Cost Of Finishing

[BadBob]

This is not a question.

A potential customer wants the items finished with a natural oil. I did some research, and it appears that Tung oil is the only one, and that can even be iffy. Sometimes, it isn't pure tung oil but tung oil with additives. Along the way, I decided to get prices for finishes to do a cost comparison.  I used cost per gallon because some of these come in weird sizes and it was easy to calculate. I was shocked at how expensive some of these are. Some of the most expensive ones are just oils with waxes and hardening chemicals added. All the prices were gathered from Amazon. Here is my list for your info.

These claim to be Oil Finishes

• Tung Oil $70/gallon
• Mineral Oil $25/gallon aka Cutting board Oil
• Hard Wax Oil $480/gallon
• Boiled Linseed Oil $44/gallon
• Danish Oil $94/gallon
• Teak Oil $74/gallon
• Walrus Oil Furniture Butter $472/gallon
• Odie's Oil $794/Gallon

Other Finishes
These don't claim to be oil finishes. Shellac is the only one that I am sure does not contain oils.

• Shellac $85/Gallon
• Polyurethane Water Based $69/gallon
• Polyurethane Oil Based $66/gallon
• Arm-R-Seal $180/Gallon

 

[OCtoolguy]

Outrageous! The times we live in.

[kmmcrafts]

Max warehouse has been cheaper for my finishes for the last few times I've had to restock. I don't use much Watco Danish oil anymore but used to use about 4 gallon a year and that used to be cheaper at Home Depot with free shipping than Amazon.. Still expensive to use finishes.. especially aerosol cans.. 

I mostly use Lacquer these days.. and had been looking into buying gallons instead of spray cans.. still not sure the cleanup etc is worth it in buying the gallons and using a spray gun or not.. sometimes convenience is worth the cost.  

[preprius]

I use Arm R Seal most of the time. 

I use so little.  I had 1 quart for about 3 yrs.  I formed a skin inside the can. So I poked a hole in the skin. After 3 yrs the skin was about 1/4" thick.  So this time I bought a pint. 

Thank you for $/gallon cost list. Crap 180 / gallon. 

 

Each product has a different Sq ft coverage per gallon. So $ sq ft might also be and interesting comparison.  But with Arm R Seal the can does have a shelf life so in my case the can won't cover the same sq ft as the label says. And it says to use 3 to 5 coats.  

 Since I do functional scroll products I choose Arm R Seal for durability. 3 or more coats.  

I also use Osmo polyx.  1 coat.   Tiny amount. I was surprised as it penetrates the wood like oil based Arm R Seal.  

 

 

 

 

 

[Ctutor]

I find using lacquer and  GIZMO CALLED tHE cRITTER WHICH USES MASON JARS IS SIMPLE AND RELATIVELY INEXPENSIVE. THE CRITTER USES PINT MASON JARS. i KEEP 3 CAPPED. oNE WITH LAQUER ONE WITN SANDINGN SEALER AND ONE WITH ACETONES. aFTER USING ONE OF TE OTHER TWO i RUN A BIT IF THE ACETONE THROUGH TO CALEAN UP TJE I NSIDE OF tHE cRITTER

[BadBob]

12 hours ago, preprius said:

Each product has a different Sq ft coverage per gallon. So $ sq ft might also be and interesting comparison. 

I agree. I didn't do this because of time constraints. I was looking for something quick and simple. I also could have looked at things like thinners you might require. I can apply some things straight from the can while others I thin with 50% solvent. Shellac goes both ways for the things I make.

[BadBob]

13 hours ago, kmmcrafts said:

I mostly use Lacquer these days.

I didn't include lacquer because I have nearly zero experience using it to finish wood; only rattle can lacquer.

[BadBob]

I use shellac more than most finishes because it cures fast. I can thin it, dip things in it, spray it, or brush it on.  It has a very short shelf life. I love to use polyurethane, but the cure time is way too long for my projects. 

[kmmcrafts]

1 hour ago, BadBob said:

I didn't include lacquer because I have nearly zero experience using it to finish wood; only rattle can lacquer.

I like the Lacquer because of the fast dry time.. I also like the water base poly because of the quick dry time... that said, I don't honestly know the actual "cure" times.. 

My experience using same brand (Watco) the quart can mix is different than what is in the spray cans. Quart can dries too fast for me.. I tried reducing it with adding more lacquer thinner and that didn't help much at all. I may experiment more with reducing it with slower drying higher quality of lacquer but those type reducers = more $$ so then I have more investment.. Then is it really worth it.. as far as cost goes there is more to it than just the price.. there is clean-up of spray equipment.. my spray area would need to be plumbed for air line from compressor or a new small compressor for just this purpose.. there comes a point and time where the convenience outweighs the cost. Many times I'm only spraying 1 ornament that was custom ordered etc.. not really worth using a spray gun for that just to save a few pennies worth of finish. At the end of the day the cost goes into the finished piece anyway.. Now if I could save enough percentage to a point where I could significantly lower my final cost to the customer I'd be all over it.. Also if I could get set up to a point where I could do a large production run of spraying 100 or more ornaments at once.. the spray gun method probably would be more worth it.. at some point I might get to that position.. 

[BadBob]

12 minutes ago, kmmcrafts said:

I like the Lacquer because of the fast dry time.. I also like the water base poly because of the quick dry time... that said, I don't honestly know the actual "cure" times.. 

My experience using same brand (Watco) the quart can mix is different than what is in the spray cans. Quart can dries too fast for me.. I tried reducing it with adding more lacquer thinner and that didn't help much at all. I may experiment more with reducing it with slower drying higher quality of lacquer but those type reducers = more $$ so then I have more investment.. Then is it really worth it.. as far as cost goes there is more to it than just the price.. there is clean-up of spray equipment.. my spray area would need to be plumbed for air line from compressor or a new small compressor for just this purpose.. there comes a point and time where the convenience outweighs the cost. Many times I'm only spraying 1 ornament that was custom ordered etc.. not really worth using a spray gun for that just to save a few pennies worth of finish. At the end of the day the cost goes into the finished piece anyway.. Now if I could save enough percentage to a point where I could significantly lower my final cost to the customer I'd be all over it.. Also if I could get set up to a point where I could do a large production run of spraying 100 or more ornaments at once.. the spray gun method probably would be more worth it.. at some point I might get to that position.. 

If I am making one item, I either dip it or brush it on the finish. If I am making a lot of something, like toy trucks, for example, I will break out the airbrush. Some things, like wheels, always get done with a brush since getting finished in the hole causes problems when gluing.

I started this because a potential customer wants a natural oil finish. There is only one: tung oil. My definition of natural is that you put it in a press and squeeze it, and oil comes out. There are other oils that fit this definition, but they all will turn rancid.