What's the particular characteristic associated with Wenge that you don't need to seal? Based on my research, it seems like sealing blade is a no brainer because of the protection it offers not only in terms of splintering but also water-based glue permeating the blade.
Sealing is supposed to change the playing characteristics of the blade, maybe it's not for everyone.
It does depend on the blade. But Stiga is notorious for making blades that are delicate and splinter when not sealed.
When sealing you only need a VERY thin layer of sealant. If you seal the way I seal a blade, and you think you can feel the before and after I would be more than willing to assert that the placebo effect is what is happening.
If you did a double blind test, sets of paired blades same make, same weight, one sealed, one not sealed, 20, 30, 50 sets, as many as you want, I would put a lot of money that the guesses would be in the standard deviation around 50% if I do the sealing.
If someone is foolish and puts a thick layer on, or even more foolish and puts two or three layers on, that you can tell. And it would be completely beside the point of why you would seal a blade in the first place.
But with blades that are less delicate, there is often no reason to seal. So you can choose to seal or not as you like.
But if you seal, anything more than the thinnest of layers is not necessary. I use MinWax Wipe-On Poly where the sealant has been thinned and you wipe it on with a cloth where you have the control to make the layer so thin that if you looked at the blade, you would not realize it had been sealed.
But it still depends on what you want. Is it worth the time and effort to seal? Some will say yes. Some will say no. But it is usually unnecessary unless the top ply is delicate.
.....an aside, when it is stated that sealing changes the playing characteristics of the blade, it is usually stated with the assumption that changing the playing characteristics is always an unwanted outcome. Sometimes that is not quite the case. But you would still be better off getting a blade you like rather than trying to change the playing characteristics of a blade you don’t like.
So sealing is still simply a choice for each player.
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