The 6% figure is anything but consistent. In your area you will see large relative humidity swings through the course of the year, the wood will follow. For grins, weigh a small piece of wood carefully on your powder scale and then reweigh it several times through the year. If you expand the project to about 500-1" walnut cubes, finished every way you can imagine, you will get an idea of what my little research corner looks like. They change an amazing amount. A weight change equals a change in size.<P>In point of fact most oil finishes have varying amounts of varnish in them, and lots of wax. More varnish equals more solvent in the blend, more wax, likewise. Oil is generally the cheapest, best extender for the finish, so is the main ingredient.<P>In the old days, oils were heated to the smoking point to start kicking off a polymerizing reaction, which we refer to as drying. The drying that is done is a result of the solvents leaving. Today the "boiling" is accomplished by means of a variety of catalysts. Not long ago they were heavy metal based ie. the original Japan dryer. Today they are safe, and not heavy metal based.<P>I am trying to write this without getting pedantic or overly technical. Not trying to annoy anyone, but there is more misinformation about finishes for wood than any field I have ever seen. I have done a lot of basic research in the field, comparing lots of secret recipes, etc. Keep it very simple and you will be happy with the results. If you want to wax your wood (great idea) put it on the top, where it belongs. <BR>art<P><P>------------------<BR>Life is too short to hunt with an ugly gun.
