European Ash vs American Ash

[wizer]

I have just been turning a large English Ash bowl which was felled last year. It's true that there is much more 'beauty' in the local stuff. But I think if I was making furniture with it, I'd want it as uniform a possible. I guess there's no chance of mixing and matching it, but I think I'd like to use the local stuff for, say, a table top. But use the US stuff for legs, rails, seats, etc.

Against my own opinion, I've just finished it with Shellac Sanding Sealer and Acrylic Lacquer. It only yellowed a bit, but still more than I'd like. The yellowing comes from the shellac sanding sealer which, I assume, does not use the ultra blonde crystals. When I get around to it, I'm going to make up my own 'sealer' using just UB Shellac and Clear Meths.

Looks good tho. Assuming I don't cock up the last stage tomorrow, I'll post a pic.

 

[wizer]

Here you go, English Ash finished with a thin coat of Chestnut Shellac Sanding Sealer and then two coats of Chestnut Acrylic Lacquer.

 

[Mattty]

Thats lovely Tom, i love the dark streaks.

 

[ByronBlack]

Looks nice - some real nice grain - although from my wonky eyes, it looked like a hat

 

[OPJ]

That looks good, Tom.

How did you apply the acrylic lacquer? I've been trying to apply some today but the finish has loads of "bubbles" (this is using a roller). I tried spraying it some time last week but it kept clogging my gun. I then tried diluting it but I fear I went OTT with it... Plus, I bought it back in 2008 and it's been in the workshop through two cold winters...

Might have to sand it all off, chuck the rest and finish it with something else! :?

 

[Chems]

That looks good Tom, very nice.

Its going to be American ash for this piece for me thou. I'll make sure to start a WIP.

 

[ondablade]

Nifty bit of work Tom, lovely character.

For what it's worth my experience with Danish oil over oak (Rustins) is that it changes quite a bit with time. It brings the colour up very nicely from the start, but after a month or two it changes quite a lot - still nice, but the grain darkens quite a lot (gets brown) and it becomes much less clear.

Another non yellowing option that brushes well and flats easily (sprays too, although i've not tried it) is Rustins plastic coating. It's a urea formaldehyde. I did some birch ply shelving for our bathroom and its not darkened or marked at all in over a year...

 

[ByronBlack]

Here's another vote for rustins plastic coating (axminster sell it). I've used it for a number of guitar bodies and necks, very easy to use, and can build to either matt or glossy.

 

[wizer]

Thanks guys. The bowl wasn't a total success but I'm happy with it bearing in mind this is the first time I've turned in 6 months. It does look a bit hat shaped. Or my missus said it's like those sweets you used to get with the sherbet in the middle (Flying Saucers?) :roll:

Olly the lacquer was from an aerosol can. I sprayed from about 12" away using the same sort of technique suggested for HVLP spraying i.e keeping my arm straight as opposed to swinging in an arc and plunging\stopping whilst off the work. I build it up in thin coats. This will probably have another two or three until it's 'done'.

Chems, the pic was to show the colour using the Shellac\Lacquer combo. It should hopefully remain quite light.

 

[devonwoody]

Tom, I like your ash bowl as well, I got some ash last week that had just been felled.
Has that bowl been turned from a blank that was cut across the trunk or sliced off the side?

 

[wizer]

It's side grain DW. Cut from a log I chainsawed last summer. The log was given to me by a forum member, down in Kent.

 

[bugbear]

The American ash I have used (kiln dried) is not as coarse a grain, so I prefer American.

In furniture, almost the whole point of (English) ash is the spectacular texture of the grain.

BugBear

 

[gasman]

Tom that looks lovely - really nice
Another vote here for a shellac sanding sealer followed by hardwaxoil - works every time for me and it gives an VERY hardwearing surface which you can buff up a couple of hours after application to a really great shhen

 

[OPJ]

...the lacquer was from an aerosol can.

I don't know why I didn't think of buying that, back in 2008!! :shock:

No brushes or guns to clean. No stroke marks. Just pop the cap back on after and leave it to dry! Saying that, I e-mailed Terry Smart this morning to see if he could explain why I'm having these problems with it and he's also advised me to try a brand new bottle. It does indeed start to thicken up after a year, apparently, even inside the bottle. There's also the possibility that the one I bought could've been sat on the shelves for some time, anyway.

 

[Tim Nott]

Just today finished a French Ash dresser. The wood was very varied and there was a lot of rubbish (most of which they gave us) but I like the olive and brown streaks. I hope the client does but will find out on Thursday. Wish me luck.
I've used sprayed sanding sealer and satin pre-cat lacquer on ash with good results (apart from a bit of orange peel caused by my own inexpertise) but since we have to spray outside and the weather's been dung, we brushed on a water-based satin varnish. Very pleased with the finish - the coarse grain of the ash disguises the (very faint) brush marks and although it's not yellowed it has darkened a bit but in a way that evens up the colour. The 3v3 (French make) varnish dries very quickly - you can move a piece or turn a door over (Axminster painter's cones - YES) after a few minutes, and recoat after 3 hours. Photos soon.

 

[aiden]

It looks the same as danish oil so I presume would have the same, or very similar, colouring effect, at least it seems to on oak. I have used danish oil on ash before and I do not have a problem with it, although there does seem to be a number of people on here who do not like it.

 

[AndyT]

I think there's a risk of confusing two things here - the colour change from the finish and the change from exposure to light.

I've made a bookcase and a wardrobe from Ash (probably European) and finished them with Danish Oil.

I don't much like the pale blonde colour of newly cut wood, but am really pleased how they have darkened down to a rich brown (not yellow!) colour and got more character after ten years of exposure to sunlight.

This is how the wardrobe looks:

the whole thing:

and by contrast, the inside, not exposed to light:

 

[Chems]

Thanks guys, I bought 2 cubic feet of 1" ash and a bit of 1.5" for the end frames. Spent a lot of time picking out some very white boards with the nice chaps at Good Timber (they are worth driving at least 100miles to visit) and hope that it makes nice furniture.

 

[OPJ]

Looks forward to seeing the WIP photos, Chems.

Did you go for European or American ash, in the end?

 

[Chems]

American, I asked the guy at the place and he said he liked it better for a few good reasons.

Picked out some nice boards, and my P/T is arriving back from FedEx tomorrow after having been repaired by SIP under warranty.