A while ago I had asked a question about thinning val oil that didn't get answered, which I kind of took to mean that was a topic that is maybe considered to be somewhat off limits.:rollem:

So this weekend I did a big test.

I understand that a lot of you guys have worked hard coming up with something that works, and I don't want to post anything that's gonna tick anyone off. There's been enough of that lately.

Here's what I did. I took a piece of ayc that had knots in it, and turned it round and then chopped it into 2" pieces.

I then sealed those pieces in
1. 50/50 val oil turp and dipped for a short time like you would for linseed oil mix. I dipped it for 10 min.
2. 50/50 val oil/turp, submerged for 10 hours
3. 50/50 val oil to the odorless Thinner, dipped 10 min
4. 50/50 val oil to odorless thnner, submerged 10 hours.
5. Straight val oil, submerged 24 hours.

I let these dry for three days, then I submerged them for 10 hours in water mixed with a dark blue dye, and I let this dry for about 10-12 hours.

Here's what they look like on the outside.

The question is, is it going to tick anyone off if I post what they look like when I cut them in 1/2 ?

I'm heading out for a while, but if anyone has an objection just shoot me a pm and I won't post the pics. No biggy, no names mentioned...
If no one objects I'll post the pics later on tonight...

hell-NO !!
cut them bad boys open:behead:

Let's see it

hell-NO !!
cut them bad boys open:behead:

Dave - sounds similar to what I said earlier. Cut em open baby!!

Nobody will object
show us


sorry your question didn't get answered
I don't read every post

cut them.:behead:

Great experiment...would love to see the results. Thanks.

Please hurry up. The dreaded school science fair is just over the horizon and my selectively brain dead teenage son needs someone to design a project for him so he can get into college and avoid having to work for a living. This looks promising.

Numbskull I think he's gonna have to aim just a little bit higher... :laugha:

Ok here goes nothing..
In left to right order

Val oil/turp 10 min
val oil/ turp 10 hrs
Val oil/odorless thinner 10 min
Val oil/odorless thinner 10 hrs,
straight val oil.

I've got close up so of each of em too if they're not too big...

close up of val oil/turp

valoil/turp 10 min
valoil turp 10 hrs.

Looks to me like the 10 hrs (on the right) did a tiny bit better around the thru hole.

Nice miss drill too :rollem:

val oil/and the odorless thinner

10 min followed by 10 hr

Again the 10 hr looks better and I could not tell the difference between the 10 hr valoil/turp mix and 10 hr valoil/odorless thinner mix.

Ok , straight val oil, 24 hrs (this is what I usually do).

Hard to see, but would you say you were surprised that you got a pretty even result from all methods and lenghts of time? If that is the case 10 minutes or even shorter will do the trick. Thanks for posting.

good post dj :kewl:

I'm not sure how conclusive this is, read into what you want. But it looks to me like the straight val oil worked better than the val oil that was cut, and it did not seem to matter whether you cut it with turp or the odorless stuff.

The 10 hr cut stuff seemed to work just about as well, its hard to tell, but really 10 hrs or 24 doesn't save me any time, although the cut stuff would save you a bit of a mess.

Thanks for showing us :)

looks good, not much water penetration I guess.

I wonder how it would hold up on maple or birch.

Great stuff DJ. :kewl: Thanks for taking the time to do it and be willing to share it. :hihi:

Good test Dave. Now one question....How blue are your fingers:rotf2:

:hihi:

Good info thanks

Cool stuff, thanks for sharing!

Jigman

great test - thanks. just wondering, has anyone taken the time to try this with linseed oil?

Great test ... To me straight Val oil didn't look like it did as well . no ?

Tagger you made me go back for another look, thanks , as if I wasn't confused enough.

I cut more slices off of each one and it appeared that the best ones were actually the odorless thinner mix, and of those the one that was for only 10 minutes looked the best. And when I picked them up that one definitely felt lighter than the others. But how can that be ?? I just don't get it.


More pics, you decide...

First is val oil turp, second is the 2 val oil/odorless thinner ones...

and the straight val oil again... (the 3 on the right hand side.)

and the straight val oil again... (the 3 on the right hand side.)
How long did the straight non cut val-oil take to dry?

i wish you did this test on a wood that is absorbant. correct me if i am wrong, but doesnt AYC resist moisture absorption???? for instance, if you used maple, or pine it would suck up water. Also, you did not dip a piece of AYC that you did not seal as a contol group..


sorry to nitpick-

my biggist complaint with val oil is that its goooooooey

Nice information and thanks for doing it.

