O.B's Shine Juice
This finish is attributed to O.B. Lacoste of Layfette LA by Capt Eddie Castelin. (eddiecastelin.com)
The recipe is basically 1/3 uncolored shellac, 1/3 boiled linseed oil, and 1/3 denatured alcohol. All of the ingredients pictured below are available at Home Depot.
Similar products are available at other retailers nationwide.
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Using a suitable container that has a sealable lid (I use a 12 oz Mason jar) add the ingredients in the 1/3, 1/3, 1/3 proportions (for a 12 oz jar, 3 ozs of each will be about the right amount. Seal the jar (or container of choice) with its lid and shake the container to mix the 3 ingredients. Once mixed, your O.B's Shine Juice is ready to use.
To use:
I normally transfer a small amount of the mixture to an empty squeeze bottle (used mustard bottles work well for me) when I am ready to apply the "juice" to my turning. Please note that the alcohol in the mixture with evaporate relatively quickly from any container that is not well sealed (such as a squeeze bottle). Emptying unused "juice" back into the original Mason jar, once you've finished with your turning, will help keep your mixture's proportions correct.
Once the my squeeze bottle has been filled, I squirt a small amount of the the "juice" onto a paper towel and generously apply it to the turning with the lathe off (I've also done this with the lathe at low speed but that resulted in a spattering of "juice" on my face mask, clothes, and the lathe ways - your experice may differ.) IMPORTANT SAFTEY NOTE: DO NOT USE A CLOTH RAG, TOWEL, OR SIMILAR. Cloth is sufficiently strong to severly damage you fingers in the event the cloth snags on the turning. Paper towels work fine and shred before your hand does.
Once you've applied the "juice" to your turning, give a minute or so to soak in, and apply a second coat. Once the second coat has set for a minute, start the lathe (running at 500 to 1,200 RPM), add a little more "juice" to your paper towel and begin rubbing the paper towel slowly, back and forth across your turning. The alcohol with evaporate and the shellac and linseed oil will cure and harden. You may repeat the 3 step process (1. Apply & wait, 2. Apply & wait, 3. Spin and rub) as many times as needed to acheive the finish you desire. Once you've added as much finish as you desire, you are done.
A note on food safety: As with nearly every other finish sold in the U.S. today, O.B.'s Shine Juice is food safe - once it has completly cured. The key to safety is "completely" cured. Dry to the touch is not necessarily "completely" cured. When in doubt let it dry for a few days to a few weeks - if you can still smell the finish is not completely cured.
And, food safe doesn't mean liquid tight. Just becuase its shiny dosen't mean it will hold soup!