# Is there such a thing as a heat resistant finish?



## Barry747 (Jun 16, 2011)

I watched a short video posted by Steve Ramsey of Woodworking for Mere Mortals and he made a push/pull stick for the oven. Not sure what wood he used but he finished it with spray lacquer. If you can suffer through the ads, the video is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSu0Lr5ihdY&list=UUBB7sYb14uBtk8UqSQYc9-w My question is, is there a finish that can withstand up to 500 degrees F for the short period of time that the wood would be in contact with the metal rack or would it be best to leave the wood unfinished? Also, any thoughts on what wood would be best for this project?

In case you do watch the video and download the plan, I redesigned it so that both the backward "C" of the puller and the forward "C" of the pusher are on the same end. Makes more sense to me since, if you pull out the rack too far, you'd want to push it back quickly and rotating the stick end for end might take too much time. How do I know this you might ask? Experience, I might answer.

Since I'm going to make a few of these for my adult kids I'll stack several blanks using double sided tape and cut them out on the band saw. I'll also drill a hole in the handle so that they can hang it if they want.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

tile...

not that I know of...
Ipe will polish out very nicely and has a fire safety rating....

cured dull oil finish soaked into the wood (as opposed to on the surface) is the easiest to renew/ repair....
that leaves mineral oil....


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## boogalee (Nov 24, 2010)

hi-temp-engine-paints

Thurmalox


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

I think no finish might be your best bet but maybe an oil finish. Most of the shiny finishes are a type of plastic.


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Whatever they use on those wooden handled BBQ implements is pretty good at resisting heat, until they char that is.


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## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Which museum is the shuttle on display at? I'd bring a chisel and when the curator isn't looking I'd pop some of those tiles off and glue em to your stick


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## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

RainMan1 said:


> Which museum is the shuttle on display at? I'd bring a chisel and when the curator isn't looking I'd pop some of those tiles off and glue em to your stick


Did the Rooski's point their satellite at you?


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## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

MT Stringer said:


> Did the Rooski's point their satellite at you?


So far so good but I have this weird compulsion to where a tinfoil hat


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

I'm going to make some of those.

Thanks, 
Herb


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## kp91 (Sep 10, 2004)

I think no finish would be best, or a light oiling. Once it is dry it should be fine. Most of those oils have flash or fire points well above 450 degrees (f), close to the wood itself.

>>> of course, your results may vary! <<<


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## Barry747 (Jun 16, 2011)

*Update*

Thanks for your comments. I wrote to General Finishes, explained the project, and asked if any of their products would meet the requirements. Their customer service department responded reasonably fast and said the following:

_"You should be able to use our Enduro Var or our High performance top coat for hand applying or spraying, or for spraying only, use our Enduro Clear Poly. For that short amount of time they are in the heat any of these should work you may eventually have to recoat them after much use"._

They sent me PDF's on each product along with one entitled "Applying water based top coats". What I like about these finishes is that they're water based (I work in my basement with no vent to the outside and it's winter now) and that they're water and chemical resistant. I don't have spray equipment so 2 of the 3 can be brushed on. Neither product is cheap but that seems to be the way of the world. 

What i'm thinking of doing is finishing everything except the inside of the "C" shaped hook and pusher; the parts that will come in direct contact with the hot rack for the longest period of time. My only concern is, if I leave those parts bare, will water get in through the unfinished edges and swell or split the wood? Anyone have any experience with that?


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

Your research is good to know. Will look at those finishes,I am a fan of water based products. 
I have a hunch that they are correct in their assessment that the "puller/pusher" will not be in contact with the heat long enough to blister. If you are worried about the part contacting the hot metal of the rack there are solutions like :
Don't put them in water,just wipe them clean.
Go ahead and finish them like the rest of the tool.
Soak up the edge with Odie's oil.
Line that edge with some of that foil sticky backed duct tape, (aluminum).

I am going to make some of those, good idea.

Herb


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## Barry747 (Jun 16, 2011)

Herb, I'm going to take a piece of Maple and cut some "Pull" notches in it then finish the notches in various ways, natural, mineral oil, poly, etc. Then put the oven on broil and test the notches to see what smokes :fie: 

I redesigned the stick. My wife didn't like the feel of the handle. I traced the handle of a kitchen knife and she liked it. We also realized that if you have a large pan or cookie sheet in the oven, you may not be able to grab the rack from the top, so you'd have to flip it over and grab the rack from the bottom. To accommodate this I mirrored the knife handle on the top of the stick so it would feel the same either way you hold it. I centered the push notch on the end so it functioned the same way regardless of which way its held. As a note, I used a 3/4" round over bit for the handle. I used a 1/8" round over to ease all of the other edges. I did this to leave as much wood as possible in the body for strength.

I attached a picture of my prototype. I used a slice off of a 2X4 so it isn't pretty but it is functional. 

I also attached a copy of the sketch I used to create the prototype. The grid is 5 to the inch. The overall dimensions of the stick are 12" X 1 3/4" X 3/4". The hole in the end is to attach a leather hanging strap. Note that the sketch is not an engineering drawing. I evened and smoothed the curves when I made the prototype. Since I will make a number of them I'm going to make an MDF template so I can use the router with a pattern bit to save me a lot of sanding. 

If anyone has any other suggestions to improve the stick please let me know.


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## kp91 (Sep 10, 2004)

That is a snazzy looking oven pull!


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Barry747 said:


> If anyone has any other suggestions to improve the stick please let me know.


Cut a hook into the handle so that it can hang on the door handle?


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## Barry747 (Jun 16, 2011)

Cherryville Chuck said:


> Cut a hook into the handle so that it can hang on the door handle?


Charles, great suggestion. I hadn't thought of that. Thanks. For this version I'm going to thread a piece of leather lace (just bought it today at a Michael's craft store) through the hole in the end. That's fine if someone has a hook nearby but won't work if, as you suggested, they want to hang it on the oven door handle. I'll do that for Oven Push-Pull Version 2. 

I designed the current one, now renamed Version 1 , to be 12" long since that's an economical length to cut from purchased lumber and is long enough to keep the user's hand from getting too close to the hot rack. V2 may have to be a bit longer, I'm not sure. I may be able to eliminate the "pommel" and move the handle an inch forward which would give 2". That might be enough. Before I design it I'll check the ovens at a couple of the big box stores to get the dimensions of current handles. Our oven handle is 1.5" high and 3/4" deep.

Thanks again for the suggestion.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Sometimes the hamsters in my head get the wheel up to full speed.


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

You are on the right track, Barry, keep us posted on v.2


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