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How Do You Feel About Tung Oil?

#2
There is a great deal of information and opinions on this subject in the archives. General consenus is that it seeps in high humdity situations. There are better alternatives such as Birch & Casey Tru-Oil; particularly in neck applications.

edit: Also, make sure what you calling tung oil is just exactly that. Most are actually compounds and not pure tung oil.
 
#3
I used it to refinish a Peavey T-40 body and love it!!! It's really easy to work with, but you have to be patient and let each coat dry completely between coats. I put five coats on the body, lightly rubbing 0000 steel wool between coats and it came out fantastic....low sheen finish, nice to the touch and feel. I highly recommend it.

Scott
 
#4
I worked in a cabinet shop that did a lot of tung-oil finishes; I love the stuff. What Scottpro said- be patient, in particular. I did an alder P-Bass body when I worked at a different shop, adding coats of oil & letting it soak in over a period of weeks(!) It came out BEAUTIFUL- very rich amber colored, w/a ton of depth.
 
#8
I don't like tung oil at all, takes way too long between coats, I prefer real Danish Oil. It just feels more natural to me, the tung I could always feel it was on there even after drying.
Maybe it's just me or the tung I used.
Dirk
 
#9
XylemBassGuitar said:
From a player's standpoint and/or a builder's standpoint?

I've never used the stuff and I'm interested in trying it out as a finish for an entire bass...just wanted to get some of your impressions.
Click to expand...

From a player's standpoint, there's absolutely nothing wrong with it.

For a builder, it's one of many options available. It looks good on some woods and offers fair protection. It's one of the easiest to apply.

There are many brands of tung oil on the market. Some have long drying times, some you can apply 2 coats per day. Many of them have no tung oil in them at all. Most are a combination of oils (tung or otherwise) an alkyd resin and solvent. Real 100% tung oil is also available. It usually has a longer drying time. The best of these I've used is Waterlox Original Sealer Finish. It's a favourite with hardwood floor installers. Wonderful stuff, but more expensive and harder to find. You can build this up to a thicker coat than you can with many of the other oil finishes. It's not at all hard to apply.

Rather than using a stain under tung oil, consider using a dye. A water based dye would be best and wouldn't "bleed" through the top coats of oil the way oil based stains and dyes can.

Practice on scrap wood before you start putting it on your bass. It'll save you a lot of grief later.

Go over your bass body carefully and check that your sanding is perfect. Any small blemishes now will magnify as you apply a finish.

Wipe it down with paint thinner and look it over while the thinner is still wet. That'll show up bad sanding and places where you need to sand out dings you might have missed.

True Oil is nice looking too. You'll need many coats of it for a nice finish. It protects reasonably well. It's basically a very thin oil/varnish mixture.
 
#12
I was just looking at a maple tabletop I did about a year ago for my wife's computer desk. I finished it with about 6 coats of Minwax Antique Finish. It looks very gorgeous. Not glossy. It's very much an "in the wood" finish. It feels great to touch. It darkened beautifully over time and brought out the grain in the maple better than just about any other oil finish I've used. It's another option worth considering. It looks great on darker woods too. I did a small red cedar cigar box with it too about the same time. Beautiful rich colour now.

You could use it over a water based dye and get great results.

But it does not build up to a thick, on the surface film and won't polish to a high gloss the way some of the tung oils and oil/varnish blends will. It sure looks good on some woods though.
 
#13
etonCrow, you mentioned Birchwood-Casey Tru-Oil. It seems like that finish penetrates the wood and hardens within it, similar to Danish Oil. In your experience, is this how it actually works?

Does the finish build up after a few coats, or does it just penetrate and seal?

Once it has cured on an instrument (or whatever it goes on) does it get sticky when it gets hot (or humid), or does it maintain its satin-y feel?
 
#14
I've used Tru-Oil on several instruments I've built, basses and Ukes. It can build up a nice finish if you are patient and put on 6 or 7 coats. I've never had any issues with it being sticky even after a couple of years of regular use here at home in the cold and wet, or in Hawaii in the hot and wet. The only place I've had any issues is wearing on the top of a Lacewood Uke and that has more to do with the softness of the wood between the rays than the finish itself. A harder finish may have been a better choice in that instance.
 
#15
Thanks Bofee,

I'm actually looking for something that doesn't build up (like a nitro-cellulose or french polish builds up) and doesn't get sticky when it gets hot/humid. I've noticed that the Danish oil I've used gets a little sticky in the heat and humidity.

Again, thanks for the info, I'll probably give the Tru-Oil a shot on a bass or two.
 
#16
Sutherland Wells (http://www.sutherlandwelles.com/) makes excellent Tung Oil most of which is Polmerized which means it is modified and has driers. This is a wipe on wipe off finish - you apply it, let it soak in then wipe off the excess. The humidity and temperature of your shop effects the drying process (dry & warm is better). I like tung oil because it is relatively clear/non yellowing and dries to a nice sheen. It allows a more tactile feel of the wood as opposed to the dipped in plastic look.
 
#18
I have 5 tung oil basses ... I love the look the feel and the tone from these basses give me.

I like to take tung oil and mix in a little mineral spirits. The mineral spirits makes the tung oil dry faster and makes it protect the wood better as well.

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