Aged oak beams

[Andyb350z]

Hi all

I visited a reclamation yard earlier as saw some fantastic old oak beams that had been restored, dressed up and had price tags ranging from £300 to £800, I was shocked but they were stunning. I have posted a link to a picture of the type of thing I was looking at, I wish I had taken some pictures as the ones I saw were a little more glazed and the ones in the picture below.

However I was wondering if anyone can give me a idea or point me in the right direction for a page / post on how this process is done, I have a few old beams drying out in the garage and would love to have a go at creating something like this.

http://www.oakbydesign.co.uk/images/oak ... -beams.jpg

As always any help and advice would be more than appreciated

 

[marcros]

from the few salvage yard programs i have seen, they normally wire brush (on an angle grinder) and then use a coloured wax. Those look smoother, so may be sanded and waxed. never having wire brushed wood, i dont know how aggressive it is.

 

[ColeyS1]

I found a flap sanding disc on a grinder also gave quite pleasing results- I left the sander/grinder marks in but you could easily remove them if you wished.

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[blackrodd]

I found a flap sanding disc on a grinder also gave quite pleasing results- I left the sander/grinder marks in but you could easily remove them if you wished.

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As above, I have had a bit to do with this "ageing or matching" business.
Cut the shape with the grain using a carpenters hand axe or draw knife, and then, using course to fine grades, a floppy 4 1/2" or 5" disc on the angle grinder will certainly give you an excellent finish, but, again beware of the dreaded dust 'cos there will be some! HTH Regards Rodders

 

[Andyb350z]

Ok guys thanks. I will have a go at this. I might throughout them throughout the thicknesser first, attack and shape with a axe and give them a grind. I will post up some pics when I'm done!

 

[milkman]

Not to my taste those, they look plasticcy.

Anyhoo you asked 'how' not 'whether'. I wouldn't spend time planing them, unless the dimensions are way off. Wire brush and grinder should do it, maybe sanding flap disk after.
Also if theres any sapwood take that off.
Genuinely old beams have often had wain, and sap wood eaten away over a long time which gives them their rounded look.

 

[Alex H]

Depends on how 'old' they are. Our house here is built with oak beams throughout and is round about 100+ years old. The beams are like steel. getting nails in / out is really difficult. A popular method of cleaning them is sandblasting, but it makes a real mess, so is best done first, before any restoration

 

[Soylent1]

After you have sanded/planed or blasted the surface it might be slightly lighter than you had imagined - depends on the age of the oak. If you need to darken the wood, a really good technique is to brush a white lime wash all over and when it has dried buff it off with a sponge/dry cloth, it brings the tannin to the surface and effectively 'ages' the oak. HTH tony