[Found this on another Catalina site and thought I would pass it on]

I’m going to put on my ‘wood butcher’ hat and share some ‘old school’ information about oil finishes.

A lot of teak oil sold today is of low quality and produces inferior results…this leads to poor performance which, in turn, leads folks to purchase other easy to use products which though more durable, are often inferior in appearance.

Good teak oil is often expensive when purchased in marine stores, so most people will opt for the cheap stuff which has a low percentage of solids and may not have any UV protection added at all.

The way oil finishes work is that they contain resins (solids) and solvents. The solvents allow the resins to be applied easily and to penetrate the wood fibers. When the solvents evaporate, the resins harden leaving a smooth and relatively durable finish.