Odie's Oil?

[Mark J]

Anyone have any experience with Odie's Oil (or Odie's Wood Butter)?  My little can of Osmo Polyx-Oil is done and I'm considering trying something new.

[wtnhighlander]

A friend of mine has used Odies on some of his stuff. A little goes a long way, and it has a very 'natural wood' look. I can't speak to protection or durability.

[Chestnut]

Can't speak to the product but the owner is apparently a gigantic piece of work.

[Mark J]

56 minutes ago, Chestnut said:

Can't speak to the product but the owner is apparently a gigantic piece of work.

What's the story?

[Chet]

On 8/6/2022 at 5:53 PM, Mark J said:

What's the story?

He can't take criticism of his product.  He gets into heated verbal arguments with anyone that has anything less then glowing praise of his product.  As nice as Marc is I think he even had a little go around with the owner.  I saw one on Youtube a month or so and the YouTuber was posting the responses he was getting from the owner and the guy is a complete jerk.

[Chestnut]

What chet said. There are also reports of customer service being lacking. Seemed on par with the owner failing to accept that his product is anything but perfect.

Have you tried Tried and True Oil Vranish? Also pure tung oil? I've used both and really like them, though Osmo has some benefits when it comes to cure time over most of the competition. Other option is Rubio but with it being 2 part that makes it difficult to suggest for the small items you typically work with. You can use it without the part B but it just takes a long time to cure.

[JohnG]

He also claims that he’s received death threats from “big chemical” and “big finish” for threatening their sales. 

[Mark J]

I admit I'm less interested in Rubio due to the two part nature of the product.  Tried and True was discussed at our last club meeting.  It's an interesting product.  From what I heard it is also a wax & oil product.  I'm not sure how it may differ from the hard wax oils, but I've never heard T&T being discussed with those products?  

Doing small pieces it's hard for me to just try a "quart" of a product.  Osmo has worked for me, and I'll probably go with Polyx or TopOil.  But I wish it was easier to get more, and accurate, information about various products.  

[Chestnut]

The other rockler is carrying Osmo products not sure if you have one of those near by.

It's a polymerized linseed oil and wax for the original product.

The tried and true oil varnish is a bit different it's polymerized linseed oil and natural varnish to provide a bit more durability than the wax version. I've really liked it so far. I've used it on some kitchen items and it holds up to daily use but only occasional washing. I used it to finish a salt basin.

Don't gloss over pure tung oil. I've used that as well and once my T&T is gone I'm switching to pure tung oil. It dries relatively quickly and is quite durable. I've used an outdoor version of tung oil on some outdoor rocking chairs that see daily use through the summer months and the finish is holding up excellent. Marc's recent video also paints a good picture for tung oil.

[wtnhighlander]

@Mark J, are you focused on finishes that should work well in a 'friction' application, as you do so much turning?  No useful info to add, just curious what it is about the wax / oil finishes that interests you.

[Mark J]

I haven't applied finish on the lathe, shapes are too irregular for that.  So I'm not focused on friction polishes. 

Rather, I'm always looking for a foolproof and fabulous finish that is fast and fuss-less to apply and cures right away. I want to use a rag, not a brush.  I don't want to have to sand between applications.  I don't want to have to apply more than 3 coats.  I don't want to wait for days to apply the next coat.  I don't want to have to deal with dust nibs (and I don't have a dust free location to apply finish).  And I hate applying finishes in the first place.  

 For a long time I was using Bartley Gel Clear, and I'm still fond of it.  Very viscous, so no drips.  Wipe on, wipe off excess, hand buff, wait 6 hours for next coat.  The freshly applied film has very low tack and I never have trouble with dust nibs.  No more than 3 coats and done.  Fully cured in a few days (i.e. no odor).  Looks very good.  

When I heard about hard wax oils and was able to purchase a small can of Osmo I gave it a try.  On balance I like it more.  Wipe on, wait 10 min, re-spread it, wait 5 min, wipe off excess, hand buff, wait 12 hours for next coat.  As above, low tack and no problem with dust nibs.  No more than 2 coats needed.  Full cure is two weeks or so.  Looks even better, much better grain pop.  

It's a little longer to apply Osmo and takes longer to dry and cure.  But the improvement in grain pop is more than compensation.  

So every other finishing process gets compared to Bartley and Osmo.  

[Chestnut]

Sounds like you should just stick with Osmo then? If what you described is the yard stick by which you measure, I don't know of much any that will measure up.

I think rubio could be the finish your looking for but the whole 2 part thing....

Reading the above, skip my recommendations....

[wtnhighlander]

This might be a bit light on protection, but a friend of mine keeps bees, and makes a cutting board finish from beeswax and coconut oil. It is a very matt gloss, but the color pop is gorgeous, and the surface feel is quite sensual.

Makes the wood look like "intensified natural", rather than raw. I'm pretty sure its the same blend he uses to make lip balm, but without the peppermint oil flavoring.

[Mark J]

Doesn't the coconut oil go rancid? 

In any case it is not a curing oil, so like you say, not a durable finish.  I used to use mineral oil and wax when I first started (it's a truly idiot proof finish).  One thing I noticed is that even without use or much handling the finish becomes dull and eventually kind of rough, just sitting on a shelf for a few years.  

[BonPacific]

I've heard of coconut oil being used as a polish/conditioner for wood. It can take years for coconut oil to go rancid (for the same reason it's solid at room temperature apparently), and most cutting boards need refinishing before that point. I think I'll stick to the mineral oil and wax blends on my cutting board and coconut oil on my skin (coconut oil + baking soda is the best way to get house paint off your skin/nails I've yet found).

[JohnG]

On 1/21/2023 at 2:28 PM, thomasgrayjif said:

Care to expand on your reaction? 

[Connor]

I’ve used the odies oil and wood butter on a couple slabs of black walnut. I did one coat of oil and waited 45-60min and buffed it off and waited about a week then did a coat with the wood butter and buffed it off after waiting the same amount of time and both turned out great. I guess I’ll find out in time how protected & durable they are. 

[wtnhighlander]

That sure makes the walnut glow!