry
Las Vegas, NV
www.wooditis.com
My woodworking blog: www.wooditis.blogspot.com