Darkening lignum vitae?

T

Tenebr0s

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Jun 3, 2012
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Ok, well Argentine lignum vitae. I’ve been grinding some for knife handles and I love it. I just wish it were a couple shades darker.

Is there anyway to darken it? I have read that it naturally darkens over time. but I would prefer something faster. Iron acetate? Tannic acid?

(I’m assuming it’s oil content would prevent it from holding on to wood/leather dye).
 
Nah, can’t risk giving the handles cancer. Gotta keep them food safe.

.....although, sunlight is supposed to darken lignum vitae. I wonder if this might do something!
 
Many freshly cut woods will darken given UV exposure. Place it in a sunny window seal and see what happens. Darkening will be entirely superficial, so this is essentially a finishing treatment.
 
So apparently UV lamps for aging wood are a thing. But the process also takes several days and you would want even exposure on the whole handle.

Other than UV, has anybody found a faster way to darken lignum vitae?
 
This is not a "Do this it works " answer. I know some woods turn dark when heated. If you have a heat gun you might try heating the surface of a test piece to see what hqppens.
Jim A,
 
It doesn’t like the heat. That was my first experiment today. The resin bubbles up to the surface.
 
Tenebr0s said:
It doesn’t like the heat. That was my first experiment today. The resin bubbles up to the surface.
Click to expand...

I was going to say heat . . .
but
try a torch Propane or MAPP ETC.

Might experiment with dye (not stain, nope, nope). You can get the dye in dry powdered form or paste and mix with some strong assed solvent. Obviously it isn't going to go very deep at all in this wood but . . .

Finally how about burnishing the surface on a fast cloth or leather belt in a vertical belt sander ? ? ? ?
 
Yeah, the torch was what I tried, since I love the look of lightly charred wood. But with this, you end up with a surface covered in sticky sap. Same for too much heat from belt sander. The grain is so fine though that you basically get a burnished/completely closed surface at like 400# paper. At least, that's my experience so far.
 
Here is a photo I took some time ago.
See the hand made mallet I made from Lignum Vitae with a hickory handle. You can see in the left end of that block of Lignum Vitae where I cut it out; to compare how much it has darkened with time and handling. I have not actually used (handled) the mallet very much; it is for setting and tuning my wood bodied hand planes (I use mostly iron bodied planes).
Link to photo>>>>
PS: there is no finish on the wood obviously and I did nothing to darken the surface.
 
I make a lot of turned stuff in Argentine Lignum Vitae. I find it darkens when buffed hard. Buffing also greatly accentuates the herringbone pattern of the grain. I sand to 1000+ and then buff with matchless white. It darkens more in a few weeks because of air and UV exposure.
 
Never tried it. It might work to some degree, but I suspect it may not buff as deeply and evenly as a spinning wheel.

I use a 4" 54 ply or a 6" 50 ply finex combed muslin buff. If you aren't skilled at buffing, use a 4" wheel.
Wipe the wood off with denatured alcohol after buffing to remove and excess polish.
A quick hand buff with a soft cotton cloth will restore any dullness left by the alcohol.
 
Since this thread on Argentine LV is already going, I figured I'd post another question about it here.

I know it's extremely dense and oily and has good water resistance. I did see somewhere on here (a post from probably 10 years back) that someone mentioned warping can be a problem because of internal stresses in the wood, due to its extreme strength. Is this true in people's experience?
 
Tenebr0s said:
Since this thread on Argentine LV is already going, I figured I'd post another question about it here.

I know it's extremely dense and oily and has good water resistance. I did see somewhere on here (a post from probably 10 years back) that someone mentioned warping can be a problem because of internal stresses in the wood, due to its extreme strength. Is this true in people's experience?
Click to expand...

density seems to be the issue. If you heat it up, the inside has no room to breath, so it swells, and the grain splits, a bit like small scale popcorn.
 
I don't do much with wood. But of the knives I've used wood scales, I have used Lignum Vitae exclusively. I've used both Argentine and Guaiacum Officinale. (Love the smell when working it!). I noticed darkening with age. Still my absolute favorite to use! For the limited wood use in knives I do that is.
 
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