# tung oil over stain or wax over stain question



## tat

Hello, 

I will be finishing some wood in the near future and I will be using tung oil for the first time. I wanted to know if it will look right if I use stain before using tung oil. If so should I use oil or water base stain. I would appreciate any pointers on using the oil and stain together or separate.


Tommy


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## agmantoo

In the small projects that I do I often use tung oil over stain. Once the stain has dried I do not think it makes a lot of different whether it was oil or water base. Brown paste shoe polish is a common "stain" for me particularly when no other stain is on hand. You will like the tung oil results. Just have the project clean and have some 0000 steel wool on hand. Let the tung oil dry, with the dampness of the season you will have to be patient. Once the oil is dry use the steel wool and clean then apply another coat of the tung oil. Continue applying the tung oil until you achieve the degree of gloss you desire.


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## tat

Have you ever used tung oil when it was water based stain? I have heard that formbys tung oil is like water and not that good, but it is all have been able to find. What brand do you use? 


Thanks for your reply

Tommy


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## agmantoo

True tung oil is an extract from the tung nut and it is definitely oil. Formby's product is not necessarily 100% tung oil but it is an oil. I used a generic tung oil that I bought in a gallon container at Lowe's on the last large project I did. I have use Formby's product and it is OK but was thinner than the generic product. I think Formby's is formulated for easier application and it does seem to require an additional coat over the generic product to achieve similar results.


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## tat

Thanks!,

Did you happen to ever use it over water based stain?


Tommy


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## lacyj

It shouldn't matter what type of stain you use. I've used Formbys for 25 years on just about anything and it works fine. Tho, I think I'll be lookin' for this generic stuff, next time I'm at Home Depot...


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## Ed K

tat said:


> Hello,
> 
> I will be finishing some wood in the near future and I will be using tung oil for the first time. I wanted to know if it will look right if I use stain before using tung oil. If so should I use oil or water base stain. I would appreciate any pointers on using the oil and stain together or separate.
> 
> 
> Tommy


TAT,

We used Waterlox (a tung oil containing finish) they reccomend "old fashioned" oil based stains without any polyurethane. Min wax makes some stains like that. With Waterlox you can mix the stain in with the waterlox and apply them at the same time. That's what we did and it worked pretty well. 

I didn't have any experience with stains and I was concerned with getting dark spots where the application doubled up. The stain in the waterlox seemed to prevent that for the most part.


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## tat

agmantoo,

Have you ever used tung oil on mahogany? I am about to start a new project made of mahogany and I would like to use tung oil on it. I ask because mahogany has such a strange texture to it that it seems it would not accept finish the same as other woods.

Tommy


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## agmantoo

No, I have never made anything from mahogany. I do not see a problem as I have seen salad bowls that were what I thought to be mahogany finished with tung oil. Take a small piece and experiment. You are aware that tung oil is OK for food containers? Additionally it will not water mark. You can leave a beer mug on a tung oil finished table over night and in the moring there will not be a watermark. Also, never wax tung finishes. Should the finish get to where it needs attention all you need to do is clean the surface and apply another coat of tung oil. The additional coat will "wake up" the old coat and the results are as original when finished. I have done walnut gun stocks and they turned out fabuously. Nice patena and original appearing. My kitchen cabinets, made from hickory, look new after 14 years. I regret the rest of the home has not held up as well!


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## River

agmantoo said:


> You are aware that tung oil is OK for food containers?


Actually, you need to look for _pure_ tung oil for it to be food safe. Anything else has potentially unsafe chemicals (to improve drying, etc.) added. The tung nut is edible, so tung oil itself is food safe.

I should add, mice really go for pure tung oil. If you finish something with it, make sure the rodents cannot get to it!

River


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