I've read that diluting Boiled Linseed Oil with Mineral Spirits in a 60/40 ratio is pretty well accepted for sealing the wood. Has anyone ever used another solvent like acetone, IPA, methanol, or something like that? Would a more rapidly-evaporating solvent decrease the time it takes for the wood to dry? I did a few searches and didn't find anything on this.

I believe that mineral spirits and boiled linseed oil have sufficiently similar properties in common that they can dissolve in one another.

Perhaps a problem with the relatively small sized chemicals that you mentioned (acetone, ipa, methanol) is that they may be sufficiently chemically different from boiled linseed oil that they might not be good solvents for it.

I am of the understanding that the MS is mixed in the BLO for 2 reasons. One to help allow for maximim penetration (absorbtion of the BLO). Two to promote drying.
Solvents that flash off too fast will be of no use.

I mixed val oil with Xylene and I think it worked, it's just very nasty stuff.

After all the personal accounts here of near fires with BLO, I'll never bring it into my house. I use helmsman cut with ms. I have 3 year old plugs that I still use that haven't split, flaked or started smoking.

I use the Val-oil cut 50/50/ with minerals spirits....seems to work pretty good

Has anyone found something that the direct sunlight wont affect..????

Has anyone found something that the direct sunlight wont affect..????


Fish at night:jester: