punky wood and low viscosity epoxy!

doc henderson · August 04, 2020, 08:41:36 PM

Tule can I send my son to be your apprentice? 8) 8) 8) :D :D :D

charles mann · September 10, 2020, 04:13:40 AM

i am in the same boat. i thought about building a big vacuum chamber and using cactus juice, but i think pulling the vacuum before the juice sets up will be the challenge. so, i was thinking of other ways and was gonna start some research on low viscosity epoxy. but it seems the research is here.
iv got 9 3" slabs of pecan, some 48" of solid heart wood, but wanting to keep the live edge with the bug holes is what a co-worker wants for his counter tops and will build several meeting/dining tables out of the larger slabs. the smaller slabs, i was thinking of coffee, end and entry tables. but all have sever punky sapwood.

i plan to send the slabs to the local kiln, and store them in a shipping container and use part of the container as wood shop, or bring them in the house and use the living room as the epoxy shop, then back outside for sanding and router sledding.
would storing them in a shipping container be wise, or foolish? i can kinda climate control them, but not to much, without having a huge electric bill.

doc henderson · September 10, 2020, 11:06:14 AM

glad they will be kiln dried and hopefully heat treated/sterilized for your liability protection. The epoxy is fun, but expensive so include that in any bid. I will be resuming work on my project soon. I will update with pics. I have wood in a container. it can go months and not need any attention. as the weather cools. I follow the RH in the container. I have a remote temp and humidity monitor in there and monitor in my shop. it keeps the daily high and low for temp and humidity. if it starts to creep up, I plug in and run the dehumidifier for a night or so. during the day, the RH is often too low for the dehumidifier to make much difference. We are having a cool spell with highs in the 60s instead of the 90s. as anticipated the RH was up, and this dictates the EMC for the wood in there. it has been stable at about 7%

charles mann · September 10, 2020, 03:39:27 PM

@doc henderson

Good to know a container will work and what is rqd to make it work.

As for being sterilized, im sure the kiln will get hot enough. I found the guy on the wm pro sawyer network.
The guy that slabbed the logs also just installed a kiln, but a 45min drive compared to the 2hr drive to guy the sawed the logs is a no-brainer. Plus the local guy has been doing it longer and im sure has the kinks worked out. Im gonna air dry for another 6wks before taking the load to him. He has a load already in the kiln and wont be done for another 5 wks, so it'll work out for timeline.

I dabbled with epoxy a few yrs ago on some cedar and it worked out great, using just bar top epoxy from the chain box stores

doc henderson · December 12, 2020, 09:12:12 PM

getting there. add a first layer/coat of table top epoxy. turned up the heat in the shop and will sand a bit in am and add another coat, in thin layers as instructed by @tule peak timber . hope to install soon, for my cousin. before Christmas.

very thick stuff. it can be nudged but did not run easily off the edge. I had to use the orange level as I got it from a family friend for my birthday.

I used all total boat for this projet. I used low viscosity, regular and table top (thick) epoxies for this..

doc henderson · December 12, 2020, 09:13:52 PM

believe it or not, I am in the middle of organizing and cleaning my shop.! :D

tule peak timber · December 12, 2020, 09:34:22 PM

Doc,
From my chair your top looks pretty darn good!
I am in a bit of a quandry, on one of the tops I am doing, of whether to use the penetrating with or without a solvent for the first coat. The first coat is going to be the one that goes the deepest, has the roots so to speak, and everything else will build off it going towards the final coat. I did some destructive testing on the glue I am using for joinery, just to make sure that if I do use penetrating with a solvent, I won't screw up what I have already done. As NASA said, failure is not an option. My father also referred to NASA as "never a straight answer", but we won't get into that experience.
If you can get your coats (thin coats) to where they are pinhole free, suckout free, and totally uniform, when you sand them with a flat board, to me you are finished coating.
Check your FedEx on Tuesday or Wednesday.

BTW, your shop looks like a mess...just sayin.
WOC

doc henderson · December 12, 2020, 09:48:40 PM

Thanks so much, again WOC! best regards DOC! @tule peak timber
ps. the siracha roasted pistachios seen on the table saw really help too.

Larry · December 12, 2020, 10:15:44 PM

Quote from: doc henderson on December 12, 2020, 09:48:40 PM

the siracha roasted pistachios seen on the table saw really help too.

