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Has anyone heard of this product for stabilizing wood?

I don't think it hardens the wood as the treatments from WSSI do. Okay for wood-turners, though.
 
About 5 minutes ago my mailman showed up with a delivery of some Osage I sent off to have stabilized. I had sent off 9 pieces of Osage about 2 inches square by 6 inches long. Including shipping, it cost me $43.00. That's less than $5.00 each.
I'd say let the pros do it with the "good stuff" and have it done right.
 
kbaknife,
You definitely have the best answer to my question. Do you have their contact info. Thanks!
 
kbaknife said:
About 5 minutes ago my mailman showed up with a delivery of some Osage I sent off to have stabilized. I had sent off 9 pieces of Osage about 2 inches square by 6 inches long. Including shipping, it cost me $43.00. That's less than $5.00 each.
I'd say let the pros do it with the "good stuff" and have it done right.
Click to expand...



Exactly, and you don't have to risk your health and money messing around with some of the chemiical mixtures I've seen people post on here lately.

Time's better spent making knives, or at least learning how to make them better depending on your skill level than wasting it going off in every direction except knifemaking.
 
I agree that Mike at WSSI is the best there is. He gets all my stabilizing work. There are imitators - many of whom Mike trained - but none give his level of service or product quality.

Having said all that - Let me play devil's advocate for a moment.

If you are going to send your handle materials to the very best for stabilizing, why not send your blades out to Bob Loveless or Thomas Haslinger to be ground?

There is something to be said for sole authorship and I for one, award brownie points to any maker who is working that general direction. I understand your desire for a quality product - but don't neglect your research and development department.

Rob!
 
Rob I like you playing devils advocate. I stabilize my own wood for the reason you state. I maybe don't do as good a job as someone else but I think I do pretty good work and I take pride in the fact that it's my own work. I use a well recognized agent in a vacuum chamber and get good saturation of my wood. Never had a problem so far.
 
Diggerdog said:
... I think I do pretty good work and I take pride in the fact that it's my own work. I use a well recognized agent in a vacuum chamber and get good saturation of my wood. Never had a problem so far.
Click to expand...

Why not share what the agent is and picture of your vacuum chamber for all to see. I too would like to do all in the knife making process (once I get started).

Thanks
WARedBear
 
Barker,

I haven't used that one specifically, but I have used Pentacryl. If its anything like that??? Well I don't know what to tell you. The wood will be stabized, I have some turnings that I did 5 years ago on green wood that haven't warped or split in the least. It gives the wood a oily kinda wet finish though that never quite went away. As far as I know a safe chemical, smells like detergent and has a consistency of warm syrup.
 
Oh, and the whole process consists of pouring the stuff in a bucket, and putting your wood in it, and leaving it for a week or so. Take your wood out and wipe, rinse it off. Put a lid on the bucket and reuse the stuff next time. And if I remember it darkens the wood slightly also.
 
Wood juice is a mix of polymers and paraffins.It will "Wax" impregnate wood turnings,but is not a good choice for handles.Same goes for pentacryl -it does what it is supposed to real good - just not what knife makers need.
To stabilize wood for handles you need to impregnate it with some sort of resin that cures completely.Most all commercial systems use acrylic monomers and polymers and a lot of highly controlled processes.All of which are expensive.It is far better to have the wood done this way than to just fill the wood pores with some sort of self curing resin like poly-urethane,or oils like linseed,tung,danish,etc.
I understand that many makers feel strongly that if they don't do the stabilizing they are not sole authors. Did Shakespeare make his own paper and ink? Did Picasso make his own canvas and paint? Did Bill Moran make his own steel? Extending that to the max,with only a few makers being the exception - Did they didn't cut the tree,or flitch the log,or smelt the steel,or tan their own leather,.........you get where I'm going.
I figure I can do the things I do well with the equipment I have and leave the materials preparation to those who make their living at it.
The authorship is in the art,not the material.
Stacy
 
To hear from the Devils side!:D I believe Picasso did make some of his own paints. Most of the masters from his era and before did, also that was a apprentice level chore, Learning how to make oils & watercolors. they gain insight into how to use the paints. this is back when things like cows blood were used. On the other hand I spend my time grinding blades and shaping handles that are stabilized by pros & Paul Bos does the heat treat.I buy my mosaic pins as well, I am exsposed to enough:eek: $#@%^:barf: chemicals just grinding the stuff with a resperator on of course!
 
kbaknife said:
What's a respirator?
Click to expand...
You know,;) It's That funny looking thing with the filters that some knifemakers wear on their face inbeteew cigarettes:barf:
 
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