Advice on repairing white oak
#11
A project for our homeowners association library bookcases netted some free quartersawn white oak, but as you can see in the pictures, the imperfections are glaring. I'm torn between using what I was given or buying new (a three-hour round trip plus my own money).

I got some epoxy to fill with, but I've never done this before. One of the knots (2nd image) goes clear through the 3/4" stock.

What am I in for, and what would you recommend?







Danno

Creston Wood
Reply
#12
I guess it depends on what you are building. Epoxy will work to glue the check, but if you are going to stain, the epoxy will not take the stain.
Jim
http://ancorayachtservice.com/ home of the Chain Leg Vise.
Reply
#13
Much of that oak is not quartersawn.
I'd use the sound portions of the lumber, cut out the bad portions.
Reply
#14
These look like typical flaws that I have repaired with epoxy and have have had real good results using oil based gel stain over the epoxy. Adding a small amount of sanding dust to the epoxy also helps. Too much quickly makes it too dark. It works especially well for knots which are a lot darker anyway.
Reply
#15
We repair similar defects daily in the process of prepping our live edge slabs.
For the holes, simply use epoxy with black colorants. Since you can't hide them, make them obvious. We do this all the time with no problems.

For the crack shown in your first picture: This defect is usually caused by kiln drying damage and penetrates deeply. You could be pouring epoxy down that crack all day. Here's what we do:
1. Slice a thin wedge on the bandsaw, angling the wood so that the grain that shows will match the wood.
2. Drive the wedge under and into the crack, i.e. going diagonally into the wood.
3. Go to any store that sells artist supplies and ask for Mixol pigments, they mix very well with epoxy. Pick the color that most closely matches the final color of the wood (after finishing). These little bottles cost about $6 each.
4. Use the colored epoxy to glue in your wedge and liberally spread it all around the edges of your repair
5. After the epoxy cures, sand down your repair. Because the epoxy is close in color to the repair, the area will now look like a natural variation in the wood. The wedge prevents the epoxy from diffusing down the crack into the wood.

We salvaged many, many thousands of dollars worth of natural edge slabs using this and similar techniques. It's kind of tedious the first time you do it, but goes very quickly after that.
Reply
#16
all the defects seem to be at or near the ends.

modify the plan and shorten the stock

Joe
Let us not seek the Republican Answer , or the Democratic answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past. Let us accept our own responsibility for the future  John F. Kennedy 



Reply
#17
Thank you all for responding. I think I'll try the epoxy with some tint added, experiment a little first. Also will try alnandy's suggestion about the wedge. This will test my woodworking skills in a new dimension.
Danno

Creston Wood
Reply
#18
If the piece need not be perfectly clear wood, then don't try and hide the defects. Fill them with dark tinted epoxy and they will look just like they do now, but the shelf is solid. If you try and hide the defect, and don't get it quite right, then it stands out worse than the natural flaw did in the first place.

You don't have worry about matching the stain because the knot hole stays as a "black hole" anyway.

Depends on the look you are going for. It you must have perfection, then you need to cut off the defects and get some more wood to make up the loss. Or just use it warts and all and make the most of what you have to work with.
Reply
#19
If those boards are for shelves, remember that the books will cover the defects. That being the case, I wouldn't worry about that too much. Use filler to basically even out the surface of the repaired defect so that books do not "catch" on the edges of the repair.
Howie.........
Reply
#20
I've mixed black India ink into five minute epoxy and it worked well to fill defects. They were smaller than your knot hole but it's a method I would use again.

If the hole is really deep maybe two doses of epoxy versus filling it all in one try.

Mike
Reply


Forum Jump:


Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)

Product Recommendations

Here are some supplies and tools we find essential in our everyday work around the shop. We may receive a commission from sales referred by our links; however, we have carefully selected these products for their usefulness and quality.