# What to do between tung oil coats?



## gatortrial (Dec 25, 2013)

Hello folks,

I'm finishing a pine table top with tung oil and am not sure how to prepare the surface for subsequent coats. 

I've read you can:
- Rub the surface down with steel wool between coats.
- Apply the next coat using steel wool.
- Sand down with 400+ grit sandpaper between coats.
- Apply next coat using 400+ grit paper

Any personal experiences on how to achieve an optimum finish would be really appreciated. 

Thanks!


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## Brian T. (Dec 19, 2012)

I use MinWax Tung Oil Protective Finish on many of my wood carvings (birch, western red cedar, yellow cedar.) The diamond willow rustic furniture shop down my street uses the same stuff by the gallon. They may be finishing 50-70 hiking sticks at a time or today, It's a queen-size bed frame. It's always beer o'clock at their place.

They hand sand 220 between coats.

I did that and didn't like the look but coat #2 covered it OK.
Very coarse steel wool ( CSW ) is flat, not round. It acts like a million little chisels to actually cut off the wood fibers. Does not shred the whole surface like sandpaper does. Fine steel wool is useless.
I make a few gently passes with the CSW and feel with my fingertips for the resulting smoothness.
Four coats is water-wet glossy, if that's what you want.


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## gatortrial (Dec 25, 2013)

Thanks for that!

I wasn't using CSW. It was the fine stuff. 

I rubbed the latest coat in with 400 gr paper. See how it looks in a day or so. 

Other problem is that i cut the oil I had 1/3 with thinners and didn't leave any pure tung for later coats. Oh well...live and learn.


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## HowardAcheson (Nov 25, 2011)

>>>>> I'm finishing a pine table top with tung oil

Are you using a true, pure tung oil or one of the faux tung oil finishes like Minwax Tung Oil Finish?

A tung oil finish like Minwax is a oil/varnish mixture made with linseed oil. It contains no real tung oil.

That said, true tung oil is not a very protective or long lasting finish. It's best used for something that will not get any abusive treatment. What are you finishing?

The way to apply an oil finish is to sand to 220 then rub on a liberal coat. Rub on with 3/0 steel wool. Let it soak in for 15-20 minutes and then wipe it dry. Let it fully dry for 5-7 days and then apply another coat again letting it soak in. Do this 3-4 times. Tung oil is a very slow absorbing and drying treatment.


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## gatortrial (Dec 25, 2013)

Thanks, Howard!

It's Tung proper.

Between coats do you sand again? Or just let the steel wool do its thing as you apply subsequent coats?


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## HowardAcheson (Nov 25, 2011)

No, while I rarely use tung oil, when I do I do not sand between applications. The 3/0 steel wool will scuff the surface enough. Just be sure to wipe off the excess oil after each application. Tung oil can turn white if applied too thickly or applied before the prior coat has dried.

Next time you think you want to use a true oil (tung or linseed) consider making your own oil/varnish mixture. Mix equal parts of linseed or tung oil, with an oil based varnish or poly varnish and mineral oil. Apply to the surface, let set for 15-20 minutes and then wipe dry. Let it fully dry overnight and apply a second coat exactly the same the next day. This mixture will produce a very similar looking finish but the additional oil based varnish will produce a much more durable finish.


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