What table saw? I see the pistachios but no table saw in any of the pictures! :D :D

The tops are looking great. 8) 8) 8)

Old Greenhorn · December 13, 2020, 07:28:52 AM

Looking good Doc! The thicker the coat, the better it holds those bubbles. I didn't see a torch laying around but I assume you do wipe the surface with a torch as needed during the first hour or two of curing? I hang a temporary tent of plastic sheet over my pieces just to keep any dust from settling in the surface.

doc henderson · December 13, 2020, 07:32:45 AM

I used a heat gun yesterday. but the is a MAPP torch there if needed.

doc henderson · December 22, 2020, 08:23:35 PM

waiting for glue to dry. My cousin mike and his wife Diane. Her mom is 92 and hiding at there house for covid. she gave two thumbs up!

Thanks again @tule peak timber for the advice and trade secrets. I learned a ton thanks to you. and thanks for the supplies that I was otherwise unable to get. you are so kind.

:christmas:

Old Greenhorn · December 22, 2020, 08:41:40 PM

Looking mighty good Doc! Nice job!

WDH · December 23, 2020, 07:36:09 AM

Looking very fine, very fine.

tule peak timber · December 23, 2020, 09:38:34 AM

Beautiful work Doc!

21incher · December 24, 2020, 03:26:20 PM

They came out beautiful. Looks like we may have an apprentice WOC on the forum now.

doc henderson · December 24, 2020, 06:04:24 PM

Quote from: 21incher on December 24, 2020, 03:26:20 PM
They came out beautiful. Looks like we may have an apprentice WOC on the forum now.

i wish, and sorta offered!

8)

tule peak timber · December 24, 2020, 08:27:25 PM

We will tip a glass of wine next year. Merry Christmas Doc.

Texas Ranger · December 30, 2020, 12:03:29 PM

Back to basics, really basic. what epoxy and color flakes are best for small projects, boxes and such. I tried one and did not like it. Source, web site, name, etc, would be appreciated.

Thanks, folks.

doc henderson · December 30, 2020, 01:21:59 PM

the automotive stuff will have a green tinge to it. you can get stuff at hobby stores like hobby lobby, Lowes, home depot, called casting resin. good for adding color and displaying say a penny with someone's birth year on it. I used from the total boat system this time, to be sure it was high strength and quality. you can add rocks, pine cone seeds, dust, shavings ect. you can buy pigments and additives such as crushed stone. I have done several with actual turquoise stone. If it is decorative, the casting stuff is good, and I think @Old Greenhorn has had really good luck with it. it is nice as it can be bought locally with out pre-planning. I got mine on Amazon, but have to wait a few days, and more expensive. after opening, it does not last forever, so get just over the quantity you need.

doc henderson · December 30, 2020, 01:23:45 PM

what did you not like? any pics? the additives are endless, and so it depends on your goals. blend in or pop out! cheap vs sky is the limit. the casting resin is a good place to start.

Amazon.com: Art 'N Glow Clear Casting and Coating Epoxy Resin - 16 Ounce Kit: Toys & Games

Texas Ranger · December 30, 2020, 01:45:58 PM

Doc, I followed the instructions and the epoxy never reached, or obtained a flow to fill the cavities. I tried several times. Don't know if the epoxy was bad, or I was. I have ordered the stuff on your post, hopefully I can do better with the instructions.

doc henderson · December 30, 2020, 04:40:42 PM

you can thin it a bit with acetone according to @tule peak timber and maybe isoprople. post a photo if that wil help. what were you trying to fill?

Texas Ranger · December 30, 2020, 07:30:53 PM

I was tasked with building a funeral box for ashes. I have left over wood with imperfection that I want to build into boxes for my kids. I like the filler I have seen and want to try and do the same.

Larry · December 30, 2020, 08:15:04 PM

There is another method for punky wood, and small cracks. For just plain punky wood I use Stick Fast Thin CA glue. To fill small cracks and voids I use the Medium CA. If I want to add color I use Pearl Ex Powdered Pigments from Hobby Lobby.

Another product to fill bug holes, small cracks, and etc is Starbond Medium-Thick Black CA glue. It comes with micro tips to get into really small cracks.

The advantage to the CA glues is they set instantly when hit with accelerator. You can fill and sand to finish in a minute. Probably too expensive to use on large areas.

With any of the CA glues you might need to put on sanding sealer or shellac so the glue doesn't discolor the wood. Depends on how much sanding is left to do.