first time doing live edge

[petefrom bearswamp]

I have these 2 cherry slabs that I planed today and want to make benches.


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I am going to use Kevin's Legrite legs.
First question, bark on or bark off.
Cherry bark is very rough, but how can I take the bark off easily if I want to.
Next taper up as on the left one or taper down as on the right.
I took a wire brush to the bark on a sample to smooth it somewhat and sprayed with spar urethane and it looks OK to me.



 

Next should I use tongue oil, or spar varnish for finish or perhaps you fellows or gals have other suggestions.
Also I was rather disappointed as MC is still at 14-16 percent after being cut in the summer 0f 2016 and stickered in my pole building with good air circulation.
Any help you can give is appreciated
Pete
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[Bruno of NH]

Pete
I remove the bark with a small drawknife.
I put the wide part of the slab down for a bench.
I use spar varnish cut 50/50 with mineral spirts.i flood the surface with it then wipe it with a clean white rag.I buff between coats with synthetic steel wool.

[Brad_bb]

Draw knife, then orbital sander on the live edge. 
Are these going to be indoor or outdoor benches?  If indoor I'd use a water based urethane.  I love the general finish line of products.  If indoor you can also finish with an oil.  Besides being indoor or outdoor, choice also depends on if you want it slick or not.

[low_48]

If you would have asked about the bark last year, removal would have been a dream. Very easy to remove fresh bark. Now you will need a draw knife. Are these going to live outside in the weather? 14-16 is close to a normal air dried moisture level. You can't get 6-8% sitting in a pole building.

[Ljohnsaw]

I put the wide part of the slab down for a bench.

+1 on that.  When you sit on something, you want a curved edge for your thighs to rest on, not a sharp edge.  On a table top, you might do the reverse to maximize the surface area but would still want to break over the edge a little for a pleasing feel.

[Magicman]

Personally I would leave the bark on.  You can always take it off but you can't put it back on.

[Downstream]

I started out using spar urethane for outdoor pieces, but found if they were constantly exposed to sun/moisture then the urethane fails between year 1 and 2 and starts to flake off.  This forces a complete sand to bare wood process that is no fun at all before re-applying the finish.  Lately I have been using timber oil made by thompsons.  Still fades over time but does not flake/peel so re-fnishing is much easier.  I use the natural or clear version.  I agree with others on bench in putting wide edge down.  As far as bark goes to each his own.  I generally take it off on my stuff because I only air dry so I always find live critters under the bark when draw knifing it off.  By the way those will make beautiful benches.

[doc henderson]

hey Bruno.  What is synthetic steel wool?  Scotch bright?  We have done live edge with spar poly but only on things outside intermittently, or if we do not mind rugged look.  It depends on what it is used for and if it has to remain pristine.  If you want the bark on, some will eventually come loose and you can just glue it back on.  Tite bond 3 can sub for the cambium layer.  Flat surfaces are tough like tables and benches.  They hold the water and tend to get lots of sunlight.

[YellowHammer]

We most often take the bark off, just because I don't like running barky slabs with embedded dirt through our planer.  It will dull the knives as fast as it dulls a sawblade.

We remove bark very quickly with the claw of a hammer.  Turn the slab wide side up, aim the claw a little outside the cambium layer and whack it.  We can debark pallets of slabs pretty quickly this way.  The claw will usually dislodge the bark easily, or dig in where it can be levered off.    

Then I prefer to burnish the naked slab edge with the palm of a heavy leather glove.  Rubbing vigorously with the glove on will quickly smooth out and burnish the edge, without causing any damage to the delicate surface.  Then I will take a little 220 grit and ease the sharp edge and remove any splinters.  I have used a 1/4" radius ball guide router bit for this, too.

When we do bark on, I flood the bark with polyurethane, paint it on thick, but not the slab itself.  The object is to make the bark into a piece of plastic. So that when or if it falls off later, it can be glued back on.  Then I'll continue to urethane the slab for a final finish.  I don't really do much bark on though.  

Since we prefer to finish with an oil and wax, I can't plasticize the bark with urethane, so that's another reason I claw hammer th bark it off.  It's very therapeutic.  

The Legrite legs are great, use the proper screws, either from Legrite or from Lowes or Home D.  They sell them. Even though then screws are self tapping, I still like to predrill, if nothing more than because I like to mock the bench on the legs, and sit on it, look at it, and make sure it looks right before I attach them.  After everything looks right, I reach under and drill a couple pilot holes, and then move the whole thing to the work take where I flip it upside down and attach the legs, using the pilot holes as guides.  

Cherry will darken considerably with age so if you use a dark oil it will turn a few shades darker over time.  Our customers and I generally also prefer to cut the raw oil with 50% paint thinner or mineral spirits to really drop its viscosity so it will soak and seep into the wood deeply.  Then extremely lightly sand with 220 to remove the oil off the parrallel grain while not going so deep as to remove it from the direction changing figured grain. That way there is two coats of oil in the curly or figured grain, while only one coat on the parrallel grain.  
Add a second coat of thinned oil and the figure will really pop.

