New video from Cape Falcon Kayaks. No, I’ve not tried this product yet but I’m building 2 paddles this spring…
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Might be worth a try. Me, I’m cheap and a bit lazy. I have Watco Teak Oil around anyway so that is what I use. I’ll rub it on & then wipe. I think that I had 3 - 4 coats initially until the wood didn’t seem to want to absorb any more. The stick is due for a light sand and re-coat when it gets warmer. 2020 will be its 5th year.
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Interesting video. I’m curious to read responses from folks who use this. I’m thinking about trying it on a cosmetic butcher block cabinet top first
I don’t know this product, but it seems it might be overly complicated. I’ve been using western red cedar paddles for many years, and never used a finish. Between the salt water and an occasional sanding they’ve held up fine - no failures in the wood. Recently I have started apply oil - but a simple food safe hemp oil. I started with my canoe paddles and gunwales, and then started using it on my Greenland sticks. All seem to be doing well.
This is a wipe/brush on, let sit for 15 to 20 minutes, then wipe off process. Depending on usage, I might do it at the start, mid and end of the season. One of the things I like about the food safe hemp oil is that I don’t have to wear gloves and there’s no issue with disposal of the rags.
Just a thought.
Although unlike Keith, I always finish my paddles, I have to agree with him that the process for Monocoat seems overly involved and fussy. That and the fact that you either have to spend a lot to get their accelerator or wait three weeks for the finish to cure is kind of a deal breaker for me. A simple tung oil and varnish blend is inexpensive, works well and is easy to maintain. Monocoat may work well on the woods they show in their demos (hardwood floors and tables), but it may not work as well on wood as soft as cedar.
Please keep us informed about your testing. The product definitely looks interesting, but I can’t justify spending that much on a whim.
I use Tung oil on the loom of my WRC paddles and Spar urethane on the blades after I soak the blade tips with epoxy.
I’ve been happy with the boiled linseed oil I used on my first, pine, paddle. I used tung oil on a guitar and it took months to dry so I don’t find an accelerator a problem. Then again, the boiled linseed oil was dry enough to handle in a few days. I think I put 3 coats on and was done in well under a week.
I use marine varnish on my GP’s, but that’s not the topic. I made one for my better half about 17 years ago, and finished it with Watco oil. Other than a twice a year light sand and re-coat, it’s pretty much zero maintenance, and it’s still her #1 paddle.
Hey all, this is my first post, but I wanted to chime in. I have used Rubio, NOT for paddles yet. But I think it’s pretty great. I like the smell, too, and the fact that it is food-safe.
Anyhow, it struck me as interesting that it was perceived as overly complicated or fussy. This is the simplest finish I have ever used. It is far simpler than Danish Oil, for example. It is similar to doing a solitary coat of wipe-on poly, but not many people use just one coat of poly, and not many people bypass sanding and buffing phases.
Point being, I cannot say this is a good finish for paddles. And there are reasons to not prefer it (cure time, fear of the unknown, lack of gloss to the finish). But complexity of application shouldn’t be one of them. It is dead simple.
Do you have a question or are you looking for confirmation?
Tung oil about every month since I’m 95% a salt water paddler.
I put 2 or 3 coats of boiled linseed oil on mine and my wife’s paddles per year, with a light sanding with steel wool before each coat. It’s what the builder of my paddles recommends.
Ours are used exclusively in salt water too.
Personally I reinforce my blade tips with nylon and glass the blades. Then cover the entire paddle with epoxy and varnish. It holds up for me. I abuse the paddle often and the reinforcing is important for blade survival against rocks, oysters, trees, and the back of the pick up truck. I use the paddles all year. I have these products around all the time. Which makes them available for paddle repair when required. I don’t have any annual recoating requirements. My favorite paddle has been refinished once in the 7 or 8 years I’ve had it.
In the video Brian Schultz was saying epoxy refinishing was difficult. I disagree. Of course it is the method I use for my boats so I have the equipment, products, and shop to do the work all the time.
Is Rubio good for GPs? … Why not try it? People are using every other thing.
I do the same as Overstreet except I just use Tung oil on the looms.
Me? No, earlier posts (didn’t notice it was from about a year ago!) claimed Rubio seemed complicated. I popped in to say that it is not. That’s all. If anybody thought it might be an option to explore, they should do so without fear of complexity. You wipe it on, let it sit, buff it off. Don’t know how anybody could think that is a complicated process.
I know this thread was originally started almost 2 years ago, but I’m wondering if anyone ever tried Rubio? The original video from Cape Falcon kayaks doesn’t appear to have an update from what I’ve found.
I’m close to finishing my first attempt at carving a greenland paddle. It’s just cheap SPF wood from a big box store, now WRC, and there are a few knots in it, it’s not perfectly vertical grain, etc. so I’m not expecting this to be a forever paddle.
I noticed that the exterior products from Rubio Monocoat, the “Hybrid Wood Protector” comes in a few fun colors, and I thought that might be neat to try for something different. Being in Canada, it looks like it would be about $35 for a 100ml bottle.
Then a couple of days ago I received a new Lee Valley catelog, and I noticed that they have a product call “Allback Linseed Oil Paint” and that also comes in some fun colors. I’ve seen lots of people on this forumn talk about using linseed oil to finish greenland paddles, and wondered if anyone had any thoughts on linseed oil paint? A 200 ml (6.8 fl. oz) bottle of that is also about $30.
The linseed oil paint is advertised for use indoors or outside.
I don’t think I would plan to paint or color a really nice greenland paddle, but for the one I’m currently doing, I thought maybe it would be fun to color it blue to match my kayak, or purple, or red or green or something, just because. 
Any new, or updated thoughts on either of these two color finish options?
what have you got to lose? Not very costly to experiment…
Play with color…keep the fun in experimenting and in paddling.