Spalted Woods

[georg]

 As I have always had problems with turning spalted woods, the hardest being Hornbeam, getting a good finish straight off
 the tool as sanding takes away the crisp edges. I gave a piece of Spalted Elm to Martin Lawrence some time ago and he did a
 great job on it. Also finishing is a problem as oil soak`s into the more porous parts and sends the wood very dark.
 I would be interested in any ideas from the forum as I will be turning a lot of Spalted Walnut next year which tears out
 very easily.
 Regards Tony

[George Watkins]

I sometimes have difficulties and find a razor sharp gouge and a very light cut works well, sometimes I will moisten the problem area with lemon oil or thinned sanding sealer before making the cut.

I have found the best oil to seal spalted woods and get a uniform sheen is woodoc 5 or 10, the 1st coat absorbs but the 2nd and 3rd build really well. before I found woodoc I would sometimes use danish oil or organoil and found several coats were still giving patchy sheen levels

sometimes if its really heavily spalted then there is nothing you can do to avoid tearout except maybe stabilise which is very expensive and only really viable on small pieces.

HTH

[ALAN THOMAS RPT]

Hi Tony
If you are wanting to use oil as your final finish make up a 1 1/2lb cut of shellac sander sealer and apply to the piece. Leave to dry for about 15 mins then try re-turning with a freshly sharpened tool. The shellac should stiffen the fibers enough to stand up to the cutting action of the tool. Sand back as normal then apply another coat of shellac and allow to dry.Cut back lightly and then apply the oil. The shellac will be absorbed more into the softer areas and will even out how the oil is taken up so you get a more even colour tone. Spalted timbers are always tricky to finish, you just have to keep your fingers crossed     

[Paul Hannaby]

If you catch the spalting at the right time, the wood is still hard enough to cut cleanly.

The best finish for keeping the colours natural is clear lacquer. It doesn't darken the wood as much as other finishes.

[georg]

     Thank You very much Gents for the input..... All suggestions will be taken on board and tried in the spring.
     Many Thanks Tony.

[Martin Lawrence]

  Hi Tony,

  I can solve your problem. If you give me the wood I will once again make a beautiful bowl from it SIMPLES.

Martin.

[georg]

  Was hoping you would post a pic of it...... just between you and me how did you do it  .
  Got a lot of Spalted Walnut if you are passing sometime.
   Tony

[Eric Harvey]

as the others said,keep tools extra sharp light cuts,I`ve found lemon oil doesn`t seem to darken the grain much or at all depending on the wood used,and yes,I`ve found spalted wood drinks oil,so brush it of liberaly,the leave 48 hours between first coat to let it cure properly,same with next 3-4 coats,seems to work for me.

[georg]

    Thanks Eric... Although I have heard of .. woodoc ... lemon oil... and  shellac... Personally I have never tried them
    I will though be  giving all suggestions a try in the spring when hopefully the walnut will be a bit drier.
    Regards Tony

[Martin Lawrence]

  Hi Tony,

  Have managed to cut up the slab of Walnut you gave me and mount it on the lathe without slipping a disc or pulling any muscles. After a temporary break down of my lathe have this morning rough turned it into a 14 inch diameter bowl.

It is now wrapped up in cling film and in the airing cupboard.

[seventhdevil]

nice little bowl. i'm just turning a nest like that going from 6"-14" and 6" deep for the mother bowl.

[georg]

       Hope the drying system works for you Martin..... please let me know how many days it takes.
       Regards Tony