Linseed oil finish?

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I have a project I'm currently working on which I want to keep as raw steel finish. Would y'all be saying BLO is the best option or is there something better out there?

I asked in another forum and someone said BLO is a bit old-tech and suggested there would be better, more modern options, they suggested Dinitrol products but not a specific product and I can't really see anything in the range that'll do what I want. Linseed oil is so cheap that I reckon I'll give it a shot.

Given the spontaneous combustion danger with the rags, I wonder if welding on a frame that's previously been linseed oiled is safe?

Last question, I presume the ambient temperature will affect drying times for BLO? I'm in Scotland and it's barely been above freezing for the last few weeks, I could bring the frame into my flat if there's not too much smell from linseed oil? Hammerite paint is the other option I was considering (though I really would prefer to be able to see th raw steel) but going by past experience of painting a frame in summer, I'd expect it'd take about a month for hammerite to cure at the moment!
 
I have a project I'm currently working on which I want to keep as raw steel finish. Would y'all be saying BLO is the best option or is there something better out there?

I asked in another forum and someone said BLO is a bit old-tech and suggested there would be better, more modern options, they suggested Dinitrol products but not a specific product and I can't really see anything in the range that'll do what I want. Linseed oil is so cheap that I reckon I'll give it a shot.

Given the spontaneous combustion danger with the rags, I wonder if welding on a frame that's previously been linseed oiled is safe?

Last question, I presume the ambient temperature will affect drying times for BLO? I'm in Scotland and it's barely been above freezing for the last few weeks, I could bring the frame into my flat if there's not too much smell from linseed oil? Hammerite paint is the other option I was considering (though I really would prefer to be able to see th raw steel) but going by past experience of painting a frame in summer, I'd expect it'd take about a month for hammerite to cure at the moment!
From what I've been told if you clear coat a raw steel frame it will rust under the clear But i used blo and didn't have a problem i just put it on real lightly several coats and it looks good

Sent from my LG-LS995 using Tapatalk
 
From what I've been told if you clear coat a raw steel frame it will rust under the clear But i used blo and didn't have a problem i just put it on real lightly several coats and it looks good

Sent from my LG-LS995 using Tapatalk

Yeah I've done clearcoat over raw steel on a few things, sometimes it seems to take pretty well, others it flakes off real easy and it's always a temporary solution, it doesn't take long for the moisture to find a way in.

I tried blo a while ago actually and din't get on with it but I think I layed it on too thick so it just stayed gummy. Will try lighter coats this time.

Is there much smell/fumes from it when it's wet?
 
Yeah I've done clearcoat over raw steel on a few things, sometimes it seems to take pretty well, others it flakes off real easy and it's always a temporary solution, it doesn't take long for the moisture to find a way in.

I tried blo a while ago actually and din't get on with it but I think I layed it on too thick so it just stayed gummy. Will try lighter coats this time.

Is there much smell/fumes from it when it's wet?
I don't remember i did it outside

Sent from my LG-LS995 using Tapatalk
 
You'll want to put in on thin and kind of buff it out by hand with a rag.
I always soak my rags in a bucket of water afterwards, then lay them out away from my garage.

BLO has a slight oil smell, but I don't consider it much different than a pan full of cooking oil.


If you've got the money, you might check with local powdercoat shops. Clear powder over raw steel looks good and is durable.
 
Cheers guys, litre of linseed arrived in the mail today. Will get on it soon. In the mean time, the bike as it is just now

71a881458067749285eb3c767eb7d7bb8a4b4770.jpeg
 
Nice! (Steel-is ideal) Too bad a 1" steel threaded disc fork like that isn't around..
 
I have an old Rollfast frame that was buried in the ground under a junk pile. I couldn't get the seat post out so I drilled it out. Then I submerged the whole frame in hydrochloric acid in a garbage can. This was winter in the UP so it took several days of smoking. I washed it and coated it with Penetrol, which is chemically alteted linseed oil. It seems to dry over night. I clear coated it with matt clear. That was 4 years ago and it still looks the same. It's one of my 3 maggot bikes as every single piece is something that someone else discarded, including the tires and fender stays. The seat cover is a rubber urinal screen (the only new part because I couldn't find a used one).
 
:confused:...well...I think it was a stroke of very good luck that you didn't find a used one...:tmi:

Jason :bigsmile:
Yeah it was fortunate. The new urnal screen was impregnated with essence of bubble gum. My riding group no longer insists that I ride sweeper, I can now ride with the pack, with the caveat that I ride the Silver Maggot with the bubble gum odor trapper.
 
I didn’t use blo on the project up there ^ but I did use it on s set of raw steel handlebars yesterday and thought I might share my experience.

Finish on the bars was sort of brushed (sanded) to begin with and has turned out pretty matte. I’ve not tried buffing them up, I might in due time.

I’d been reading a bit on different forums trying to figure out how long to leave it before wiping off and found some posts on a sculpture forum I think it was about heating the metal and then ‘smoking’ the oil off after application.

Everything was a bit vague as to times, temperatures etc so I kind of made it up.

I used my mapp torch to warm the metal to the point that it felt quite warm but I could definitely still touch it and then applied a generous first coat.

This left the metal wet looking, shiny, not dripping though. I then hit it again with the mapp torch. Couldn’t see any ‘smoking’ but it left the surface dry to the touch and matte.

I repeated the process a few times until I was convinced every little nook and cranny had been piled.

By the end the metal had gotten too hot to touch (I held the bars in my vice).

I had read that the process of ‘smoking’ the oil would colour it but I failed to observe any meaningful change in colour.

My bars are now a matte grey colour and are completely dry to the touch, not sticky at all. I got some drops of rain on them yesterday and it kind of beaded up and didn’t leave a mark.

27368544_1998233630504771_154737917332450298_o.jpg
 

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