Nebe wrote:my biggist complaint with val oil is that its goooooooey.

I have been thinning with turp and it is much easier to work with now. I just hate the smell.

good idea hound- my above post has an error, i shoud have said it would have been better to use a wood that IS absorbant.

ayc does absorb water, not a lot, but some. i've soaked unsealed ayc plug blanks in my saltwater tank for a couple of hours and they each gained about .2 oz. i like the val-oil cut with pure turps.

i like the val-oil cut with pure turps.

the problem I have with that turps stuff is, that fish have a great sense of smell and I have let the blanks dry for weeks and the turps smell is still there , I have plugs from last lear that still smell, so if a bass gets a wiff of it they might be turned off by the smell :huh: that's my thinking anyway. Maybe I didn't let them dry in a warm enough area, guess I should have left them out in the sun on a hot day or something.

imo if you don't let the sealer mix dry long enough it will smell, but after a few dunkings it'll wash away. i used to wait two days before painting now i wait one week in a climate controlled room, heater and dehumidifier. works well for me. sometimes i'm impatient and rush a proto and it will reak, after a test session smell will be vitually gone.

All good stuff, thanks everyone.:kewl:

Excellent experiment, Very good work DJ.

Another option would be to add the dye to the combinations befor the experiment to see which sealer actually penitrated better. Got to admit the suspense was great!

http://www.stripersonline.com/ubb547/ultimatebb.php/topic/11/4440.html#000000
http://www.stripersonline.com/ubb547/ultimatebb.php/topic/11/4464.html#000000

Couple links to a test with linsy/minpirits vs Thompsons..
By H'Islander.. :kewl:
more good info...

Slip, I use the turps as a thinner... I let my plugs sit and air out for 7 days, heated room, but I do a looooong dip as well, not just a minute or two.
I then put my weights in, sand off excess epoxy... they usually have almost all the stink off by then, but, before I go to primer, I dip them for a spell in thinned out ZipGuard Exterior/Marine Urethane, let them drip, wipe just he excess.. then let them sit another day or two.
they dry HARD.. give them a quick sand and prime... then U killed me more time when you told me to let the primer sit for a week ;)... takes a freakin month to get them thru seal,prime, paint,clear.... but I'm happy with end result, and No Stink.

maybe my turpitine was no good or old or something
it'll wear off I guess

Karl thats good info too.

Sorry ,, not to be a PIA,, how about a 24hrs. submersed test ? I'll go fly a kite if you want ..

big diff if your oil and wood are warm compaired to cold oil and wood.
cold epoxy doesn't flow, cold oil won't sink in either.

Sorry ,, not to be a PIA,, how about a 24hrs. submersed test ? I'll go fly a kite if you want ..

read his first post again
it's there

diggin jiggin,:kewl: thanks for the great post

should be more specific,,, val oil/ turps ,,50/50..24 hrs. . not straight up ..

thanks CS ,,now i gotta keep my wood and my oil up in the kitchen .. she's gonna toss me ..

Taggers right, the only one that was 24 hrs was the straight val oil. I thought 24 would be way too long for the thin stuff.

Maybe Capesam was onto something with the temperature too as it is cold in my garage where I did all the sealing (40 or so at night), and the turp stuff smelled so bad I did not bring them into the warmer part of the basement near the furnace for a couple of days. I wish I'd done just a piece of unsealed wood too, to have it to compare too the others to see how much it absorbed and too see the difference sealing it made.

I've still got the stuff, I could do another test. I think i've got some 5/4 pine left over from a xmas project... If I do another test on a softer wood do you think that would be a more valid test. how long should i let em soak...what do you want to see ?

Great test
Is the best way to quantify water absorbtion visual or by weight?
I have been thinking about trying this but don't have all the different sealers.
Use a very accurate scale. Might have to borrow one from a science teacher or your neighborhood drug dealer:hang:
Each block would start off at the same weight.
One block would have no treatment as a control
Each block would be sealed with a different method
Each block should have a thru hole and a perpendicular hole so they are similar to actual conditions
After sealing prime and paint?
Immerse in water for some amount of time to simulate actual conditions and then let air dry till free water is gone.
Weigh and compare.
I believe different woods have vastly different rates of absorbtion and this makes a large difference in how the wood acts upon exposure to water.