Oil Finish Schedule

These are the instructions that I have posted to guide us through the finishing process on our rocking chairs and dining chairs.

Hand Sanding

• Hand sand with 320 and then 400 grit.  Feel every surface with your hand to be sure that it is smooth.
• While sanding, inspect for coarse sanding scratches and defects of any kind.  Be sure that we have produced true lines, softened edges, accurate shapes and correct profiles.
• Use the vacuum to remove sanding dust from surfaces, joints, and inside corners.

Finishing Day One

• Apply oil liberally.  Keep the sponge wet and coat the chair completely.  The sponge should be so wet that you do not have to press against the wood to get oil into the surface.
• When the chair is completely coated, continue rubbing with the cloth and add oil as necessary to keep the surface evenly wet.  Let the chair sit for 10-30 minutes.  All depends on the weather and judgement.  Leave it wet as long as you can before drying becomes too laborious.
• Dry the surface with a cloth previously used for drying.
• Use compressed air to remove excess oil from splat holes and all intersections.  Use plenty of air.  Blow until no more oil will come out.
• Dry with fresh cloth.  Continue rubbing until every hint of drag is gone from every square inch of surface.  Run a bare hand over the chair.  Do not leave any excess.
• Return chair to drying room.
• After one hour go over all surfaces with hand and cloth again.  Look for bleed out.  Blow out any joint or intersection that has bled oil to the surface.
• Hang spent wiping cloths on the fence to dry.  Hang usable wiping cloths on rack.
  
  During Day One oiling, look for glue spots.  Wet sand any spots with oil and 400 grit until they disappear.

Day Two (after 48 hours drying time)

• Hand sand with 600 grit.  Be sure to feel every surface with your hand.
• While sanding, look for defects.  Deal with them thus:
  • Glue spots or bleed out spots--wet sand with 400 until they disappear.
  • Sanding scratches or tool marks — sand out with finest grit that will remove the mark.  Work up through grits to 600.
• Apply enough oil to wet the surface, but do not apply as liberally as day one.
• through step 8.  Follow corresponding steps for Day One.

Day Three (after another 48 hours drying time)

• Hand sand very lightly with 1000.  Feel every surface.
• Look for defects while sanding.  If it is necessary to sand with grit coarser than 600, work back up through the grits to 1500.  (If we have to sand with a grit coarser than 600, the resulting area may be dull after the finish dries.  Sanding on up through 1500 before oiling helps the sheen return.)
• through step 10.  As for Day One.

Day Four (after 24 hours drying time)

• Inspect chair with strong backlight.  Look for bleed out and any other defect.
• Rub your hands over every surface looking for any rough place.
• Buff out any defects as in 2 above.