Reshaping my Opinel
- Thread starter Daniel
- Start date
Daniel said:
I use olive oil out of the kitchen, 'cos I'm a cheapskate
Linseed oil prolly favourite for wood.
You'll need to sand the varnish off the unmodified bits of handle, too.
Jim.
Yes you can use Tung oil, but whether you use tung or linseed oil you will probably have to thin it for the first coats using turps or white spirit so that they soak in better. Only the last coat goes on neat and remeber this is quite a long process, taking days in between coats and normally at least a couple of weeks before either will be ready for use.
Cheers! When making a spoon for example, before oiling you must run under water and re-sand a few times, so that the grain does not become rough when it gets wet after oiling... Do I need to do this with the opinel handle?
Also, would the handle expand and lock the blade in place when oiling?
Also, would the handle expand and lock the blade in place when oiling?
Always a good idea when sanding wood, gives a nice finish. When I'm soaking handles on knives, I use a large hotdog jar with a mix of 1 part white spirits to 2 parts linseed oil. Let it soak over night, take it out to drain the excess back into the jar until the wood looks dry, then re-soak over night. I repeat the process 4 or 5 times and then leave the handle to air dry for a week or so until it cures properly. Then,just to buff it up a bit, a quick coat and polish of finishing wax seems to do the trick. This would all work for an opinel as well. In fact, i have a No.9 floating around somewhere...............Daniel said:
The advice I was given way back by someone who seemed to know what they were doing, a lifetime of wood working behind them was oil coats should be applied once a day for the first week of an items life, then once a week for the first month, once a month for the first year then once a year for life.
May be belt and braces treatment but it does seem to give things a good lasting finish.
May be belt and braces treatment but it does seem to give things a good lasting finish.
JimH said:I use olive oil out of the kitchen, 'cos I'm a cheapskate
Does that actually work? I would think it wouldn't soak in properly?
Motorbike Man said:
Would this method work with Tung oil instead of linseed oil? (only I already have some of Tung oil and don't want to fork out for some linseed if I can help it)
Cheers,
Dan
