# Stains, Sealers, Finishes, etc.



## CAS14

For sticks, so far I have used just natural (no-stain) sealers. I've been using three or four applications of WATCO Danish Oil and after days of drying, waxing with high-quality wax. As with all wood finishing projects there are numerous options. I'd like to consider new options.

For me, important issues include resistance to moisture and scratching, and the ability to touch it up when scratched without a complete sand and refinish job.

So, how about a discussion about:


Stains
Sealers
Finishes: oils, lacquers, varnishes, shellacs, blends
Waxes
Compatibilities

???

I just read some interesting articles about tung oils, apparently there is linseed oil sold as tung oil, and all sorts of mixtures that include tung oil. Then I read some articles (some conflicting) regarding WATCO Danish Oil.


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## Markus

CAS, I usualy usually use a spar varnish, but have recently been using just oil. I like the old and worn look that tung or boiled linseed oil can give. I have used Danish oil for furniture before , but I don't think it would offer any more protection than tung or BLO. Shellac won't offer any protection, I do use it as a sanding sealer though. Lacquer probably won't stand up to moisture. If a stick is going out in the wilderness my vote is spar varnish. If it's a fancier stick, some sort of poly or varnish based finish would probably fit the bill.


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## CAS14

I don't have enough experience to agree or disagree with most of what I read, but links to some articles that were interesting to this novice will begin appearing here.

▪http://www.woodcentral.com/bparticles/oil_finishes.pdf


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## Markus

CAS, a really good book that I have is , Understanding Wood Finishing, by Bob Flexner. I highly recomend it. It has information on just about every coloring and finishing option.


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## CAS14

Markus said:


> CAS, a really good book that I have is , Understanding Wood Finishing, by Bob Flexner. I highly recomend it. It has information on just about every coloring and finishing option.


Many thanks Markus. I will watch for that, it sounds like a "must have."

Today, I received in the mail my copy of "Make Your Own Walking Sticks" by Charles Self. It looks like another great resource for beginners like me.


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## Sean

That's a good article you pulled up there CAS. I'll bookmark it for future use. I've been using Watco Danish Oil for awhile on some of my wood

projects and each tin is a stain of some sort. As long as you don't seal it with a varnish etc a reapplication of oil is all you need to touch it up.


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## CAS14

Sean said:


> That's a good article you pulled up there CAS. I'll bookmark it for future use. I've been using Watco Danish Oil for awhile on some of my wood
> projects and each tin is a stain of some sort. As long as you don't seal it with a varnish etc a reapplication of oil is all you need to touch it up.


Thanks Sean. I've used the clear WATCO Danish Oil (3-4 applications) on a couple of slingshots. Consistent with what I read, it penetrates well. I suspect that it seals very well and provides some moisture protection but not scuff protection. My slingshots were finished with lots of coats of high quality wax, that's all.

Based on the book that I just received, I think that Tung oil is compatible. About 40 years ago, I finished some gifts for my wife with Tung oil, and they still look good. I am tempted to apply Tung oil over Danish oil.

Back to Danish oil, Woodcraft has some tints that they say will dissolve in Danish oil. I bought a couple and will try that approach one day. I plan to mix in a clear Mason jar, so I can see what's happening. The way that oil penetrates, it should carry the stain well into the wood.


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## Sean

I'll have to buy some Tung oil and see how I like it in comparison. Thanks for the heads up on it.


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## CAS14

Sean, apparently from what I read, there are different products marketed as Tung oil so I'm going to read more and read labels more carefully.


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## CAS14

Rus-Oleum makes WATCO products. Their support staff responded to my question regarding the use of Tung oil over Danish oil:

My inquiry:

" I like your WATCO Danish Oil sealer.
I like Tung Oil, for wood that will be scuffed up and may require touching up.

Can Tung Oil be applied over thoroughly dried Danish Oil? "

Rust-Oleum's response:

" Thank you for contacting Rust-Oleum Product Support.

Hi Vance, No Danish oil sealer will not allow it to soak in as needed.

Sincerely,

Luis "

In other words, the manufacturer of a Tung oil and a Danish oil product advises that we should not apply Tung oil after Danish oil.

Vance


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## Paul2281

I`ve used a burning technique on a lot of mine in conjunction with a stain...Sometime I burn the whole stick and use sand paper to high light certain area`s to have some area`s show up better...


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## Paul2281

Thought about oils too on some sticks that will be WORKED/USED....No sence in making one shiny if it`s gonna be scuffed and bumped...Any pic.`s????


