# Which Wax??



## Mike B (18 Jul 2005)

Hi

Does anyone have any experience of the difference (if any) between Chestnut Woodwax 22 and Liberon Black Bison Paste wax??

I am looking for an easy to apply, fairly wear resistant, satin finish clear wax to go over Liberon Finishing Oil, and looking at the descriptions in a couple of catalogues it would appear that the Liberon version is more wear resistant and slightly less shiny...is this the actual case or am I unlikely to be able to tell the difference??

Is this also the case with the Chestnut Finishing Oil vs the Liberon Finishing Oil??

thanks
Mike


----------



## Alf (18 Jul 2005)

Mike B":1boqkgs8 said:


> Does anyone have any experience of the difference (if any) between Chestnut Woodwax 22 and Liberon Black Bison Paste wax??


As it happens, yes.

Application; not much difference but the Liberon doesn't smell quite as chemically* as the Chestnut, IMO (*that's a technical term...). Buffing; the Liberon is much easier to buff out, while I've resorted to using a brush in a drill for the Chestnut. Finish; the Chestnut seems a little tougher and has slightly more shine. On the whole I find the Chestnut gives me more confidence as a finish, while the Liberon makes a great tool cleaner.

Cheers, Alf


----------



## Anonymous (18 Jul 2005)

Mike B":1g89s1us said:


> Hi
> 
> Does anyone have any experience of the difference (if any) between Chestnut Woodwax 22 and Liberon Black Bison Paste wax??
> 
> ...



Hi Mike

used both waxes for quite a while. Chestnut for 8 months and Bison for about 3 years.
In my opinion, the Chestnut wax gives a better 'sheen' and wears much better. To be honest, I don't use the Bison any more


----------



## Terry Smart (18 Jul 2005)

Hi All

Thanks for the comments above, I still get a kick out of it when people say they like our products!

Alf, how long do you leave our wax before buffing? WoodWax 22 is pretty quick drying and is easier to buff if you do so pretty much straight away. The Black Bison wax is slower drying and stays 'wet' longer and will still buff easily after quite some time.


----------



## Alf (18 Jul 2005)

Terry,

Well it depends on what you call straight away. I wait to put the lid back on the tin before I start, for instance...  More or less straight away, but even so I find it a lot harder work than the Black Bison, which I used for some time before. Of course I may just be a weak-armed whimp... But with the Albino Hedgehog it buffs up lovely, so no worries. It seems to be worth the extra effort, which is the important bit.

Cheers, Alf


----------



## Taffy Turner (18 Jul 2005)

FWIW,

I have a tin of both products, and I much prefer the Chestnut for use on the lathe simply because it dries quicker. I find the Bison takes about 15 minutes before it can be buffed, whereas the Chestnut is just about instant. It saves standing idly for quarter of an hour waiting to buff off.

Also, I can't stand the smell of the Bison stuff!!!  

Taffy


----------



## CHJ (18 Jul 2005)

Alf":2kj8a93t said:


> Terry,
> 
> Well it depends on what you call straight away. I wait to put the lid back on the tin before I start, for instance...  More or less straight away, but even so I find it a lot harder work than the Black Bison, which I used for some time before. Of course I may just be a weak-armed whimp... But with the Albino Hedgehog it buffs up lovely, so no worries. It seems to be worth the extra effort, which is the important bit.
> 
> Cheers, Alf



*Alf*, I know I am a novice at wood finishing but am surprised that you find the woodwax22 hard to buff, What do you seal the wood with prior to applying the wax?
As *Terry* says, on my turnings it buffs up instantly with a hand held soft cotton cloth, a matter of 10-20 seconds at most. On the odd occasion when I finish off an area by hand I have found it buffs up with a soft cloth quicker than the average furniture polish. But it is always used over the top of a burnished sanding sealer.


----------



## Alf (18 Jul 2005)

I don't use it on the lathe, just on unmoving stuff. The day I need to use a drill powered brush on lathe work is the day I ask who pulled the plug on the lathe... :wink: Maybe by the time I've gone all over object X applying the stuff it's already too dry by the time I get back to it for the buffing stage? Dunno, but _I'm_ not fussed so no-one else need be.  

Cheers, Alf


----------



## matthew (18 Jun 2006)

Sorry, I'm coming into this topic a bit late 

Just looking to buy some wax and was hunting around for some recommendations - this thread has been very informative...



Terry Smart":148gk6al said:


> WoodWax 22 is pretty quick drying and is easier to buff if you do so pretty much straight away. The Black Bison wax is slower drying and stays 'wet' longer and will still buff easily after quite some time.



This sounds like WoodWax 22 is a good choice for small objects and/or power buffing. How is it for larger surfaces, eg tabletops? Sounds like by the time you've applied it to a reasonable area, it might be too hard to buff? So would Black Bison be more suitable... but OTOH WW22 sounds more durable?

M


----------



## Scrit (18 Jun 2006)

matthew":acx2lmvd said:


> This sounds like WoodWax 22 is a good choice for small objects and/or power buffing. How is it for larger surfaces, eg tabletops? Sounds like by the time you've applied it to a reasonable area, it might be too hard to buff? So would Black Bison be more suitable... but OTOH WW22 sounds more durable?



I use Black Bison on solid surface kitchen worktops as that "drying window" allows me time to apply a fair amount (area) before I buff-out (with a machine polisher, so much less elbow grease). Certainly the smell isn't an issue with it in customer's houses whereas I've had a couple of complaints about the Chestnut "chemically" smell.

Scrit


----------



## matthew (18 Jun 2006)

Scrit, thanks for the reply, much appreciated. I have a Metabo SXE450 sander, sounds like a polishing bonnet for it might be next on the list...


----------



## wrightclan (21 Jun 2006)

I'm coming to this a bit late as well. I haven't used Chestnut. But I've used Liberon and Briwax. The Liberon is much easier to buff, and less patchy. Smells much better too. SWMBO and customers love the smell of Liberon, and complain at the smell of Briwax.

Brad


----------

