Stabilized wood warped

A

alexmin

Joined
Nov 16, 2005
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513
I had some 1/2" thick ancient kauri stabilized by WSII. I just cut it into two beautiful 1/4" thick scales and ground them flat then I put on some water just to see how beautiful it was. Next day it was dry but both scales warped about 1/8".
Is there anything I can do to salvage them? They are just too beautiful to throw them away.
 
Alexmin,
I got this tip from another source of stabilized material, not wssi, when I received a piece from them that had warped in shipping. He recommend laying the piece down on something falt with the bowed end facing up. (Think of a rocking chair) Next clamp both ends down under medium tension. Now get the piece HOT with a heat gun and increase tension SLOWLY until both ends go flat. Let cool to room temperature. You may have to do this trick a couple times but I have had it work on several different occasions. Also don't do the water trick anymore. Ask me how I know:o I use superglue now instead because as you know , you just GOTTA see all that pretty figure:D Also I have used the kitchen oven @ 200 for 30 mins with good success instead of heat gun.
Matt Doyle
 
Good question ! That would contradict everything I've heard (and what is reported ) about "stabilized" products. Isn't "warpage" supposed to be one of the reasons (along with shrinkage) that we stabilize, to defeat the potential for either or both ? :confused:
 
I try to keep my slabs extra thick so if I have to grind the tang side flat, then I have enough material left to grind to final shape. I know you can't always do that depending on the original material thickness.
 
Any chance that there was heat generated in grinding them flat and that effected the resin to make it shrink?
 
The process of stabilizing does not eliminate the stresses that come with a beautiful burl, swirl or flame.
The process seals all the pores and fibers so that the wood does not absorb
water or other liquids but does not reduce stresses that formed as the tree grew. Keep in mind, these stresses are still present, as you shape the handle.

If you lay a set of slabs or scales in the sun or against a heat source for a short time they will no doubt, warp, cup, or even check.

I made a knife with a redwood burl handle that, in fact, exploded:eek: as it lay on a table after I had finished it. The stresses inside the block I was working with were so powerful, that the handle just came apart.

Wood is a living material.

Fred
 
Fred.Rowe said:
I made a knife with a redwood burl handle that, in fact, exploded:eek: as it lay on a table after I had finished it. The stresses inside the block I was working with were so powerful, that the handle just came apart. Fred
Click to expand...

Thanks for that Fred :) , I just happen to have one coming up that the customer requested stabilized redwood burl scales. Any suggestions ? I'm really surprised about what I'm hearing here.Edit to add: I just went to the WSSI site and it says, "WSSI Stabilized Wood Resists: Checking, Cracking, Warping , Swelling, Shrinking, Color Change or Fading." Looks like "resists" is the key word here. They don't say it won't happen.
 
Man, that's tough luck. That ancient Kauri is some gorgeous stuff. If you could, would you mind posting a pic or two of how it looks stabilized? I've been wondering.

Also, are you certain it was dry before it went to WSSI? I know when it comes out of the ground it's very wet and has a lot of drying to do.

-d
 
Lots of my stabilized scales warp after i receive them. Ive found that pretty much any environment change can do it even after stabilizing. I usually just get em thick and grind em flat. Its alot worse when they warp after they are glued on, but ive been leaing towards dovetailing bolsters and using plenty of hidden pins in conjunction with regular pins to help alleviate the problem.
 
here it is
9-14-20065-21-05PM_0012-1.jpg
 
oh my god. I thought my birch burl scales were bad (as in badass)! Those scales make my wood look like a cheap hooker! Who is sellin that stuff so I can buy ALL of it!
 
Makes you want to cry it's so pretty....I need to sucker somebody into buying me some Kauri :)

-d
 
David Wesner said:
Thanks for that Fred :) , I just happen to have one coming up that the customer requested stabilized redwood burl scales. Any suggestions ? I'm really surprised about what I'm hearing here.Edit to add: I just went to the WSSI site and it says, "WSSI Stabilized Wood Resists: Checking, Cracking, Warping , Swelling, Shrinking, Color Change or Fading." Looks like "resists" is the key word here. They don't say it won't happen.
Click to expand...
The more complex the grain structure the more stresses is the way I look at it.
I take a good look at the block I will be using and see if I can detect anything that looks like it may be a problem.

Good luck, Fred
 
You can get some really nice piece if you are lucky.
I've spent $100 just for wood. Stabilization is extra.
From about 12 pieces only 2 have really nice pattern. Other have too much checks, defects or no nice grain.
I am leaning toward desert ironwood. I can buy a large piece of it for $100-120 with very nice pattern and make probably 10 or more handles out of it. It comes out much cheaper and looks great too.

BTW I've bought my Kauri at http://www.ancientwood.com/
Great customer service. Highly recommend it. They do a good work of trying to pick up the wildest pattern pieces they have for you. It's just very hard to tell if a piece has a good pattern by looking at very roughly finished board. Another thing with wild grain is that they always have lots of checks and cracks.
 
I find the problem of warping quite interesting. I've used stabilized wood for over 10 years and have never had it warp. I've had it explode during stabilizing but once done, it's not been a problem. I've had some thin scales in the shop for 4 years and they are still flat.

Since I send wood out in batches to be stabilized (Ken McFall at K&G does mine) and make very sure it is dry and not oily, I'm curious as to external or environmental causes for the problem. Meaning I don't want to throw money away and have things go gunnybag. I do mostly burl and the environmental conditions in So Oregon aren't the best for keeping wood dry.

I understand internal stresses, but I'm puzzled by the problem of warpage. Any other ideas than internal stress? There are some woods that I won't use, having experienced their poor performance during the process. Myrtlewood is one of the worst.

I guess I'm just really puzzled about this. And BTW, beautiful wood.

Gene
 
Alex,
Several things can contribute to stabilized wood warping. The biggest is the moisture content. Ancient Kauri is pretty, but it has spent the last 50,000 years in a moist environment. Even when it is DRY is is still looking for water to make it happy. Stabilization will keep the wood from soaking up moisture only if the pore and grain can absorb the resin. Woods that have a moist grain, an oily grain ,or a grain so tight that nothing can get in are going to stabilize to a lesser degree or not at all.When you put on the water (use alcohol or super glue in the future) you allowed the surface to absorb a bit of water. That made it change in dimensions and cause a warp . Just sand it flat and go on with the project.
All this adds up to another reason to get the wood stabilized in larger blocks and cut the scales from the block.
Stacy
 
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