Shopsmith Forums

I got some Cedar from work Eastern Red-cedar. (Juniperus virginiana) .
It sort of soft remind me of cypress or western red cedar. Anymore with finishing tip like to keep the smell maybe a oil finish of some sorts on the outside Tongue oil maybe

For looks I like a spray on polyurethane. It seems to bring out the reds and purples while keeping the lighter colors light. I've also used Danish oil, and Boiled Linseed Oil. While I like the feel of those, they do darken and mute the colors in the wood. I don't think I've tried Tung oil. I'm no expert at finishing and that is the extent of my finishing experience with cedar (or just about any other wood, for that matter).

I did a job on my front entrance that I put on about 3 years ago and it still doesn't look like it needs to be retouched yet. It has an orangey colour to it and looks great, I am always getting people stop by the house and admiring it.
What I use is a product from Sico I hope you guys get it in the States, anyway the finish is in 2 parts. You put on Cetol#1 and let it dry and then put on Cetol#2, very simple and looks great.

With Cedar and any other wood in fact, the scent (smell) will subside over time. Somebody once told me (for applications like cedar closets), when the cedar aroma subsides you can take sand paper and just lightly scuff up the surface. And, that should help to bring back some of the aroma. However, I've never tried it myself. But anyway, any kind of finish you apply to the wood will have a tendency to seal up all the pores and reduce the aroma.

I've personally have only used a light wood sealer for Cedar in outdoor applications such as Woodlife or Tompsons Water Seal. Even though Cedar is a hardy wood it still tends to want to dry out and grey over time when exposed to the elements.

littlejohnnc wrote:I got some Cedar from work Eastern Red-cedar. (Juniperus virginiana) .
It sort of soft remind me of cypress or western red cedar. Anymore with finishing tip like to keep the smell maybe a oil finish of some sorts on the outside Tongue oil maybe

Tung oil will do.

Thanks for the replies. I got some poly Tung oil Danish oil get some samples of wood see what the boss thinks ... That be my wife

Post some pictures of your samples!

QUOTE=littlejohnnc]I got some Cedar from work Eastern Red-cedar. (Juniperus virginiana) .
It sort of soft remind me of cypress or western red cedar. Anymore with finishing tip like to keep the smell maybe a oil finish of some sorts on the outside Tongue oil maybe [/QUOTE]

Two years ago SWMBO decided we needed a new fireplace mantle. I found a piece of what I would call aromatic cedar that was used on a abandoned corral. After cleaning it up on the planer it looked and smelled wonderful. I coated it with neutral stain and finished it with a water based clear finish (probably minwax brand). As you can see it has lost its vivid colors and is now brown and boring. I am not sure what the answer is but I do know It's not way I finished it.

[ATTACH]19266[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH]19267[/ATTACH]

Cedar is soft, so the outer surfaces that get use and wear need help. Urethane seals it and makes it more durable as well as enhancing the wood color. It also seals it so the aroma can't come out. So, I use urethane only on the outer wearing surfaces and leave the undersides uncoated to keep the nice aroma.
Many years ago, I somehow inherited the job of building cedar chests for my large family. To date, I've built somewhere between 15-20 of them. All are lined with cedar, and most are some other kind of wood on the outside. The cedar inside is still aromatic on the oldest ones even after 25 years. Of the lot, 2 of them are built entirely of cedar. On those two, the inside is unfinished to keep the aroma. The cedar on the outside is sealed and strengthened with urethane.
Oil finishes aren't going to seal the wood as well as urethane, and they don't add strength. They also block the cedar smell somewhat and replace it with an oil smell, so I see no advantage to using them.

Garys
I think your way of coating the outside with Urethane leaving the inside un coated is the best way to go.
This wood (Juniperus virginiana) is not that deep red cedar its lot lighter an was kiln dryed to 8% mc...after planning it down it dose not seen to have that oily feeling to it. I'll do some test strips this week end an post them. Oh I've seen some yall cedar from ND it rocks !!