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## gdenby

Paul2281 said:


> Thought about oils too on some sticks that will be WORKED/USED....No sence in making one shiny if it`s gonna be scuffed and bumped...Any pic.`s????


Most of my work is aimed at hiking sticks.The first year, I finished w. a couple coats of spar varnish to reduce the effects of moisture. I assume anyone out for a hike will be tromping thru dew, rain, and across muck. One of the sticks I personally use most is a very simple oak staff, smooth, no embellishment. I noticed that after a year or so of use, the spar varnish had become hazy and sort of tacky where I held it. Also, a couple of sticks that I thought I had prepared correctly showed some small bubbles under the varnish after a year of sitting in storage. Probably they were not quite dry enough. So I have switched to several coats of tung oil for moisture proofing. If the wood is smooth, the sheen is pretty attractive. I hope the oil penetrates far enough to keep the surface hard and water resistant.

I also don't sand the lower part of most of my hiking sticks as finely as possible. I assume that area will get more abuse. Also put on more coats of stain lower down to lessen the visibility of scuffs.


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## Paul2281

gdenby said:


> Paul2281 said:
> 
> 
> 
> Thought about oils too on some sticks that will be WORKED/USED....No sence in making one shiny if it`s gonna be scuffed and bumped...Any pic.`s????
> 
> 
> 
> Most of my work is aimed at hiking sticks.The first year, I finished w. a couple coats of spar varnish to reduce the effects of moisture. I assume anyone out for a hike will be tromping thru dew, rain, and across muck. One of the sticks I personally use most is a very simple oak staff, smooth, no embellishment. I noticed that after a year or so of use, the spar varnish had become hazy and sort of tacky where I held it. Also, a couple of sticks that I thought I had prepared correctly showed some small bubbles under the varnish after a year of sitting in storage. Probably they were not quite dry enough. So I have switched to several coats of tung oil for moisture proofing. If the wood is smooth, the sheen is pretty attractive. I hope the oil penetrates far enough to keep the surface hard and water resistant.
> 
> I also don't sand the lower part of most of my hiking sticks as finely as possible. I assume that area will get more abuse. Also put on more coats of stain lower down to lessen the visibility of scuffs.
Click to expand...

I`m using Poly Urethane exclisivly without any hazing...I don`t know what the difference is to Spar,I`ve never used it...But a lot of my sticks are of a hiking type too...


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## CAS14

Tung oil - still very confusing to me, as so many products are advertised as Tung oil but many articles say most such products really aren't Tung oil or are cut.

Has anyone used this product, or know anything about it?

http://www.realmilkpaint.com/oil.html

What do you think about this article? It lists everything that isn't really Tung oil but doesn't say what is.

http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/finishing/oil-finishes-their-history-and-use


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## gdenby

Paul2281 said:


> gdenby said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Paul2281 said:
> 
> 
> 
> Thought about oils too on some sticks that will be WORKED/USED....No sence in making one shiny if it`s gonna be scuffed and bumped...Any pic.`s????
> 
> 
> 
> Most of my work is aimed at hiking sticks.The first year, I finished w. a couple coats of spar varnish to reduce the effects of moisture. I assume anyone out for a hike will be tromping thru dew, rain, and across muck. One of the sticks I personally use most is a very simple oak staff, smooth, no embellishment. I noticed that after a year or so of use, the spar varnish had become hazy and sort of tacky where I held it. Also, a couple of sticks that I thought I had prepared correctly showed some small bubbles under the varnish after a year of sitting in storage. Probably they were not quite dry enough. So I have switched to several coats of tung oil for moisture proofing. If the wood is smooth, the sheen is pretty attractive. I hope the oil penetrates far enough to keep the surface hard and water resistant.
> 
> I also don't sand the lower part of most of my hiking sticks as finely as possible. I assume that area will get more abuse. Also put on more coats of stain lower down to lessen the visibility of scuffs.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> I`m using Poly Urethane exclisivly without any hazing...I don`t know what the difference is to Spar,I`ve never used it...But a lot of my sticks are of a hiking type too...
Click to expand...

The spar varnish I used was urethane based. I chose to use it initially because of the weather resistance spar varnish has over ordinary varnish. I like how I can get a good finish w. just a couple of coats, and each coat is dry (at least to the touch) within 24 hours. But I'm concerned that it may be too soft, thus wearing away from palm pressure after a few years of use. So I'm trying tung, which, if what I've read is correct, blends w. the wood, and creates a polymer. I'm also starting some experiments w. a top coat of shellac over the tung for a bit more gloss.


