Malted Milk Ball Dispenser

I’d use water based Poly.

-- Lew- Time traveler. Purveyor of the world's finest custom rolling pins!

Boiled linseed oil or tung oil. I like water based poly, but some of it is not food safe.Cabot brand water based poly is food safe (I actually talked to their customer service) but it is more expensive. Nice project & good candy.

-- Mother Nature created it, I just assemble it. - It's not ability that we often lack, but the patience to use our ability

You can’t go wrong with shellac. I use a product by general finishes called salad bowl finish. Works great.

That’s pretty cool. Now we need a video demonstration! :-)

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

None of the gum ball machines really caught my eye. But Whopper’s? Now you’re talkin’. Do both bars slide?

-- I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you. I'm sorry,thanks.

Yes both bars slide. The milk balls can be dropped one at a time or a bunch at a time if both bars are open. Sometimes it has to be tipped a little bit to get a milk ball right over the opening because they are not all exactly the same size and they tend to block the opening. There is 1/2 thick board on the lower part of the back side so that the bottom row of milk balls flow to the hole easier. Thank you all for your comments and finishing suggestions!

-- Glen

Great candy dispenser

-- Norman

Shellac’s a no-brainer, if you like the look.

But … THAT is SO cool :-)

-- -- Neil

Shellac would be my choice too. Especially since shellac is used for foods as a shiny seal coating. Like those malted milk balls, there is probably a thin coat of shellac on them to seal the chocolate and make them shiny.
You could use shellac for the inside and do whatever strikes your fancy for the outside.

-- With sufficient thrust, pigs fly just fine. Just watch out for the exhaust. - Mike -

Very nice. Looks like a fun project!

-- Ken, "Everyday above ground is a good day!"

An unusual and well done project. I’m no expert, but It is my understanding that the dangerous chemicals in poly are the drying agents, and that once they evaporated and the finish is dry that it is safe (at least for dry foods like your malt balls.) The advantage is that it will last indefinitely. You can look it up on the net. Shellac is good as long as you don’t use water on it. A good alternative would be beeswax (non-toxic), but you would have to renew it occasionally and it gets funky with a lot of handling.

-- Mike, American in Norway

I’ll chime in with shellac. Definately food safe and looks great on cherry. Nice dispenser. Thanks for sharing

Ken

-- • "I have noticed that nothing I have never said ever did me any harm."....... Calvin Coolidge

I like milk balls, Nice job, and did I mention how much I like milk balls?

-- Head to the shop its calling you – Todd

Great looking dispenser.
The only PROBLEM is:
I gained another 10 lbs just reading it…...I LOVE FOOD. lol

-- "My mission in life - make everyone smile !"

I use polymerized tung oil on a first coat of tung oil sealer. It is a wipe on wipe off finish that goes on easily, does not pick up dust and can be repaired or touched up anytime in the future should something happen to the piece. I buy the stuff from Lee Valley – go to there web site and check out their product description etc, it is very informative and complete.

Great project!

Don

-- DonH Orleans Ontario