Stabilizing Olive Wood

Daniel Koster

Daniel Koster

www.kosterknives.com
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Oct 18, 2001
Messages
20,978
I need some direction on whether or not to stabilize some olive wood slabs I have.

Couldn't find anything in the archives about it.

Any help?

Dan
 
I've sent lots of olive to Mike at WSSI to be stabilized. He does a great job and the wood looks great. I have trouble keeping olive in stock.
 
Chuck - thanks. I guess I should have clarified. I'm familiar with Mike and with K&G's services - which are fine services, but too expensive for me and in all reality, too much for the intended projects.

I just want to know what effects others have had on wood-hardening olive wood. The stock I have right now is mostly lt. golden-brown with black patterning - no greens. I'd like to keep it that way and wouldn't even mind if it "warmed up" a bit. I'm not interested in fooling around with dyes unless it comes highly recommended for this wood.

I too will be using a "home-grown" technique similar to what's been posted here before.

Dan
 
Dan and all,
I've had good luck with soaking in boiled linseed oil. I saw it somewhere on a video, can't remember who now. Someone remind me so I can give credit. I've used kitchen knives I made about 4 years ago without problems. The wood was black walnut and soaked for 2 or 3 days in a baggie covering the handle. If I made another one now I'd probally use a little pressure.
Lynn
 
You can use a substance commonly known as peg. It is a waxy looking water soluable substance. It is quite safe to use at home only problem is you need to soak your wood in it for weeks.
A rough go at the speling is poly ethylene glycol. It works best if your solution is in a vacume container. A mate gave me some treated olive as a swap for the peg I gave him. I have not tried the wood on a handle yet.
 
Olivewood works great unstabilized as well. I used a lot of it before stabilization was ever heard of. You just have to make sure to keep it clean when you are finishing it. It picks up dirt real easy, like from dirty buffing wheels etc. :eek:
 
I'm worried about washing out the grain when I stabilize it. I know what maple will be like, but with olive - not sure.

I guess I'll just give it a shot and let y'all know...

hopefully it will come out stunning...;)
 
Mike - we posted at the same time...

I would love to leave it unstabilized. However, this project will travel from MD to UT and I'm worried about the handle splitting.

Dan
 
You might try putting it in the oven, at about 150deg.,F, for an hour, before gluing up, if that's what you are going to do.
Olivewood is very dense and stable, and unless it's still green, I doubt you would have a problem with it, whether you oven dry it or not.
Wood has been used for tool handles for thousands of years, stabilizing has only been around a little over ten. Stabilizing just makes a good thing better, or makes pretty woods that are normally too soft, suitable for tool handles.
 
Mike = thanks!

Cook it before or after shaping?
 
I picked up a couple of blocks of olive wood at the Little Rock show last Feb, and I cannot even see the pores in the grain. That's how dense this stuff is! I can't imagine this wood being able to soak up much of the stabilizing solutions. I will probably have mine stabilized anyway, but I am wondering how much it will be necessary. Kinda like ironwood; what's the need?
 
Pen:

I sent a batch of Olivewood out to WSSI a while back and the stabilization process had no noticeable effect on the figure or color.

Most of the wood I've worked with seems to benefit from the process - even snakewood. ;) The enhanced performace really becomes apparent when you're cutting it in thin sections - like overlays for a folder.

Ironwood is the only species that I don't have stabilized, because of it's natural dense and oily structure. You can just sand and wax it to seal the pores. (Sample photo below)



13731878-946c-0200012F-.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top