Finishing Kingwood

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dakota.potts

New member
In this case it's for a knife handle, but if these turn out well I might do a set of grips for my CZ in Kingwood.

I'm wondering how you finish it? I've heard a lot of people say that the oils in the wood itself are so heavy that it won't always take oils and that they aren't really necessary? That you should just sand to around 1200 or 1500 and then buff?

I was planning to use some Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil and just see how it turns out. My goal is to darken the wood and enrich the grain pattern. Shine is OK but I don't want that "trapped in resin" gloss look where you can almost see the clear layer of finish separate from the wood.

I've heard some say teak oil, others say shellac? I don't want the yellow or amber color that a lot of finishes get, so this where I'm a little confused. Consider one's for a pocket knife and the other for a range/home defense gun, so they probably aren't going to see bushcrafting abuse or anything, but I would like them to stand up well to time.

Also, as far as buffing: I have one of those triangular handheld sanders (not sure what they're called) and a buffing pad for it. Do I need to use any particular compound and is this the appropriate tool?
 
There is no finish that you can put on kingwood that will look as good or deep as just polishing the wood and adding a coat of paste wax. Kingwood won't even take most finishes. Sand as fine as you can get, then use Simichrome or a similar polish on a cloth-shoe-shine style.
Kingwood is one of the prettiest woods in my opinion.
Here is a set I made.

 
I always love looking at your creations, Bill.

What exactly is a "paste wax" and how are they applied? Hand rubbed?

Still trying to get into this whole woodowrking thing. I figure it's a productive head start before I start college for gunsmithing some time net year.
 
Paste wax is right, I have used it to finish many kinds of wood (ebony, cocobolo, padauk, wenge, maple, etc). Tru Oil won't dry on kingwood, cocobolo, South American rosewood, and many other oily or waxy woods. If you just have to have finish on it, use Bullseye Sand 'n Fill.
 
SC Johnson Paste Wax worked admirably. Applied it by hand, let it sit for about a half hour at a time, and buffed it. Did this about a 3 times until the wood would no longer accept it. Darkened the wood without adding the sheen just like I wanted and left the would with a nice, smooth feel that isn't slippery like some other finishes.

Color me happy with the advice I received on this one. Now I have an enormous tub of the stuff. No idea what to do with it now.
 
Cabinetmaker here. Finishing oily wood is not easy. There is a method that has proven itself many times over on teak and other oily woods. I have never played with kingwood, but this method has worked on just about every other oily species you can name. Prep a sample to make sure this is the look you are going for. Go ahead and prep your sample piece the same as you would for your grips. Now, get a can of high-quality Lacquer Thinner, and wet a clean cloth with it. (As a professional finisher, I would advise wearing surgical gloves for this.) Give the test piece a good rubdown with the wet rag. now, before it evaporates, go back and wipe it repeatedly with a clean, dry rag until until it is dry.

What you are doing is leaching the oils out of the surface of the wood. Now you have to replace it with another oil in the next few minutes. I would recommend Tung oil. It's easy to use. Just wet a rag and rub. Add some more oil, and rub some more until you have the results you want. I'd stay away from solvent-bourne film finishes on anything as oily as Kingwood. This includes Shellac. Shellac has a lot of uses. This isn't one of them. Tung oil will bring an almost unbelievable luster out on wood if properly applied.

Hope this helps, and best of luck on your project!
 
Why take oils out and replace them with others?
Kingwood will polish almost like glass. All it needs is a coat of wax to protect it.
 
Tung oil stabilizes over time and doesn't dissipate. Wax dissipates over time, and must be replenished to continue to protect.
 
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