Stabilised timber for use in knife handles is good, it is very good, much better than non stabilised for obvious reasons, it lessens the chances of moisture absorption, of warping and selling or shrinking...
...it is not infallible though.
I am on with a build just now that I have been cataloguing for my client, we both thought the photos would be of interest here too.
This particular block of Californian Buckeye Burl was recently selected for a current project, I know the supplier but most importantly or all, I know the stabiliser, this is a good block of timber.
The problem being that you get a big block of timber like that, from memory around 140x30x30mm, seal it in a vacuum chamber filled with resin and expect that resin to impregnate every nook, cranny and void, to it's core, that just won't happen.
Once cut and fitted I forwarded this photo.
All good at this stage, then you get it to shape, the problem there being, when you get it to that final shape that you/I am happy with, and you see this...
That crystallised looking area, that is a void because the stabilising resin didn't fully fill that natural void in the wooden block, it isn't big, the photos make it look much bigger, you can feel it with your finger nail though, it is there and I don't want to send it to you.
So I take it home, with some Plasticine (green this time), and make a well of sorts around the whole area and fill that well with a crystal clear, hard as you like, two part resin.
Then I leave that overnight.
Next morning, I have this.
More in a bit...
...it is not infallible though.
I am on with a build just now that I have been cataloguing for my client, we both thought the photos would be of interest here too.
This particular block of Californian Buckeye Burl was recently selected for a current project, I know the supplier but most importantly or all, I know the stabiliser, this is a good block of timber.
The problem being that you get a big block of timber like that, from memory around 140x30x30mm, seal it in a vacuum chamber filled with resin and expect that resin to impregnate every nook, cranny and void, to it's core, that just won't happen.
Once cut and fitted I forwarded this photo.
All good at this stage, then you get it to shape, the problem there being, when you get it to that final shape that you/I am happy with, and you see this...
That crystallised looking area, that is a void because the stabilising resin didn't fully fill that natural void in the wooden block, it isn't big, the photos make it look much bigger, you can feel it with your finger nail though, it is there and I don't want to send it to you.
So I take it home, with some Plasticine (green this time), and make a well of sorts around the whole area and fill that well with a crystal clear, hard as you like, two part resin.
Then I leave that overnight.
Next morning, I have this.
More in a bit...