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## gdenby

CAS said:


> Tung oil - still very confusing to me, as so many products are advertised as Tung oil but many articles say most such products really aren't Tung oil or are cut.
> 
> Has anyone used this product, or know anything about it?
> 
> http://www.realmilkpaint.com/oil.html
> 
> What do you think about this article? It lists everything that isn't really Tung oil but doesn't say what is.
> 
> http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/finishing/oil-finishes-their-history-and-use


Good article. I suspect that pure tung oil will say so on the label, as is evident w. the milkpaint brand. I'm using tung from Rockler, which also places "100% pure" prominently on the front.

Some background notes on oil finishes. I had once read that one of the advantages of a fine English hunting rifle was that they might have as many as 30 coats of linseed oil applied, with a drying time of months. The advantage was that if the gun was lost, and recovered after 6 months in the open, there would be no discernable damage to the finish. The noted American artist, Maxfield Parrish, painted in a fashion that required exquisite patience. His panels would spend 6 months curing after the ground coats were applied. He used many many layers of glaze, each requiring 2 weeks of careful drying between coats. A "fast" painting from him was 2 years.

It looks to me that if I want to pursue oil finished sticks, I'll need to add maybe another half year to the finishing period.


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## CAS14

I think Dallas is the nearest Rockler store. However we have a Woodcraft in Tulsa, and they sell an oil by WoodRiver that is advertised as pure Tung oil:

http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2084252/36932/woodriver-pure-tung-oil-gallon.aspx

If nobody has negative things to say about this, I'll pick up some this afternoon.


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## gdenby

Shows the same "100% pure" the Rockler brand has on it. My experience, each coat takes longer to dry/bond. My current rule of thumb is "Don't work till 
"x" days have gone by for each "x" coats.


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## Fordj

Thanks for all the info on finishing sticks! I've read every one linked here, and bookmarked them. Who knew paint can be made from Milk? Blows my mind.

I mostly work with metal, so I just paint it, or send it through the powdercoat line at work. Brass or Stainless, I just clean and let be.

From the Olde Shillelagh website that got me interested in making my own sticks, only their "fighting sticks" have an oil coating, rather than a varnish, because fighting sticks get so beat up that an oil finish can be repaired so easily. Hiking here in North Dakota, especially through CRP (Conservation Reserve Program) land, will wear the finish off anything. I wear leg gaitors while pheasant hunting, Levi's just get shredded. Don't try to walk through a sunflower field after a wounded bird, all of you will be totally scratched beyond belief. Been there, Never Again!

The point is that I am attracted to the oil finishes for their low shine, easy repair, water repellent characteristics. Only thing is the temperature restrictions of applying them. Currently, my unheated garage won't do, so I'll have to do it in the house. It warmed up to -3 tonight, 43 degrees colder that the minimum application temperature of Tung oil. I'll deal with it when I have sticks to finish!


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## CAS14

Back when I was just 61 & 62, I spent the better part of two winters supervising drilling operations east of Bismarck. That was COLD.

I didn't want to use the porta potty for fear that I'd freeze to it and suffer the humiliation of screaming for the crew to pry me out.

Pheasants - they were abundant.

Farmers - they were as nice as those in Oklahoma.

You have my respect Fordj.

BTW, our drilling crew was from Havre. I didn't know that Montanans and NorDakers didn't get along until our driller was bragging about how many bouncers it took to throw them out of a Bismarck bar. Apparently a local told them to pipe down. They responded "we are from Montana, and this is what we do." And then it started.


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## Fordj

There does seem to be a local rivalry here among the native born. I'm an import to the state (23 years, so far), so don't really take part in it. Now with all the Bakken activity, there are people from everywhere here, now. I think that has diminished the rivalry a little. I work in Dickinson, only about 60 miles from the Montana border, so there a lot of former Montanans there.

Lots of pheasant, both whitetail and mule deer, wild turkey, ducks and geese, fox, coyote, all kinds of wildlife here. I watched a red fox successfully cross I 94 on the west side of the Missouri river yesterday. I was cheering it on!

North Dakotans are very freindly, and will talk your ears off, if you let them!


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## Ole Man Dan

I've made Hikeing Staffs for many years.

I was advised yrs. ago to dry my material about a year.

Shape it and put it in a PVC tube of Transmission Fluid for several months,

then I put em between 2 long pieces of Aluminum 'L', and let em dry another 6 mos.

