stabilizing at home

J. Neilson

J. Neilson

Joined
Feb 6, 2001
Messages
3,621
Hey all. Being hard-headed I like to try to do everything myself but, I'm having some problems with this dyeing/stabilizing thing. I used the method described on the thread a few months ago: using a wide mouth mason jar with a new lid I mixed 50% minwax wood hardener with 50% acetone and a full package of powder "rit" dye. I heated (with a hair dryer) the solution until it started to bubble slightly and microwaved the handle material(rock maple & zebra wood)for 30 seconds then dropped them into the solution with tongs. About a minute later, when cooler to the touch I sealed the lid down on the jar and put it in the fridge overnight. The seal on the jar took and stayed for the 4 days I left it be. When I took the wood out it looked great but, when I split the blocks the color did not penetrate except for a slight tint but, the blocks really still looked like they originally did. The first 3 times I used 30% acetone 60% wood hardener, the second 3 I did the 50-50 mix and got the same results.:mad:

Can anyone tell me what the hell I'm doing wrong. Or should I just break down and find the address for K&G or one of the other stabilizing companies, which will just about kill me.
;)

J.
www.mountainhollow.net
 
Hey J.

I've fooled with stabilizing some stuff with acetone and wood hardener, but I pull a vacuum on my material until it quits bubbleing and then put it under about 40 lbs of pressure with out removing it from the solution. Usually after 2 cycles I can push the solution all the way through a piece of 1" birdseye maple or antler but the color fades as it goes through the material. I tried red rit dye with a scrap piece of antler, and the out side was a nice red but when I cut it into, the middle was a light pink. I don't know, if B. Evans has come up with a more absorbing dye or not, we were trying to figure out some things last winter but we both got side tracked doing other things. If you have some really nice figured wood thats one of a kind, I would send it to a professional, at $10-$12 a pound its not that expensive considering when you get it back its ready to go with no second guessing.

Good luck ;)
Bill
 
Mike at WSSI, will stabilize wood, in ten pound, or higher lots, for $8.00 a pound. He does excellent work. Dyeing, I believe, is a little bit more.
 
I have a couple of 2x2 blocks of oak and a couple of 3/8" slabs of the same stuff sitting in a solution right now. I started out with 50/50 Minwax prestain treatment and acetone with one pack of PINK rit dye in a large glass jar I found someplace.
(I am looking for a pink knife handle, dont ask:rolleyes: )

I put the stuff in the back of my closet and forgot about it for the past...uhh...3 months. I poured out about 1/2 of it and refilled it with Minwax Wood Hardener this past weekend. The wood is looking pretty stinking pink so far (when I filled it this past weekend) but the final results will take some time to tally. I no longer have the blade I intended to mount them to.

I figure that I will let them sit in the solution until I find another blade that deserves a pink handle.:)
 
Why add acetone to the wood hardener. I think it is thin enough and has acetone in it to start with.
I use it straight in a 2 qt mason jar with about 20 inches of vac pulled with a hand brake bleed pump. About 30-40 dollars at Als.
I use it to reduce shrinkage and help fill the pores it the wood handle pieces.
I tried rit dye(black) and had to throw out 2 pints of hardener. Its not dense enough for what I want. A good shoe dye works best for me.
I sand to 600 and put2-3 coats of tru oil gunstock finish on and thats it
MY 2cents
Take Care
TJ Smith
 
Try the alcohol based Leather Dyes.
That will work.
No need for the 50% acetone, in my experiments anyway. Just straight wood hardener!
Also if the wood is still floating after a few days it may be too dense.
It will need to sink to the bottom that way you know it got pretty good penetration.
If it won't sink after 48hrs, warm up the solution again (It should bubble around the edges) COOL to just warm, then stick it back in the fridge. If it doesn't pull enough vacuum to buckle the lid in you may need a different JAR.

I got tired of fooling around with it so I send my wood off to K&G. Although they are good, you need to be patient with them.
Let us know how this works out for you.

This subject was beaten to death many times before , HOWEVER there is always a new way to skin a Cat you keep on trying.
You may teach us all something:D
 
I used acetone to cut it cause I like to fill the jar to the last 1/4" and then cap with it, I didnt have enough prestain treatment lying around so I filled the rest with acetone. I dont have a vacuum and I figure time will replace the need. The wood has sunk to the bottom and seems to be doing fine.
 
I don't have a vacuum for stabilizing either. I have been just counting on the heat and fridge process. How long have you been letting the mix sit.

I have also been looking at a product called CPES (clear penetrating epoxy sealer) from the "Rot Doctor" www.rotdoc.com . Granted they used balsa wood in the tests but, they got about 15" of penetration with black dye without a vacuum or anything else. I'm going to call and ask for more details.

J.
www.mountainhollow.net
 
J,
The entire process is just at 3 months...the Wood Hardener has been in the jar for 2 weeks.

I am gonna let it sit till I order a blade that I want with a pink handle. Why? Because I can.:)
 
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