Boiled linseed oil vs raw linseed oil

[Old Hawkeye]

I use a mixture of beeswax, olive oil, and Venice terpintine to treat my leather holsters after making them. Venice Terpintine is not what you buy in the paint store. It is a jelly like substance bought in tack stores and farrier supply houses and is used to toughen the soles of horses feet. In that application it must be used very judiciously, as it is very penetrating and highly irritating and can actually lame a horse. The Venice Terpintine penetrates and stiffens, the beeswax adds a soft waterproof sheen and the olive oil simply facilitates application. The mixture is initially very tacky but dries to a beautiful finish with a nice natural feel. Obviously this mixture must be made with the beeswax in a melted condition.

My experience has been that the so called Venice Turpentine supposedly in horse hoof salve is completely missing. It may have been an element of these products at one time but have I not been able to find any of the current products that contain VT. The best source is an artist's supply store or website, as it is used with the oil paints artist use. Pure VT looks like honey & is about twice as thick. I consider it one of the essential ingredients of any BLO based gunstock finish. Gum Spirits & Carnauba Wax being the other two.

 

[Onojutta]

Just get some Wahkon Bay Tru-Coat and you'll never worry about anything else again. It is linseed oil based and has some other stuff in it, but land sakes is it good stuff. The experience and smell of rubbing that on a stock once a day for a week and then once a week for a month is a true pleasure.

 

[Springerpanhead]

My experience has been that the so called Venice Turpentine supposedly in horse hoof salve is completely missing. It may have been an element of these products at one time but have I not been able to find any of the current products that contain VT. The best source is an artist's supply store or website, as it is used with the oil paints artist use. Pure VT looks like honey & is about twice as thick. I consider it one of the essential ingredients of any BLO based gunstock finish. Gum Spirits & Carnauba Wax being the other two.

Look up farrier supplies. Northeast Farrier Supply in Winsted Ct 866-333-6337. and Meader Farrier Supply Rochester NH 603-332-3032 are 2 places that carry Venice Terpintine. Literally every farrier supply house carries it as do many tack shops, usually in 1/2 or 1 pint cans. It isn’t an element of salve it is used by itself to toughen the soles of horses feet. Salve was never mentioned.

 

[Springerpanhead]

Just get some Wahkon Bay Tru-Coat and you'll never worry about anything else again. It is linseed oil based and has some other stuff in it, but land sakes is it good stuff. The experience and smell of rubbing that on a stock once a day for a week and then once a week for a month is a true pleasure.

You should check and see what else is in it besides linseed oil that you might be absorbing through your skin.

 

[cannonball1]

I don’t see how linseed oil would swell an area, if dried over it will act as a filler however not a good one At that.

For filling voids or bad inletting I used spar or table top varnish over the area until its filled with a dull grey appearance, once dried. I hand rub over linseed oil in the area as the oil will blend in the filled varnish area. The downside to this is disassembly is more difficult, as it is more permanent . .

You have to remember the voids he is talking about you might have to have a jeweler visor to see. He has since passed, but he was one of the greats. I wouldn't have argued with him. I am sure photos of his knives are on the internet. Some of them went for thousands.