finishing stabilized wood

[titaniumdoctor]

What do you guys feel is the best way to finish stabilized wood. I brought a piece of buckeye up to 1000 grit, and polished with some simichrome, but it still looks kinda dull. Is there something else I should be doing?

Thanks guys

[SteveS]

My favorite is bobbing compound.

Sand to 400 or 800, then buff with that stuff. Makes for a deep, matt shine. Looks natural, but glassy smooth. I like it better than buffing to a shiny finish. Also it's kinda greasy stuff. Actually an advantage cause it dissolves away with solvent. Unlike something like pink no-scratch where the dust gets into the grain never to leave again.

Just personal taste.

But nothing seems to work as nice buffing with a buffer.

Steve

[tmickley]

There could be a hundred ways to finish your wood and all of them I bet are fine.

Here is what I've come to start doing lately.
By stabilized, I'm going to assume it was by K&G or WSSI. Their stuff is hard and seems to be full of plastic. I use it all the time. (In fact I just got back several large pieces of wood and a dozen mammoth ivory scales from WSSI. )
You'd think all of the pores would be sealed up, but like Steve mentions, they aren't. It doesn't need it, but I've started sealing the wood after it's been sanded down to 600 grit. I've tried several different finishes and my latest favorite is tung oil. Keep putting it on for a hour or so since the wood will keep soaking it up. Wipe off the excess, let it dry for a day, do it again but it won't soak much at all this time as the pores are mostly sealed now. Let it dry a couple days this time. Tung oil dries slow. Buff with furniture or Bri-wax. It seals up the wood fairly well and the wax gives it a decent luster.

[SteveS]

Tung oil..... Really Tracy? I've never thought of that! Does the color change at all?

Steve

[titaniumdoctor]

I didn't consider tung, just because the wood is acrylic stabilized. Atough I use nothing but tung on all by non stabilized wood such as walnut burl for my knife boxes. I just ordered some non stabilized ironwood, and this stuff is gorgeous!! I called the guy to find out how he polished it and he said to bring to 600 grit then buff with green chrome and finish with white rouge. This wood is silly hard, and I guess doesn't require stabilizing. Maybe I'll try what he does on his ironwoood to my stabilized material.

[tmickley]

Steve, the color slightly darkens, less than what dry vs wet wood looks like since you have already sanded it to a fine finish. I do it on all of my stabilized wood now because I got tired of the buffer, even just the plain wax buff, loading up the wood pores and making the handle look dirty. Then I'd have to sand it all over again. With the tung oil and a little patience to let it dry, I can buff the handles all day and they don't get that dirty look to them.

TiDoc: avoid the green buff on any wood it really looks bad and the pink doesn't look much better other than red woods like amboyna.

[jwfilion]

After profiling the handle, I sand the stablized wood in the following grits : 320, 400, 600, 800,1000,1200, 1500, 2000. After that, I buff with a white compound on a dedicated wheel, apply Renaissance Wax and hand buff. Some woods work so well with this, the grain appears three dimensional!

[PMSKnife]

I profile...Then go to 400...Then to white compound and then seal/buff w/Ren wax or Johnson's Paste floor wax...

Mark