Danish oil vs Tung oil finishes

Tom Baugues

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Would the drying time be any different between these two products? I have a can of Formby's tung oil finish and a can of Watco Danish oil. Is there much difference between the two?
If I needed to apply finish to a project that say....had a deadline of the end of this month and I needed to package and ship that project by the end of this month would either type of oil finish be dry? Time for multiple coats?
 
No difference between the two in my opinion, wipe on let sit for 30 min, wipe off excess and apply another coat the next day is how I do it.others may do it differently. Neither one probably contain any tung oil though, that is a marketing term.
 
Would the drying time be any different between these two products? I have a can of Formby's tung oil finish and a can of Watco Danish oil. Is there much difference between the two?
If I needed to apply finish to a project that say....had a deadline of the end of this month and I needed to package and ship that project by the end of this month would either type of oil finish be dry? Time for multiple coats?

They are both a varnish/oil/solvent mix. You can thin with VM&P Naptha and wipe on thin. If you are looking for a faster dry and a harder finish, use an oil base interior varnish, and thin with Naptha to make a wiping varnish.


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I've used a lot of the Formby's Tung Oil Finish. No need to thin it. It'll be dry overnight.


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The difference between the 2 would be very small, but the Formby's is (according to Flexner) simply a wiping varnish (varnish and solvent) while the Watco's is actually a danish oil (oil/varnish/solvent). I would think the Watco would be a little slower, but I'm not sure you could tell the difference.
 
Yep, Formby's is just plane ole wiping varnish. Here's a link to a very interesting article about what's in those finishes. Good Read!

http://www.hardwoodlumberandmore.co...5/ArticleId/4/What-Is-A-Woodworker-To-Do.aspx

Interesting indeed, but I'll dispute at least one point it claims. The article says:

...On the other hand, Formby’s, Zar, Gillespie, and Hope’s “Tung Oil Finish” are wiping varnish—nothing more than regular varnish to which mineral spirits has been added, thinning the varnish so that it can be wiped on. (You can make your own wiping varnish by thinning the varnish you already own 50/50 with mineral spirits.) As with the oil/varnish blends mentioned, none of these wiping varnishes contains so much as a drop of tung oil...

This is contrary to information on the Formby's website:

Tung Oil Finish: A high quality varnish made from a balanced blend of tung oil and other fine penetrating oils.

Formby's is not hiding the fact that it is a wiping varnish, and I don't believe they could claim it contains tung oil if it didn't.

The author of the article is (or was) the owner of a hardwood lumber store. I suspect he knows a fair amount about finishes and such, but don't see anything - aside from a few blog posts 3 or 4 years ago - to suggest that he's an expert in the field.
 
Don't want to argue, but they don't claim that it contains Tung oil, they just say Tung oil finish their MSDS doesn't list any Tung oil but it does state there is 78% mineral spirits by weight. It's all in the way the user perceives the information. I still am not convinced that it actually contains Tung oil Vaughn I have met and talked with Steve Mickley many times and he is very knowledgeable about finishing. He doesn't claim to be an expert.His store is one of my go to places to get supplies and he is the one I talk to if I have a finishing issue, He will always take the time to discuss and give his advise whenever anyone asks.
PRODUCT NUMBER
30069
PRODUCT NAME
FORMBY'S® Tung Oil Finish, Low Gloss
MANUFACTURER'S NAME
FORMBY'S
10 Mountainview Road
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Telephone Numbers and Websites
Product Information
(800) 523-9299
Regulatory Information
(216) 566-2902
www.paintdocs.com
Medical Emergency
(216) 566-2917
Transportation Emergency
*
(800) 424-9300
for Chemical Emergency ONLY (spill, leak, fire, exposure, or accident)
*
SECTION 2 — COMPOSITION/INFORMATION ON INGREDIENTS
% by Weight
CAS Number
Ingredient
Units
Vapor Pressure
78
64742-88-7
Mineral Spirits
ACGIH TLV
100
PPM
2 mm
OSHA PEL
100
PPM
SECTION 3 — HAZARDS IDENTIF
 
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Charles, they do say it has tung oil in it on this page (where I got the quote). Granted, they don't say how much, and it could well be a tiny bit, but it's still contrary to what Steve Mickley said in his blog post. They're also pretty up front also on the same page about the fact that it's a wiping varnish. Not arguing with you at all...just playing devil's advocate in the debate. ;)

Bottom line, though, is that Tom is right. :thumb:
 
Yep I agree with Tom also, It's the end results that you get what finish you want, I agree Vaughn, If they put one drop in a batch, it will in fact does contain the stated product.Kind of like going to your favorite furniture store and getting a "Walnut finished table"that is white as snow under the finish :rofl: I have some in the shop and I'm not impressed , I prefer my home brewed version.
 
"Walnut finished table" that is white as snow under the finish :rofl:

Funnily enough I just turned a bunch of English Walnut that is in fact just about as white as snow, so in theory it would be possible for it to actually be walnut... :D

There do appear to be some measurable differences in hardness, water resistance, etc.. in alkyd varnishes based on the oils used (and the resins as well I suppose not trying to compare phenolic like waterlox to alkyd of course).

An old MSDS specifically states that Formby's is at least partially a soya based alkyd "Product Class: Modified Soya/Tung Alkyd Resin Finish"
http://www2.uwstout.edu/content/msd...sh_Formby-sIncorporated_HighGloss_jul1986.pdf

I did find one person who had actually asked them and got an answer (the compiles were exceptionally slow today) - so some Tung oil plus "other stuff" in "some ratio"
http://www.woodworking-online.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=15608

The addition of some Tung oil isn't surprising as Tung is supposed to have somewhat better water resistance than most of the other oils used (in an alkyd varnish at least.. raw oil is a different pot of wax).

Bleh mixing your own makes more and more sense if you can figure out what you're mixing it from which ain't easy.
 
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