A couple of radiator clamps hold the angles to the staff for good straight staffs.

The staffs are stained, and strong. I finished mine off with a matt finish of Polyurethane spray.

I've used some of mine on the A.T., and hiking in Yellowstone, beats the metal staffs hands down

for looks, and probably for strength. My staffs are heavier than the store bought kind, but I'm a big guy,

and never seemed to mind.

Anybody tried anything like this?


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## Paul2281

Ole Man Dan said:


> I've made Hikeing Staffs for many years.
> 
> I was advised yrs. ago to dry my material about a year.
> 
> Shape it and put it in a PVC tube of Transmission Fluid for several months,
> 
> then I put em between 2 long pieces of Aluminum 'L', and let em dry another 6 mos.
> 
> A couple of radiator clamps hold the angles to the staff for good straight staffs.
> 
> The staffs are stained, and strong. I finished mine off with a matt finish of Polyurethane spray.
> 
> I've used some of mine on the A.T., and hiking in Yellowstone, beats the metal staffs hands down
> 
> for looks, and probably for strength. My staffs are heavier than the store bought kind, but I'm a big guy,
> 
> and never seemed to mind.
> 
> Anybody tried anything like this?


Never tried using trans. fluid...I bet it puts a nice color in the wood after it soaks in....I`ll have to try that out....

Thanks for the info...


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## CAS14

> Shape it and put it in a PVC tube of Transmission Fluid for several months,


A lot cheaper than Pentacryl, if it works as well.


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## gdenby

Ole Man Dan said:


> I've made Hikeing Staffs for many years.
> 
> I was advised yrs. ago to dry my material about a year.
> 
> Shape it and put it in a PVC tube of Transmission Fluid for several months,
> 
> then I put em between 2 long pieces of Aluminum 'L', and let em dry another 6 mos.
> 
> A couple of radiator clamps hold the angles to the staff for good straight staffs.
> 
> The staffs are stained, and strong. I finished mine off with a matt finish of Polyurethane spray.
> 
> I've used some of mine on the A.T., and hiking in Yellowstone, beats the metal staffs hands down
> 
> for looks, and probably for strength. My staffs are heavier than the store bought kind, but I'm a big guy,
> 
> and never seemed to mind.
> 
> Anybody tried anything like this?


No, but I am very interested in the method. I have been considering how to straighten some of the sticks I have by using some sort of heat source, and then clamps of vices to unbend the wood. Seems like the method you use does not require much in the way of equipment, and only some time.

In my opinion, real wood always looks better than metal. One of the things I have noticed is that certain hard woods such as hickory, oak and hornbeam are strong enough that they are very sturdy even when thin enough that their weight/volume ratio is comparable to mass produced metal sticks.


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## cobalt

Steaming the sticks is the quickest way to straighten a stick just steam them for about 20mins place them in a workmate tighten it up leave till cool they will be straight. for a small kink use a hot air gun be careful not to scorch the shank.

Has any tried those steam cleaners you get for cleaning things with, supposed to be the bees knees? havnt tried it myself but it would heat up the stick without scoching it i think? After all a ship builder steams his planks when making a wooden boat. Going to try it when the wifes not around so i can pinch it and see what happens, I think i will place them in a bit of plastic tube shove the steam nozel in and give it a good steam? hopefully it will work

Have to agree with you regarding woooden pole much better looking even if theres no carving on it ,bit i dont think i would be able to stop myself from putting something on it

.


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## cobalt

Looking into the possibility of useing drawing ink on some sticks to keep the grain showing , suppose i will have to seal it 1st but should give me colour without the ink bleeding into different colours.

Anyone tried it if so how succesful was it? suppose the colour of the wood will effect the ink colour? need some test peices


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## gdenby

cobalt said:


> Looking into the possibility of useing drawing ink on some sticks to keep the grain showing , suppose i will have to seal it 1st but should give me colour without the ink bleeding into different colours.
> 
> Anyone tried it if so how succesful was it? suppose the colour of the wood will effect the ink colour? need some test peices


I've used India ink on wood. It doesn't fade, and the binder/glue in it keeps it from spreading much into the grain. Do not know if it would adhere to a sealed surface.

I did lots of brush and technical pen drawings using colored inks, mostly Pelican brand, but some Higgins. My vague recollection is that neither are water proof. Some were lightfast. My even vaguer recollection is that the Pelican were at that time more transparent than the Higgins.

