I have made myself a desk using some metal legs and a 27mm kitchen counter top described as 'solid wood oak'. I did lightly sand the whole surface and edge and seal it with osmo oil. I'm finding the edge to be quite fragile and it is acquiring little nicks that appear to be pieces splintering off on the corner edge (not the flat edge). Perhaps I didn't sand enough? In any event I'm looking to treat/harden the edge more to give it some resistance. Suggestions welcome.
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Not sure “seal” is the right word for Osmo since it’s not a film finish. It does offer some protection, but does not seal the wood in the same way that e.g. polyurethane varnish or epoxy would.– stanchCommented Oct 11 at 15:16
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1Hi, welcome to StackExchange. Yeah a sharp arris can be surprisingly fragile, dragging motions across the arris especially can be expected to just crack off fibres/splinters. The problem is usually more noticeable in an open-pored species like oak, but all common furniture species are prone to it to some degree. Hence why it's so common to "ease" or "break" edges (more accurately, ease the arrises) at least a little in almost all woodworking. You'll have to experiment to see how far you need to take this as it's somewhat down to the individual wood, rather than just the species generally.– GraphusCommented Oct 12 at 4:22
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1 Answer
As you discovered, sharp edges (arrises) in wooden objects are fragile. For this reason, woodworkers would typically “break the edge” by flattening it or even rounding it over.
You can do this with a number of tools (sandpaper, files, planes, spokeshaves, to name a few). In your case, the simplest approach is to attach a sheet of sandpaper to a block of wood or cork and go over each arris.
Since you are removing little wood, the sandpaper does not need to be coarse. I think a few passes with 180 grit is all you need. You will have to reapply the Osmo to the sanded areas (it will blend with the surroundings).
