Wooden cross

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Baldhead

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I may have to make a small wooden cross to mark a grave, would European Oak be ok, how would I finish it and how could I slow down decay where it's in the ground?

Stew
 
European Oak would be fine, you could sit the part that is going in the ground in old engine oil for a few days, this works well on fence posts as well.

Matt
 
have a search for preserving it. I would probably use an osmo light oak colour and uv oil, because they are available in small pots (i did on a bench). I think on the thread, the sikens product came out top.
 
I made a temporary cross grave marker for a grandparent out of American white oak 10 years ago, just finished it with yacht varnish, it was on the grave for 4 months and remained as good as when 1st positioned. So European oak should be just fine with any sort of external finish applied Osmo polyx would be ideal.
 
Thanks guys, MBcarpentry this is not a temporary grave marker, it's a long story but the MIL is 100 in April, she lost one of the twins she was carrying to spina bifida a few days after his birth, she has only just started to tell my wife about how and why he was buried without a service and or headstone.
My wife has contacted the vicar to see if it's acceptable to erect a small cross with his name on, she has insisted it has to be very plain, obviously I'd like to think it would last a good few years.
At the time of his death (1960) her parents just couldn't afford a headstone.
I'm really chuffed that she asked me to make something for a lost loved one she can't remember.

Stew
 
Hi Stew

Might be worth seeing if you can get hold of an old oak gatepost, they're usually 200 or 300mm square and seem to last forever. I had one a while ago which yielded some lovely timber. I think Stan Dawson at Kirkley might be worth a try but could be wrong.
Some of the sawmills still do treated oak as well I think though more likely to split.

Regards
Bob

PS; How are you doing? Haven't spoken for a while.
 
Bob my SIL has been on at me for ages to visit Stan Dawson's, although I have some oak it's probably a good idea to give them a call, thanks for that.

Stew
 
Hi, I made a simple memorial cross a few years ago out of african iroko. I coated the base with bitumen and it seemed to do the job. You can see this on the crafts page of my website if you're interested.
 
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