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1. 
   Dave_in_Cairns | Nov 05, 2000 03:12pm | #1

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   I'm a little confused as to why after applying tung oil , you then used rottenstone and parrafin oil , or maybe I'm misreading your post. As to getting the rottenstone out of the pores , I think you may have to resort to rescraping and starting over. This time apply a mix of tung and ploy vanish to seal , and when dry (3-4 days) rub out with 600g w/d paper lubed with tung oil. then apply as many coats as needed to build the finish leaving overnight at least to dry between coats. Finally rub out with 0000 steel wool and then wax .
   
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1. 
   TAB | Nov 07, 2000 11:24pm | #2

   *Hi Michelle:Oh dear! Unless I've misread this post, you've made a very fundamental mistake..."Rubbing out" is a means of 'polishing' or otherwise adjusting the sheen (or glossiness) of film finishes.Oil finishes are extremely thin (they don't really count as a 'film finish'): rub the finish and you're basically rubbing the surface of the wood. Rottenstone is used like a very fine grade of sandpaper (except in this case, without the paper) in the final stages of rubbing out finishes like: shellac, lacquer, polyurethane or other varnishes.. but not oil!Your best bet is the above mentioned scraping, followed by sanding to the desired smoothness. If your surface wood is too thin for this (i.e. a veneered surface) then you'll want to explore solvents which will loosen up the grit enough to wash/rub it out of the wood. I would try, in the following order: mineral spirits, wood alcohol, methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) or acetone. Just take a bit of the solvent, pour it onto a maple square and then rub it around with a Q-tip. If you see rottenstone lifting out, then great. If not, try a new solvent and go to another square.In the future: sand or scrape the wood up to the smoothness you want (there's little reason to go past 220 grit). Apply tung oil (as in the instructions) by soaking the surface, waiting five minutes and then buff off the excess. Let it dry at least overnight. Repeat for as many coats as desired. Then, apply a coat of paste wax (far superior to paraffin). That's it! No need to rub - that's not what oil is for. 'Hand-rubbed oil finish' is largely a marketing term that has little relationship to the 'rubbed out' finish that woodworkers refer to. Let me know if you have any questions,-t