KH

"Kentucky Highlander"

05/06/2004 5:05 PM

How to remove mineral oil from bench top

An old man that my parents know told them he had a 'butcher block' table top
he needed to sell, he was moving and didn't want to move it. I took a chance
and went to look at it. It is exactly like the maple top I paid $299 for to
make my bench. The guy asked $25 for it. I paid him and brought it home.

The only trouble is he put about a quart of mineral oil on it last night and
I would like to get it all off so I can build a second bench. I got a real
nice Wilton vise I think would really look nice on it.

Question is: How do I remove the mineral oil? It is almost dripping off of
it.

KY


This topic has 13 replies

Gg

"George"

in reply to "Kentucky Highlander" on 05/06/2004 5:05 PM

06/06/2004 8:04 AM

Emulsifying is good, but might harm the wood. TSP, the new stuff which
isn't, is a good choice.

Personally, I'd take it to the sunlight and soak everything that came to the
surface off with unprinted newsprint. Might even coax it a bit with a warm
iron. After that, a rubdown with spirits to drive it back or remove from
surface, then a bit of the wax that will serve as the glue rejecter on my
bench should keep it nice until it evaporates.

"James Cubby Culbertson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Naptha or even Dawn dishwashing liquid will take care of it. This
> was recommended to me by Jeff Jewitt to remove the oil used when
> rubbing out a finish.
> Cheers,
> cc

cC

[email protected] (Charlie Self)

in reply to "George" on 06/06/2004 8:04 AM

06/06/2004 12:10 PM

George responds:

>Emulsifying is good, but might harm the wood. TSP, the new stuff which
>isn't, is a good choice.
>
>Personally, I'd take it to the sunlight and soak everything that came to the
>surface off with unprinted newsprint. Might even coax it a bit with a warm
>iron. After that, a rubdown with spirits to drive it back or remove from
>surface, then a bit of the wax that will serve as the glue rejecter on my
>bench should keep it nice until it evaporates.
>

Good tip. For those who think newsprint is hard to find without ink
impressions, check almost any small or medium sized newspaper. They are glad to
sell their end rolls for a very small price, usually under $5.

Charlie Self
"The test and the use of man's education is that he finds pleasure in the
exercise of his mind." Jacques Barzun


GE

"George E. Cawthon"

in reply to "George" on 06/06/2004 8:04 AM

07/06/2004 1:41 AM



Charlie Self wrote:
>
> George responds:
>
> >Emulsifying is good, but might harm the wood. TSP, the new stuff which
> >isn't, is a good choice.
> >
> >Personally, I'd take it to the sunlight and soak everything that came to the
> >surface off with unprinted newsprint. Might even coax it a bit with a warm
> >iron. After that, a rubdown with spirits to drive it back or remove from
> >surface, then a bit of the wax that will serve as the glue rejecter on my
> >bench should keep it nice until it evaporates.
> >
>
> Good tip. For those who think newsprint is hard to find without ink
> impressions, check almost any small or medium sized newspaper. They are glad to
> sell their end rolls for a very small price, usually under $5.
>
> Charlie Self
> "The test and the use of man's education is that he finds pleasure in the
> exercise of his mind." Jacques Barzun

End rolls? you mean those 8-12 foot long rolls? Just an inch or inch
and one half would be a heck of a lot of paper and only $5?

cC

[email protected] (Charlie Self)

in reply to "George E. Cawthon" on 07/06/2004 1:41 AM

07/06/2004 6:57 AM

George Cawthorn responds:

>Good tip. For those who think newsprint is hard to find without ink
>> impressions, check almost any small or medium sized newspaper. They are
>glad to
>> sell their end rolls for a very small price, usually under $5.
>>
>> Charlie Self
>> "The test and the use of man's education is that he finds pleasure in the
>> exercise of his mind." Jacques Barzun
>
>End rolls? you mean those 8-12 foot long rolls? Just an inch or inch
>and one half would be a heck of a lot of paper and only $5?

Most of the ones I've seen vary in length from 42" to about 72". The point is,
these are pulled off the press because leaving them there will interrupt a run
at an inefficient time, or otherwise create a production problem. It isn't
economical to return a short roll to the press, so over time, an awful lot of
them accumulate. Thus, 5 bucks is an acceptable trade-off to keep from having
dozens standing around. Another point: This material makes a good backdrop for
photography instead of buying rolls of seamless paper.

Charlie Self
"The test and the use of man's education is that he finds pleasure in the
exercise of his mind." Jacques Barzun


gG

in reply to [email protected] (Charlie Self) on 07/06/2004 6:57 AM

07/06/2004 12:44 PM

The Ft Myers News-Press will give you the end rolls. They just want you to give
them a deposit on the empty roll. Once you have one you just swap them out. We
used newsprint for packing and always had a few rolls around the shop.

Gg

"George"

in reply to "George E. Cawthon" on 07/06/2004 1:41 AM

07/06/2004 6:33 AM

Take a sponge -natural preferred- and a bit of water paint of suitable
color. Daub at random to get a _color_ vanishing background.

I get the latex-surfaced shiny printing paper from a local mill
occasionally. Makes the world's best drop cloths. NOTHING gets through.

"Charlie Self" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
. Another point: This material makes a good backdrop for
> photography instead of buying rolls of seamless paper.
>

LJ

Larry Jaques

in reply to "George" on 06/06/2004 8:04 AM

07/06/2004 6:53 AM

On Mon, 07 Jun 2004 01:41:02 GMT, "George E. Cawthon"
<[email protected]> calmly ranted:

>
>
>Charlie Self wrote:
>>
>> George responds:
>>
>> >Emulsifying is good, but might harm the wood. TSP, the new stuff which
>> >isn't, is a good choice.
>> >
>> >Personally, I'd take it to the sunlight and soak everything that came to the
>> >surface off with unprinted newsprint. Might even coax it a bit with a warm
>> >iron. After that, a rubdown with spirits to drive it back or remove from
>> >surface, then a bit of the wax that will serve as the glue rejecter on my
>> >bench should keep it nice until it evaporates.
>> >
>>
>> Good tip. For those who think newsprint is hard to find without ink
>> impressions, check almost any small or medium sized newspaper. They are glad to
>> sell their end rolls for a very small price, usually under $5.
>>
>> Charlie Self
>> "The test and the use of man's education is that he finds pleasure in the
>> exercise of his mind." Jacques Barzun
>
>End rolls? you mean those 8-12 foot long rolls? Just an inch or inch
>and one half would be a heck of a lot of paper and only $5?

I got two 50" wide end rolls for $3 each from the newspaper in LoCal
before moving and each was the equivalent of about 3k liner feet. I
packed my entire house with 1.5 of them and left the rest for my mom
since she was moving in a year. They're a very good bargain.


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KH

"Kentucky Highlander"

in reply to "George" on 06/06/2004 8:04 AM

06/06/2004 3:17 PM

Thanks to the three of you.

I was just out there and took a cabinet scraper to it, hoping to get some of
the stains off of it, and was surprised at how much of it came off. Only
thing was as I was working on the other end it came back to the surface,
though not as heavy.

After I get the most of this off can I use a oil based varnish or other
finish to seal it? The top is almost dead flat and I want to keep it that
way.

KY
"Charlie Self" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> George responds:
>
> >Emulsifying is good, but might harm the wood. TSP, the new stuff which
> >isn't, is a good choice.
> >
> >Personally, I'd take it to the sunlight and soak everything that came to
the
> >surface off with unprinted newsprint. Might even coax it a bit with a
warm
> >iron. After that, a rubdown with spirits to drive it back or remove from
> >surface, then a bit of the wax that will serve as the glue rejecter on my
> >bench should keep it nice until it evaporates.
> >
>
> Good tip. For those who think newsprint is hard to find without ink
> impressions, check almost any small or medium sized newspaper. They are
glad to
> sell their end rolls for a very small price, usually under $5.
>
> Charlie Self
> "The test and the use of man's education is that he finds pleasure in the
> exercise of his mind." Jacques Barzun
>
>
>

cJ

[email protected] (James Cubby Culbertson)

in reply to "Kentucky Highlander" on 05/06/2004 5:05 PM

05/06/2004 9:17 PM

Naptha or even Dawn dishwashing liquid will take care of it. This
was recommended to me by Jeff Jewitt to remove the oil used when
rubbing out a finish.
Cheers,
cc

MG

"Mike G"

in reply to "Kentucky Highlander" on 05/06/2004 5:05 PM

05/06/2004 7:04 PM

The answer is pretty much you don't. You can use mineral oil to get up the
excess and maybe even thin what has already soaked into the wood. However
I'm afraid you'll just have to live with what the wood has already taken in
and will continue to take in until you get the excess off.



