Finish for Ironwood

[DGW]

Just put some arizona Ironwood on a file knife blank a friend made. What is the best finishes to put on ironwood. It is not stabalized.
Thanks, DAN

[Kevin Evans]

I use Boston Polish Wax        (BWC Company)

I Really like it.

[DGW]

Kevin,
What stores carry the Boston Polish Wax?
or do you have to order direct?

[Ray Hammond]

You really don't need anything

I've used renaissance wax on them but truth be told its so dense it almost works like stone or stabilized wood

[DGW]

Ray, how fine of sandpaper do you go to before you buff the wood?

[Dan White]

Here is the site for BWC Company  www.bwccompany.com/

I bought the Bowling Alley Wax clear and I believe Kevin bought the amber. But as I remeber we could not tell the difference once applied. Maybe Kevin can come on and comment.

[Ray Hammond]

1200 I think would work fine

[Lamey]

Like Ray said you really dont "need"  any extra finish on IW but if you want to reduce the "darkening" caused by light/oxidation get some of the spray on finish with UV protection.  If you can find "fix it", which is a spray on clear pottery finish it works very well.  You simply spray it on, let it dry,  and lightly buff.  Its very hard to find and may be out of production though.   There are a couple other over the counter spray on finishes that help prevent darkening,  best thing to do is buy a few and experiment to find one that works best for you.

[Kevin Evans]

Thanks Matt
How much will it slow it down the darking?weeks or months?

Thats why I use the bowling alley wax,slows the darking but I will try some of that stuff you mentioned,maybe it will be better

[Lamey]

Kevin,  if you can find the original "Fix It" spray,  it slows down the darkening process by YEARS.  Ive seen recent photos of IW and Cocobola handles I did 10+ years ago with this finish and they still look like the day I shipped them.

There are other spray on UV block sprays out there, but some wont harden on IW and Cocobola,  you just have to buy a few and do some testing.

[DGW]

Kevin, Matt and Ray!
Thank you guys for all the help. Dan

[Ray Hammond]

Thanks for the tip Lamey! Good info!! I'll get some to try