Currently, I've been brushing on TransTint wood dyes diluted w. alcohol. They can be mixed, and diluted so that one can achieve some color subtlety, and can just tone the grain. I've never painted with an alcohol based color, and so have trouble getting the right density of tint.

Not all woods accept the dyes as well as I would like.


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## Paul2281

I don`t worry too much about straightening a stick as long as boths ends are pretty close to lining up,but I DO worry about checking/cracking during the aging process....A stick can turn out to be junk if it doesn`t do the right thing....


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## cobalt

English stickmaking would consider it sloppy work if the shank wasnt straight, its just a different attitude ,we dont remove the bark from shanks its to nice to look at and offers good protection once its oiled

And your right if the shanks not seasoned correctly its no good.

The type of stickmakers here takes a different view and more ofern than not people stick with what they know so i try to keep a open mind


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## CAS14

I had a 1st grade teacher who allowed me to color outside the lines. I've done okay coloring outside the lines ever since.

Straight sticks aren't appealing to me, guess I'm weird. But I do like the bark on idea, as well as partly bark on. I'm still a novice, but it seems that different trees, different wood strengths, and different barks, offer different potential beauty with the possible treatments.


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## Paul2281

CAS said:


> I had a 1st grade teacher who allowed me to color outside the lines. I've done okay coloring outside the lines ever since.
> 
> Straight sticks aren't appealing to me, guess I'm weird. But I do like the bark on idea, as well as partly bark on. I'm still a novice, but it seems that different trees, different wood strengths, and different barks, offer different potential beauty with the possible treatments.


As you can see in my profile picture,I find a lot of crocked sticks...And I find most people like the uniquness of the crocked walking sticks....


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## alador

I can't speak much to the oil finish and such but I may have mentioned before the leather dyes I've been using of late. I like to take a shaft with fairly rough bark and use black dye on it, then several coats of sanding sealer. After this dries I sand off the roughest part of the bark so that the shaft is fairly smooth but the deepest lines remain, then finish the entire stick again. Just something I've been experimenting with, thought it might spur some ideas. I also built a steamer out of a piece of 5 inch duct pipe and a wall paper steamer. I haven't used it extensively yet, but it seems to work pretty well. Pipe needs a thick layer of insulation to hold in heat though.


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## gdenby

alador said:


> I can't speak much to the oil finish and such but I may have mentioned before the leather dyes I've been using of late. I like to take a shaft with fairly rough bark and use black dye on it, then several coats of sanding sealer. After this dries I sand off the roughest part of the bark so that the shaft is fairly smooth but the deepest lines remain, then finish the entire stick again. Just something I've been experimenting with, thought it might spur some ideas. I also built a steamer out of a piece of 5 inch duct pipe and a wall paper steamer. I haven't used it extensively yet, but it seems to work pretty well. Pipe needs a thick layer of insulation to hold in heat though.


Cool. What are the leather dyes? are there a range of tones?


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## cobalt

this is a nice idea. and worth looking into although does raise some questions which you may know the answer to?

I suppose you need a coarse bark finish on the shank for it to be effective?

Does this work well on seasoned wood only<

Would the natural oil in woods prevent this from working on some types of wood?

Take it leather dyes have a better quality pigment than say cloth dyes?

Also have you tried any other colour apart from black?

I suppose the natural colour of wood effects other colours and wouls require consideration as to the choice of wood used?

I think this one is different and worth following up with some test peices nice one thanks

below is some shanks i am using

the bottom 5 are hazel,these have a wide range of colours form a pink yclour to a dark brown,some have a pinky snake type finish on them..The bark is very smooth and looks good when oiled or varnished .allthough oils protect the wood better in many ways as vanish chips.Its a simple job just to wipe the shank with iol once or twice a year to keep them in good order

the next one no 6. is chestnut anice rich looking bark very smooth always looks good when oiled

the next one is ash common rather grey a nd dull looking but a good workhorse for general use

top two are hawthorn .just 1 year old coase grain moss need taking of think this would be suitable to try staining ?


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## cobalt

The idea of steaming the sticks with a pipe is something i wish to follow up also any pics?do you nee to put drain holes into the pipe I suppose you would need a lot of steam over a period of time for it to work? yes insulation can see that being a problem?