--
Mike G.
[email protected]
Heirloom Woods
www.heirloom-woods.net
"Kentucky Highlander" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> An old man that my parents know told them he had a 'butcher block' table
top
> he needed to sell, he was moving and didn't want to move it. I took a
chance
> and went to look at it. It is exactly like the maple top I paid $299 for
to
> make my bench. The guy asked $25 for it. I paid him and brought it home.
>
> The only trouble is he put about a quart of mineral oil on it last night
and
> I would like to get it all off so I can build a second bench. I got a real
> nice Wilton vise I think would really look nice on it.
>
> Question is: How do I remove the mineral oil? It is almost dripping off of
> it.
>
> KY
>
>

Bn

"Bob"

in reply to "Kentucky Highlander" on 05/06/2004 5:05 PM

05/06/2004 10:45 PM

use mineral spirits to clean it off...

Bob S.


"Kentucky Highlander" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> An old man that my parents know told them he had a 'butcher block' table
top
> he needed to sell, he was moving and didn't want to move it. I took a
chance
> and went to look at it. It is exactly like the maple top I paid $299 for
to
> make my bench. The guy asked $25 for it. I paid him and brought it home.
>
> The only trouble is he put about a quart of mineral oil on it last night
and
> I would like to get it all off so I can build a second bench. I got a real
> nice Wilton vise I think would really look nice on it.
>
> Question is: How do I remove the mineral oil? It is almost dripping off of
> it.
>
> KY
>
>

xn

"xrongor"

in reply to "Kentucky Highlander" on 05/06/2004 5:05 PM

05/06/2004 3:34 PM

i use a hard white (black ones leave marks, which for your purpose may not
matter) rubber squeegee on my butcher block after letting the oil soak for a
while. this wont strip the oil if thats what you want, but after a day or
so it should be in a shape you can work with.

randy

"Kentucky Highlander" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> An old man that my parents know told them he had a 'butcher block' table
top
> he needed to sell, he was moving and didn't want to move it. I took a
chance
> and went to look at it. It is exactly like the maple top I paid $299 for
to
> make my bench. The guy asked $25 for it. I paid him and brought it home.
>
> The only trouble is he put about a quart of mineral oil on it last night
and
> I would like to get it all off so I can build a second bench. I got a real
> nice Wilton vise I think would really look nice on it.
>
> Question is: How do I remove the mineral oil? It is almost dripping off of
> it.
>
> KY
>
>

KH

"Kentucky Highlander"

in reply to "Kentucky Highlander" on 05/06/2004 5:05 PM

05/06/2004 5:55 PM

thanks,


"xrongor" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> i use a hard white (black ones leave marks, which for your purpose may not
> matter) rubber squeegee on my butcher block after letting the oil soak for
a
> while. this wont strip the oil if thats what you want, but after a day or
> so it should be in a shape you can work with.
>
> randy
>
> "Kentucky Highlander" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > An old man that my parents know told them he had a 'butcher block' table
> top
> > he needed to sell, he was moving and didn't want to move it. I took a
> chance
> > and went to look at it. It is exactly like the maple top I paid $299 for
> to
> > make my bench. The guy asked $25 for it. I paid him and brought it home.
> >
> > The only trouble is he put about a quart of mineral oil on it last night
> and
> > I would like to get it all off so I can build a second bench. I got a
real
> > nice Wilton vise I think would really look nice on it.
> >
> > Question is: How do I remove the mineral oil? It is almost dripping off
of
> > it.
> >
> > KY
> >
> >
>
>


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