what is the best oil for tool handles in your experience? a friend has advised me that to avoid my tool handles drying out and becoming loose or breaking i should oil them. need to oil a matlock and axe.
I find that linseed oil gets a bit tacky over time and is kind of overrated. what else is suitable?
Black person if you're not going to use linseed oil (which polymerizes btw) then lacquer it or something
ok, but why?
https://www.pcta.org › wp-content › uploads › 2012 › 11 › an_ax_to_grind.pdf
This guy might have good advice.
Tung and almond are also popular choices. I think you can also use soi but that just seems wrong somehow
Boiled linseed oil or any deck-finishing oils from a store (the one I use isn't sticky at all, although it's for finishing sauna walls, no idea on which oil it's based), although this part:
>avoid my tool handles drying out and becoming loose
Might not be quite correct. The regular oil finish doesn't prevent the moisture exchange with the surrounding air completely, it only slows it down, unless the handle's been submerged and soaked in oil for days. It will however help with rot and stain prevention, and make the handle much more resistant to getting wet. The water splashed on it will just roll off, and rain isn't a problem.
If you really want the handle to never come loose, fit the axe on the handle in winter, when the wood is at it's lowest moisture content, or when it's really dry. That way it's pretty much only going to expand and never contract.
Another good thing to do is to hammer and glue in a hardwood wedge instead of a metal one, as glue would keep the wedge in place even if the wood dries, and the head might still be trapped, even if loose. While the metal wedge might potentially slide out and your tool head might come off while swinging.
>it's for finishing sauna walls
got a link to the exact one?
I live in a far foreign land, won't be of any use. Also I don't remember where I put the can, sorry.
>hammer and glue in a hardwood wedge
i like to make a dam around the eye with clay and fill it with linseed oil until it stops sucking it in, it will swell the wood into the eye and won't come loose. it also helps prevent water being able to soak into the end grain
smart that.
Mens sweat is all thats needed.
Tung oil's been great on my carving knife handles. Thin the first coat down with 50% white spirits or similar and it'll soak right in. A couple of neat coats after that and you'll have a great finish.