Have you tried using a paint stripper to straighten small kinks in sticks? its very effective


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## alador

The brand of dyes I have used is Fiebing's. They are not expensive considering how little it takes to color a large area and they are available in a veritable rainbow of colors and of course you can mix them. I am new to these since I just started using them last fall but from what I have done they seem to penetrate well and color evenly. I also experimented with overlaying colors to get a different look. That seems to work as well and so adds another interesting level. I will try to add some pics later (my unheated shop is closed down for the winter) As for the pipe steamer, you do need a drain for condensation. I just mounted mine on a board so it was raised at one end and put a small hole in the bottom. Inside I made what looks like a small wooden ladder lying on its side to rest the sticks on so they are in the middle of the steamer. The only problem with the steamer is the tank only holds a gallon of water, plan to augment that later.


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## gdenby

Thanks for the tip on the leather dyes. They are considerably less expensive than the wood dyes I've been using. I'll have to mail order some. If they work well, the shipping will be offset by the base cost.

I see Fiebing's has various product lines. Which are you using?


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## alador

What I'm using is the leather dye 4 fl. oz that comes in a black and yellow package.


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## cobalt

both the dyes are worth looking at over here

I had assumed there was a drian and fixture to centralize the shanks interesting to know the capacity of the steamer ,that useful and some thing i will follow up. Like you the workshop needs heating hence the reason for the drawings and searching other ideas.



alador said:


> The brand of dyes I have used is Fiebing's. They are not expensive considering how little it takes to color a large area and they are available in a veritable rainbow of colors and of course you can mix them. I am new to these since I just started using them last fall but from what I have done they seem to penetrate well and color evenly. I also experimented with overlaying colors to get a different look. That seems to work as well and so adds another interesting level. I will try to add some pics later (my unheated shop is closed down for the winter) As for the pipe steamer, you do need a drain for condensation. I just mounted mine on a board so it was raised at one end and put a small hole in the bottom. Inside I made what looks like a small wooden ladder lying on its side to rest the sticks on so they are in the middle of the steamer. The only problem with the steamer is the tank only holds a gallon of water, plan to augment that later.


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## CheechWizard

Ole Man Dan said:


> I've made Hikeing Staffs for many years.
> 
> I was advised yrs. ago to dry my material about a year.
> 
> Shape it and put it in a PVC tube of Transmission Fluid for several months,
> 
> then I put em between 2 long pieces of Aluminum 'L', and let em dry another 6 mos.
> 
> A couple of radiator clamps hold the angles to the staff for good straight staffs.
> 
> The staffs are stained, and strong. I finished mine off with a matt finish of Polyurethane spray.
> 
> I've used some of mine on the A.T., and hiking in Yellowstone, beats the metal staffs hands down
> 
> for looks, and probably for strength. My staffs are heavier than the store bought kind, but I'm a big guy,
> 
> and never seemed to mind.
> 
> Anybody tried anything like this?


*Light bulb goes off in head*

I read this and got an immediate visual of a 3" or 4" diameter piece of 6' pvc with 2 caps. What an awesome idea!. I use a lot of commercial pine dowling (as well as the native stuff i harvest). I'm wondering if doing the same thing with new motor oil would work as well. All my sticks are meant to be USED, so they receive a lot of punishment outside in all kinds of weather.


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## cobalt

It sound a awful lot of trouble to do that

just season them and straighten them with a heat gun. its much cheaper and works very well

Most UK stick makers use say a 1 inch to 1,5 inch diameter its plenty strong enough .Personally I like a 1inch shank

A 3 inch diameter would seem very clumsy and heavy to me, but post some pictures each of us have our own ways so there isn't a right or wrong , but most Uk stick makers you could say stick .to a tighter criteria


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## Batakali

Soaking them in oil brings back a degree of flexibility. It's use a lot by shillelagh makers for fighting sticks. If you don't feel like going through the hassle of making the tubes you can get much the same effect with multiple sessions of oiling and sanding. Or completely coat the stick with a thick layer of petroleum jelly while seasoning, only drawback with that is that you have to keep the stick fairly warm.


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## LilysDad

Do the sticks remain oily to the touch after? I wouldn't think automotive oils would dry. You could perform the same procedure with Boiled Linseed Oil.


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## CV3

I have not used automotive oils on sticks but I have on some cypress knee carvings. It drys in about 3 day on those. .


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## Rodney

Far too early in the morning for puns of that caliber.

Automatic transmission fluid mixed with acetone is a highly effective penetrating oil. The mix would probably soak into a stick faster if you cared to try it. I'll stay with the traditional finishes.

I've found that I like my canes in the 1" range down to about 7/8" at the bottom. Hiking staffs I like in the 1 1/2" to 2" range.

Rodney


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