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Cocobolo - Finish not drying!

Gord Rock

Gord Rock

Member
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619
Location
Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
I turned a yoyo for my grandson from Cocobolo and used MinWax Wipe-On Poly as the finish. The poly has been drying for a few days but is still tacky. :huh:

Do I need to remove the poly, wipe the Cocobolo with acetone or something, and reapply the poly? Or should I use some other finish? Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
.....Gord
 
I think if you are patient enough the poly will eventually dry. I'm not a finish expert so take it for what it is worth. I have worked quite a bit with cocobolo and being as dense and oily as it is poly is probably not the best finish to use. Most times I use sanding sealer and maybe a CA finish on pens.

The real reason I posted was to encourage you to post a picture of your Yoyo. I'm a fan of them and have made several. They are fun. Have you tried any of Yoyospin's one piece yoyos? Fun to turn.
http://yoyospin.com/
 
Thanks for the replies.

Tom, yes I did shake the can very well. It's not the first time I've used it, just the first time I've used it on Cocobolo.

Paul, I'll check out yoyospin. Thanks for the suggestion.

I'll wait a few more days if necessary and see if it dries.

Thanks,
.....Gord :thumb:
 
gord, your problem lies with the cocobolo i think its so dense and oily already..if it didnt dry in a day or two your probally not gonna get there with it..i havnt used poly on cocobolo .. check with the spinny guys on how the finish it..but acetone and lacquer is what i do with it on flat stuff..
 
I had a similar experience with the wipe on Min Wax poly on a pen recently. After several days was still soft.
As others have said, cocobolo is so oily it is hard to finish. I have made duck calls with it I put no finish on.
Yesterday at our woodturners club meeting one of our more talented turners showed a bowl he made of coco and it had a knock-out finish. He is a master at using CA with a 'cutting oil' :dunno: for finishes.
I'll ask him what he did on that bowl and get back after he responds.
 
used turpentine and wipe the poly down, you do not want to remove the poly you only want to just white over the surface. the surface will be dry within 24 hours. if not you wanna remove all the poly because you have way too much poly and need to start over with thinner coats 24 hours apart
 
Gord, since many finishes don't play well with cocobolo, my favorite finish for that wood is no finish all, just sanded to 600 grit or so, then buffed with tripoli, white diamond, and wax.

Here's a cocobolo tool handle I finished that way...

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I posted the other thread...

The Minwax could be contaminated, old, or interacting with the oil in the wood. I would remove the finish, and wipe down the bare wood with acetone. I would make a wiping version of some fresh oil base polyurethane and VM&P naptha. Try a 25% reduction for the first application or two.



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Cocobolo and other rosewoods are famous for trashing anything other than a wax (Renwax/Mylands) finish. Then you run into the problem of a higher speed to warm the wax and open the pores of the wood; in rosewoods, when the pores open, the oil comes out. and the finish is "contaminated". Problem with a wax type finish is they are prone to wear, and they will. Vaughns idea works well and having seen it...trust me. The woods also cut well so it can minimize the sanding issue with sharp tools.
 
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