# finishing beech



## kityuser (10 Jun 2004)

I`m making a prototype door for a kitchen out of beech and am feeling VERY chuffed with myself, after days of frustration I now remember why I like woodworking SO much....

anyhow what do people suggest for finishing beech, I tried linseed oil (on a tester) but am very disappointed with the results.

as a newbee to non-pine (oooowwwww , some hardwood :shock: ) I have NO idea

cheers

steve


----------



## Gary H (10 Jun 2004)

Come on, K/U. Lets have some pics! 8)  

Can't help with finish, though. Fellow NOOB to hardwoods myself, see  Everything I make usually gets lashings of stain and wax (*PINE*  ) but I don't know how this translates to hardwood.

Ta muchly

Gary


----------



## Chris Knight (10 Jun 2004)

Steve,

For a kitchen there truly isn't a sensible choice other than the lowest maintenance, most robust finish you can find. These days waterborne acrylics fit that bill very well for kitchens. They have the least yellowing tendency - which makes them suitable for beech that doesn't look good in yellow. They can be wiped clean with any manner of normal kitchen solvents and they are nowadays easily applied in any number of ways.


----------



## Aragorn (10 Jun 2004)

I echo that Chris... Seems these water varnishes are the easiest and best way to go.
John Elliot makes kitchens, so presumably he will have the "right" answer for us when he comes along!


----------



## kityuser (11 Jun 2004)

a picture will be posted shortly, I`m SO chuffed.

I went to morgans in rochester and bourght some 50x150 ash and beech, so the ash door is next.

I was under the impression that a gorgeous hardwood would require oiling, but i had an idea that I`d require some water based poly of some type.

john elliot > whats the best finish to use?


----------



## Alf (11 Jun 2004)

kityuser":31na3js3 said:


> I now remember why I like woodworking SO much....


Ahh, don't you just love it when you get that feeling?  

Anyway, acrylic thirded unless John says different.

Cheers, Alf


----------



## Terry Smart (11 Jun 2004)

Acrylic Lacquers would certainly provide a tough, hardwearing finish on the doors; it might even be practical to use an aerosol lacquer which will give a great finish very quickly. (Whilst it might seem that this could be an expensive way of doing the job when you consider the cost of the lacquer used against the cost of the timber and machinery and time etc it should only be a very small portion of the overall cost but can add so much!).

I wouldn't exclude a Finishing Oil immediately though, a couple of coats will give a good finish with relatively low maintenance. The main disadvantage here is that oils tend to have an amber colour, which can vary depending on the brand. Perhaps a further experiment with a tung-based oil (umm... such as ours) might be worth trying.

As has been mentioned already, maintenance of a finish is an important consideration when making a choice; sometimes it is not an issue (ie decorative items) but in a kitchen it is important. Whilst not disagreeing with what has been said I'd like to offer some alternative thinking on this...
Of course, the doors here will be vertical (unless it's a really radical new design!) so damage should be limited to splashes, spills and knocks. Whilst the lacquers will withstand the splashes and spills and should be tough enough to resist most knocks, it is still possible to chip it if someone tries hard enough, the repair of which will mean that the door will probably have to be stripped and completely refinished which can be quite time consuming.
An oil finish should withstand almost everything you can throw at it but after time and much wiping down/cleaning it might benefit from another coat of oil which can be easily applied on top of the existing coats without the need to strip it off.
Sometimes a Sanding Sealer and Wax is used; this probably won't stand up to repeated spills and splashes but knocks shouldn't have too much effect as the wax will be flexible enough to move with the wood. Maintenance would be very easy though, just applying more wax over the top of existing coats using Steel Wool or NyWeb.


----------



## SMD (11 Jun 2004)

Hi,

I recently made a raised panel bath side out of solid beech and was faced with a similar problem regarding the finish.

Eventually, I went for 3 coats of danish oil followed by 2 coats of a clear wax. Looks great! The colour was exactly what I wanted but it may not be your choice. Some experimentation may be required.

I avoided polyurethanes etc because I didn't want to prevent the raised panels from moving in the rails and stiles since, in a bathroom, the humidity and temperature ranges obviously vary considerably.

It has been in place now for about 3 months (not long I know) but even with water splashes from the power shower over the bath which always leaks through the folding shower screen, there are no signs of any marks on the panels at all.


----------