I'm a big fan of paste wax, we have a bench that's been in our showroom for a couple years now and I can't tell you how many rear ends have sat and polished it up.  It still looks great, except where I left a coffe cup on it over night and it left a ring. Oops.

Anyway, this is how we do it, maybe some of this will be useful for you. Heres a picture of a bark-off maple bench I did using this technique.  


Here's me sitting in it at the end of a long day, among the other wood we sold, I think we sold 27 live edge slabs that day, I was tuckered out. 

[doc henderson]

I have done several indoor benches for wedding gifts.  Wood burn the names in the font from the invite and of course put the date on so the man does not forget his anniversary.  I usually use a cut off and square up the ends (chainsaw/chop saw) and sides (sawmill) and leave bark in what will be the underside.  Half inch round over on all flat surfaces.  You can sand a bit of an arc to the top much like a road to help the water run off. I have a Mikita 4 inch hand power planer I use to flatten the surfaces.I will try to add a few pics later.  

[WDH]

I use pure tung oil mixed 50:50 with 100% clear mineral spirits. 

[petefrom bearswamp]

Thanks everyone lots of food for thought.
14 to 16 % is probably normal although I usually get 12 in my Hemlock and pine 4/4.
Not sure yet whether they will be inside or outside benches.
Yellowhammer what do you consider to be the proper screws?

[Bruno of NH]

Doc synthetic steel wool/scotch brite pads.
I would use grk screws with washer heads no.10 or bigger.
YH I also use paste wax buffed in with the synthetic pads.Then buffed with clean white rags.

[WDH]

Pete,

The 1/4" bronze exterior construction lag screws shown here. 

https://ritelegco.com/Category/hardware

[xlogger]

I bet you rear end hurt also sitting on your thick wallet at the end of the day. smiley_biggrin01
I messed up on this post it goes to YH post showing him sitting down at the end of the day after selling all those slabs in one day.

[WDH]

Sitting on that thick wallet will cause back problems    

[scsmith42]

 
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Good advice from others in this thread.

My comments.

1 - be sure to finish all sides of the slab - same number of coats of same finish.  If you only finish the top side, you may end up with a cupped slab over time.

2 - be sure to use legs that have slotted holes to allow the slab to expand and contract a bit.

3 - I prefer hanger bolts for attachment.  These are fasteners where one end looks like a lag thread, and the other end looks like a normal machine thread.  Install them in the center of the slots so that the wood can go either way.

4 - if used outdoors use a good marine varnish or exterior finish.  Epifanes is a great marine varnish, and General Finishes 450 is a great exterior finish.

5 - if you use an oil based poly expect it to develop a yellow tint in a few years.

6. As other have advised, put the wide part down.

7 - if the bark is still tight after 2 years it may stay in place if you soak it with finish.  If it's starting to loosen up, a bark spud is a good start followed by a draw knife.  A wire cup brush on a hand held grinder does great work of cleaning up the surface below the bark.

The photo above is of a 20' long bench that we made a couple of years ago. Finish is Heritage Natural Finish Original Landark Finish.   It's an inside bench.

[Brad_bb]

I've used the Epifanes water thin epoxy on bark, multiple coats that soak in.  It's what is sometimes used to fill rot to firm it up.  I want to make the bark one solid piece so you don't get any flaking, and you want it to soak through to bond it to the slab.

[petefrom bearswamp]

So far, claw hammer, and draw knife as I want the bark gone.
Both work and then wire cup brush to remove the rest, seems to burnish slightly too.
I hope to sell these and will finish appropriately for exterior use.
Thanks everyone.

[doc henderson]

a few pics



 



 



 



 

[doc henderson]

 

 

[doc henderson]

 

 

 

more live edge

[WV Sawmiller]

Doc,

   Pretty benches. Did you put them back on the mill to cut the legs all off at the same length and angle? That works well for me. Only thing is mine don't have the same quality of finish work you display on yours.

[doc henderson]

thanks.  i have done it with rubber bands with line levels on them, marked and used a pull saw.  also made a jig with 2 square pieces of plywood 16 inches square.  fastened at 90 degrees to each other to cut all legs 16 inches up from top of seat (with bench upside down on flat surface) to make cuts same length and parallel with floor.  scoot the jig up next to the bench and leg and use the 2 surfaces to guide the saw.  sorry no pic to better explain this way.



 

You are correct and I would do some on the sawmill but don't want the clamp to damage the side of the bench.

[doc henderson]

We have made some thing for the ride for hope in our area to auction off for charity for about 7 years.  The big double wide cedar book matched cookie bench brought 750 dollars.