# Finishing an aromatic cedar chest



## drbbob (Sep 26, 2009)

Hello all.
I am making a cedar chest ( out of aromatic cedar ) and am trying to decide how to finish the outside and what to use. I have most of the glue ups made and have to dovetail the panels next, so there is time for research. 
Has anyone had any experience and or sucess/failures with finishing aromatic cedar ?


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## Dmeadows (Jun 28, 2011)

I think generally the aromatic cedar is left unfinished. Otherwise you lose the aromatic nature of it. That's assuming you are using the cedar just as a liner.


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## drbbob (Sep 26, 2009)

No, I'm not lining a carcass. I picked up some 5/4 rough cedar that I have planed, jointed and glued up. ( all glue joints were wiped with acetone before gluing. )_I realize that the inside is not to be finished, but I would like to finish the outside surface with something that will not react with the oils in the resin and leave a high gloss.
So-back to the question. Has anyone had any experience and sucess/failure with finishing aromatic cedar ?


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## Dmeadows (Jun 28, 2011)

From the Sawmill creek forum

I have finished aromatic cedar with a variety of oils and sometimes the volatiles in the wood ate the finish. I have never tried it, but I have heard that shellac may stand up to this problem.

In any event, I contacted Flecto about this problem and they told me that even shellac MAY not stand up to the volatiles. They went on to say that the only way to be sure of getting a finish that will hold up is to use wax. Since then, this was about three or four years ago, I have followed that advice and experience no more problems.

Now that I think about it, I would contact the manufacturer of whatever type of finish you are leaning toward and ask them if it will stand up to the aromatic cedar. They normally have a toll free number of website on the product. Since you are talking about a fairly major project, it might be worth the trouble..... 

Wolf Kiessling 

Finishing a aromatic cedar chest

YMMV


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

From the responses it appears that the question may be the answer. If past attempts to apply a finish have failed, that may well have _led_ to aromatic cedar being relegated to a liner role, rather than being the featured material(?).
Another aspect that might be of concern would be the overly rapid drying out of the cedar's oils, due to it's exposure to air, making it less useful for the anti-moth function that it's known best for.
In any case, wax sounds like a decent alternative...maybe also Tung oil?
Washing it down with acetone will accelerate that drying out.


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Bob; if you're using it, you already know that aromatic cedar isn't a true cedar, rather a Juniper. Some folks at that 'finishing a aromatic cedar chest' link were confusing the two species. Some of the advice given there would work well with Western Red Cedar, but I fear somewhat riskier with the aromatic wood.
If you're looking for a definitive answer, try these guys...
Aromatic Cedar Association - formerly Oklahoma Redcedar Association - Cedar Oil


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## ggom20 (Feb 1, 2012)

Good link, thank's Daninvan!

Why not try finishing with cedar oil ?
If not giving a good enought result, The oil would
Probably disolve with some pure bee wax.

Pure extract of pine tree dissolves wax well too and
will evaporate. Some cook it, but with no flame around as it is very explosive when hot.

The cold way works well: 
If you want to try it put 1 amount of pure turpentine plus 1 
same amount pure bee wax, pealed like potatoes chips,
Wait next day , and mix,Then you got First Quality bee wax.
It smells turpentine, at beginning, but the smell disapears after some time.

You probably got cuts of that aromatic cedar wood 
To make your own testing

regards

Regards


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Gerard; just a guess here, there are undoubtedly others here with experience dealing with oily wood, but the oil finishes formulated for finishing teak furniture *should* be ideal for your purposes...
This article clears up a lot of misconceptions (a lot of which I was a victim of!)
Oil Finishes: Their History and Use | Popular Woodworking Magazine


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## drbbob (Sep 26, 2009)

Thanks Dan-- You are correct on both counts. Acetone does "dry up" some of the oils. That's why the glue joints were wiped down prior to glueing. And aromatic cedar is a juniper. Much of what we get in Minnesota comes from Tennesee. My wife has a cedar chest that her father made for her when she was a girl and it has a semi-gloss finish on the outside.Every 10 years or so, I have to lightly scuff the inside with some 400 grit to release more of the oils for the smell.I will check out the website.
Bob


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