Hi, I was wanting to ask if anyone has advice on best oil to finish birch ply shelving. I’m looking for a very neutral finish. Thanks!
Advice for best oil to finish birch ply
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I like Osmo Polyx oil
I recently used some (Birch?) Ply for a unit in my kitchen… you can see it here… finished with original Danish Oil and no wax…
Danish oil and recently bees wax are my go to for natural finish these days. be aware anything natural apparently needs to be touched up (I haven’t had anything last that long yet )
Polyx Oil seems to be a good way to go. Here’s a bit of an article about it from Lost Art https://blog.lostartpress.com/2014/04/08/my-favorite-finish-for-now/
Danish oil could also work because it’ll leave a varnish on the surface once the oil has been absorbed.
If I remember correctly, we have some form of Osmo in the woodshop and Danish oil, why not do a side by side comparison of each, you can then run various things over the surface and see which give the shelf the best protection. You can then keep us all updated for future projects like this 
I’m recently using olive or walnut oil on solid wood but i cannot vouch for long durability… I was planning to use the same on plywood.
I’ve used natural beewax on toys and after a year of use they are still as before ( i guess they would require rewaxing at some point)
Thanks everyone for your advice! Will test a few options like Ryan suggested and will let you know what I go for.
If there’s no Osmo in the workshop I have some you can test out
Thanks Mike, I’ll let you know!
I’ve used beeswax, which is very easy to apply and quite a natural, neutral finish.
In my kitchen I used water based varnish which is slightly yellower than the beeswax, but has held up fine for 10 years so far.
Hi all! Have been meaning to update you on the decision. Went for osmo Matt clear finish, had tested the satin finish as well and felt it had a little more yellow tint than the Matt. Here’s some pics of the finished shelf. Thanks to @lewisss for the track saw induction and advice along the way.
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Nice. I like the big dowels.
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