Abrasive paste

[Lonsdale73]

Are Chestnut's Microcrystalline Wax, Hampshire Sheen and Yorkshire Grit essentially the same thing?

Also, has anyone ever used boot polish as a finish / colouring?

 

[Phil Pascoe]

There's no abrasive in m/c wax.

 

[Democritus]

Hi Lonsdale
Yorkshire grit is abrasive and should be used after sanding sealer and normal sanding. It is essentially a fine
, waxy, sanding substance. You put it on with a paper towel with the lathe off, and then run the lathe with a clean piece of paper towel until no more grit appears on the paper. Once the wood has been finished in this way, the final finish can be applied, eg wax.
Chestnut microcrystalline wax is a finishing wax, it contains microcrystals which, it is claimed, improve the finish by raising its melting point. Hampshire sheen is another finishing wax. I use it most of the time and find it produces a good gloss.
The only people I have known to use boot polish are the native carvers in African nations. They use it to simulate ebony wood. It wears off!
Hope this helps
D

 

[marcros]

there are some interesting YouTube videos about making some abrasive turning waxes.

for example- wax, oil and abrasive.

 

[Cabinetman]

I once was having great difficulty matching up to some old stained and varnished oak panelled cupboard doors, I’d got the colour right apart from a black speckle, a quick rub with black boot polish and they became identical to the original.
I am working on a console table for myself and I wanted to ebonise the oak, did loads of research and lots of experiments but the best that I could get was dark navy blue, not black. The thought occurred to me to rub it with good old black boot polish again and it did work on the sample very well indeed, it was also a nice finish. But I shall probably not do that, I shall probably put a few drops of dye into the polyurethane varnish I shall use. I did it with turquoise dye once and the effect was quite stunning. Ian

 

[Terry Smart]

So, as Phil says, Microcrystalline Wax does not have an abrasive in it.
In fact, the only thing the three products mentioned have in common is that they have wax in them.

Lonsdale probably meant to ask about our Cut'n'Polish, which is a wax with an abrasive held in suspension within. It will smooth back the timber or a sealer, giving an ultra smooth, waxy finish. As with any wax product, only another wax or Friction Polish can be used on top of it - no lacquers or varnishes.

Microcrystalline Wax, made from pellets of microcrystalline wax, is proven to be more water resistant than other waxes (including our own WoodWax 22); this wax also has a higher melting point than most other waxes (scientific fact) so it's less likely to show fingermarks and the like when handled.

Hope that helps.

 

[Lonsdale73]

No, I thought I was putting two and two together, interpreting the micro crystals to be of something gritty. That will teach me to try and be clever but in the process I have learnt the Chestnut equivalent which was, in a round about way, what I was after. You gave me some advice on some Chestnut products so I wanted to stick with Chestnut products.