is it possible waterproof yew?

[Lone Bonobo]

Hi all! been a while since i've been on here, I'm building a canoe, it's a kevlar hull but i want to use wooden thwarts and i have some nice pieces of yew hanging up in my workshop, the wood is not suitable to make a bows so i was wondering if it's possible to use it to make the thwarts and waterproof it?

 

[Dougster]

Yew is a bit heavy isn't it? I use it on knife handles and finish it in linseed. High oil content makes it nice but maybe not ideal for that.

 

[jojo]

If the Yew has reasonably straight grain, there is no reason why you couldn't use it. It's a strong springy wood, good for bows , no reason why it would not make a good thwart.

 

[Sean Hellman]

Yew is an extremely durable wood, the heartwood is anyway, the sap wood rots quickly. Any oil, linseed, tung, teak, danish etc will be fine, at least 3 coats, but remember that it will need re oiling every now and again.