Thread: Coffee cup coating

Yep. Just a "seniors moment" .
Mangrove.
Lyle

You could just use a normal cup like everyone else and wrap it up in this https://www.ebay.com/itm/Wood-Grain-Vinyl-Tape-choose-your-Pattern-and-Size-/222590701905

Originally Posted by artful bodger

You could just use a normal cup like everyone else and wrap it up in this https://www.ebay.com/itm/Wood-Grain-Vinyl-Tape-choose-your-Pattern-and-Size-/222590701905

Yeah...
Nah.

Originally Posted by orraloon

This guy still makes bowls, cups and plates the old way in the UK.

Q&A with Robin Wood woodturner | Merchant & Makers
Actually he uses some veg oils.
Regards
John

I have one of Robin's bowls, as does Richard Raffan, who told me he uses Robin's as his breakfast cereal bowl. Robin uses palm oil for the finish. An ethical source is one factor to keep in mind with that finish.

I periodically apply mineral oil (as in pharmaceutical paraffin, not kerosene) to all of my food contact bowls. They keep surprisingly well, although none of them get filled with near boiling water.

If you can make tea in it you should be able to drink coffee from it...

wooden tea pot.jpg

Originally Posted by orraloon

PS Bit of useless info on historic wooden cups. When Francis Drake went round cape horn the ships carpenter made beer mugs from the wood of an old Spanish gallows. After they buried the skeletons of course. No mention of what finish was used.

Wonder if the wood was Dead Finish?

Originally Posted by Skew ChiDAMN!!

Wonder if the wood was Dead Finish?

Rgds,
Crocy.

So I figured after all this talk I'd better walk the walk. I've turned a branch of acacia (I think) to make an end grain cup, finished the outside with some of our lord and master's Shellawax and am now soaking the inside with a strong pot of coffee.

The coffee was originally to the brim so the wood has absorbed a bit of the black gold. You can see the wood is certainly taking on a lot of the colour.

I'm thinking I should have left the tenon on so I can put it back on the lathe to polish the inside smooth, the grain has come up a fair bit (unsurprisingly). I can probably arrange something like a glue chuck if needs.

We'll see how it goes.

That looks pretty good. Is Shellawax not food safe after it’s cured? Might be worth doing the inside with it too.

Looking Good. Are you going to try out a few finishes to see what works best?
On the practical side if it is used every day or fairly regular and not allowed to really get too dry then it should likely last. Wood boats and barrels are best kept wet for the same reason.
Regards
John

Shellawax is food safe but it doesn't seem to handle the heat (apparently). Another experiment to come.

I'm going to try a few ideas, see what happens. The stick this cup came from is about two feet long so I can afford to have a few failures.

I'm not sure about keeping it wet. In boats the water has to be salty otherwise rot sets in As for barrels, traditionally they're either holding salty stuff or alcohol.

Cheers

I used a mixture of 1 oz beeswax to 1 cup mineral oil. Heat the oil and add the beeswax, stir until melted. Wipe the inside of the mug, the oil will soak in with the beeswax. Wipe the inside, let dry. For awhile you will get a little residue, but neither will leave a taste. If you want to get real fancy, get some food grade flax seed oil and sun treat it to remove the fats, and add bees wax to the treated flax seed oil. https://youtu.be/GUyXm2IL4OQ

Originally Posted by dogcatcher

I used a mixture of 1 oz beeswax to 1 cup mineral oil. Heat the oil and add the beeswax, stir until melted. Wipe the inside of the mug, the oil will soak in with the beeswax. Wipe the inside, let dry. For awhile you will get a little residue, but neither will leave a taste. If you want to get real fancy, get some food grade flax seed oil and sun treat it to remove the fats, and add bees wax to the treated flax seed oil. https://youtu.be/GUyXm2IL4OQ

Was this for a hot coffee cup?

Originally Posted by Redbeard

Was this for a hot coffee cup?

Yes, used coffee in both, but at first I did the seal with the oil and beeswax, let them dry then poured hot water in them. Some of the mix will come loose, but after that I just poured hot coffee in them. After it has been used for awhile the coffee will stain the inside, but it didn't soak through. Did the same mix for some soup bowls, good how soapy water kept them usable for quite awhile, before I resealed them.

Originally Posted by dogcatcher

Yes, used coffee in both, but at first I did the seal with the oil and beeswax, let them dry then poured hot water in them. Some of the mix will come loose, but after that I just poured hot coffee in them. After it has been used for awhile the coffee will stain the inside, but it didn't soak through. Did the same mix for some soup bowls, good how soapy water kept them usable for quite awhile, before I resealed them.

Ok, you've just added another treatment to my list to try.

What sort of woods are you using?