Regular maintenance is a really important part in getting anything to last.
When it comes to wood I much prefer an oiled finish to any form of varnish. Whilst I can appreciate the amazing depth of shine you can get with something like a yacht varnish its just not for me. I especially dislike varnish on wooden tool handles as its "slippy" in the hand and starts to wear unevenly.
Linseed Oil is my preferred oil for anything wooden - or more correctly Boiled Linseed Oil. Which to makes things even more confusing isn't actually boiled at all. Raw Linseed oil is really slow drying ..... like months if you are lucky. So Boiled Linseed Oil is a term used to cover Linseed oils that have been altered to speed up the drying process.
Technically Linseed Oil doesn't dry - it cures through a chemical reaction that's sped up by UV light and slowed down by moisture in the air. This curing process is also exothermic (gives of heat - which is important for a point later on) - a bit like concreate which you often need to keep wet to slow down the curing process.
Basic, often cheaper, Boiled Linseed Oil has various chemical catalysts added to speed up this curing process. I didn't like the sound of that and found that in Sweden they produce it through a process of pre-oxidisation, speeding things up without as many nasties added.
I also figured the Swedens know a lot of looking after timber.
So we've sourced some Boiled Linseed Oil from Sweden. It comes to us in containers that would last us a long time to get through. For treating the handles of wooden garden tools etc a little goes a long way. So we've made it available to buy in 200ml glass bottles.
Supplied in a 200ml amber glass bottle with aluminium screw cap.
Apply in thin coats.
Warning;
Be careful with the rags that you've used to apply Boiled Linseed Oil. As mentioned the curing process generates heat and it is possible for heavily used, linseed oil soaked, rags to self ignite. It's recommended to soak them in water before disposing of them and store them in a air tight tin between use. This isn't a myth and many workshop fires have started this way.
