Do you need to use a stablized wood for your trim rings or reel seat ? If you use apply bees wax on the wood while turning it on the lathe, woludn't that work?

It won't give you the level of protection that these stabilized or impregnated pieces do.

The wax is only a surface coating which will wear away. The process used to stabilize the wood consists of driving out resins and moisture and permanently replacing it with various acrylic resins. The resulting pieces are for the most part, stable plastic or phenolics that no longer move, warp, check, split, or weather. Appearance is unchanged except that they can be polished or buffed to a high luster.

But no, you do not need to use a stabilized wood for your inserts or trim pieces. I often use natural rosewoods and other woods finished with Tru-Oil and they hold up fine in the elements. I doubt, however, that they will last as long as the stabilized variety.

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