finish for shooting board

[thetyreman]

do you think it's worth finishing a shooting board?

I was just going to leave it as the raw wood, I have left it as hand planed then burnished the surface with shavings,

is it worth putting anything on it?

regards,

BT

 

[MikeG.]

I can't think of a single reason to even consider putting finish on a shooting board. Same with a bench hook.

 

[samhay]

I like to wax the lower section that the side of the plane rides on.
No need to finish the rest of it.

 

[That would work]

A finish might just make it annoying to use (slippy) IMHO.

 

[MikeG.]

I like to wax the lower section that the side of the plane rides on.
No need to finish the rest of it.

I wax the plane.

 

[ED65]

I finish everything in the workshop, down to every tool holder, appliance and jig unless it's just for a one-off use. This is partly OCD – I finish the underside of shelves :roll: – but apart from just liking the way it makes the wood look it makes anything you handle feel so much nicer.

I can think of one proper reason to do it though: it goes a long way towards keeping things from getting grubby in a smaller workshop where any metalwork is being done as well. Just a wipe with BLO is better than nothing, but I generally use a couple of thin coats of shellac and then a coat of a homemade oil/wax finish (only thing I use it for), well rubbed in.