Opinions needed please

[duncanh]

I'm part way through turning a largish piece of yew that is very well seasoned (it's been in my shed for over 2 years and before that it had been stored in a shed for at least 8 years).

As is often the case with yew this piece has quite a few splits and cracks that I think detract from the wood and I'm wondering about treating them. I've tried brass powder and super glue successfully in the past but found the glue tricky to control. With the cracks placed as they are on the yew it would take a while to get them filled as I would have to fill one, wait for the glue to dry (I'm out of accelerator!), turn the wood and repeat (several times).

Click for larger
Click for larger

I've tried using copper, aluminium, brass powders on a piece of scrap yew and I think the aluminium looks best but filling them all with it may be a little overpowering.
I was wondering if anyone had any other ideas of how to treat the cracks - black powder or filler perhaps.

Maybe I should use a clear epoxy with the powder that wouldn't run out of the cracks when the piece is turned.

I wouldn't usually ask about what to do before hand, but it's a big piece of wood and I don't want to ruin it.

Duncan

 

[CHJ]

Duncan,

Liberal coats of cellulose sanding sealer (brush on) to help 'glue' the cracks followed immediately with fine Yew Wood dust worked into the still wet voids as a 'wood filler' might do the trick. I have had success with this method.

I have soaked smaller pieces of crazed yew in diluted cellulose sealer and let drain and dry before turning with success also.

 

[Russell]

I would blow the cracks out with a compressor and then fill with thick superglue on the wider cracks. I do not use accelerator as this turns the glue white. I also don' t bother with wood dust I prefer the cracks to go black and will also use black superglue (picked up a couple of bottles from Brimarc but they don't sell it any more. The small cracks I would just liberally coat with sanding sealer. . once the cracks are full I would sand the piece completely and finish with saning sealer and wax.

 

[bobham]

I have never actually tried it myself, but a lot of turners are using ground coffee and superglue for filling cracks. I have a box that was turned by another turner who used the coffee fill on some cracks and the result is quite impressive. As I understand it you fill the crack as full as you can with ground coffee and then dribble the cyanoacrylate into the crack. The glue cures almost instantly on contact with the coffee.

Take care
Bob

 

[CHJ]

I have never actually tried it myself, but a lot of turners are using ground coffee and superglue for filling cracks. I have a box that was turned by another turner who used the coffee fill on some cracks and the result is quite impressive. As I understand it you fill the crack as full as you can with ground coffee and then dribble the cyanoacrylate into the crack. The glue cures almost instantly on contact with the coffee.
Take care
Bob

Yes works a treat Bob, regularly use it to fill in areas of bark inclusion, knots and the like, turns and polishes to a fine finish, bit unnerving if of any depth as heat buildup can cause it to smoke for a few seconds, best done with low viscosity CA.

I usually wet 'crack/void with CA fill in with coffee grounds whilst still wet and re-soak area.

I have heard of people requiring the finest of textures using 'instant coffee' powder but have not used this myself.

Scott, has a piece of cherry so filled, he may be able to pass on his take on the effect if he sees this.

 

[ctb]

If your planning on using a metal powder, Forget super glue, it's expensive and a complete waste of time.

Get from an auto spares shop some resin and hardener, the type used for fibreglass, mix up the metal powder with the resin to form a paste, then add a small amount of hardener, and then fill your cracks and voids.

Finishing cuts with chisel and sandpaper, then seal and use finish of your choice.

Chris

 

[duncanh]

Thanks for all the comments.
In the past I did a few tests with fibreglass resin but the one I used (from Halfords) set to a kind of pink colour that required a lot of powder to alter.
I'll try experimenting over the next couple of days to see what I can come up with.

Duncan

 

[skjerstad]

I would agree with the coffee.I think the dark looks ok in the yew.
Tried some bigger splits with dust but ended up grinding it out.I now use dark or clear super glue and dry used coffee grinds in almost all the cracks I fill regardless of the type of wood.
Cheers for now
Michael

 

[Dean]

Hi Duncan, sorry I have no answer to your problem but know how you feel, I've just noticed a big split across a 12 inch X 4 inch Elm bowl blank

ATB

Dean

 

[bobham]

Dean:
A few months ago I was buying some bowl blanks and the fellow where I was buying them threw in a small cracked blank and told me to see what I could do with it. It was about 3" thick and had been cut into a 5" disk before it cracked. When I finally got around to doing something with it I cut it on the bandsaw along the crack into two pieces. I then used hand planes (because the pieces were too short for the power jointer) to dress the cut faces. When I had the faces dressed well enough for a glue joint I measured the diameter to see how much wood I had removed. I then prepared a piece of contrasting wood to that thickness and glued the blank back together with the contrasting wood in the joint so that I again had a 5" disk. I was quite pleased with the way it "turned" out.

It is just soft maple and black walnut. I liked it so well I have done it a few times since then using blanks that weren't even cracked.

It is a good way to salvage a cracked blank or dress up an otherwise plain piece of wood.

Take care
Bob

 

[TEP]

Hi Duncan.

I sympathize with your dilemma. I have never had any joy trying to match the colour of timber when filling so I generally go for the contrasting route and try to make a feature of it. I use very fine wood dust with cyno' or epoxy adhesives with the metal powders, I have also used coloured chalks with epoxy.

What I have done for a while is when turning a piece of coloured wood I make sure the work area is clear. Then after a while collect the dust and shavings put them through a cheap sieve, and the resulting dust I place in a old electric coffee mill for 5 mins. I save all these dusts in pots to use when needed.

Good luck with your choice. Would like to see the finished result.

 

[Paul.J]

Hello Duncan.
Lovely looking piece of Yew.
Sorry can't help with this one,not had much success with splits meself,though i remember Norm (New Yankee workshop)using some black resin filler once on a project he was doing that matched the black streaks in the timber he was using,looked good when finished.
Paul.J.