Cherry in the sun?

[navakahn]

First time working with cherry.  

I've just laminated and flattened two desk tops (36" x 72").  

Read somewhere that if I leave them out in the sun for a day, they'll darken up nicely, which my wife would like.  But I wonder if leaving two newly-planed large panels in the sun will introduce cup or twist into the panel.


I'd welcome thoughts, comments, or advice.

Thanks,
jason

[Robert Adams]

I put my kitchen cab  doors out in the sun for a day before clearcoaring them. It doesnt do much but it does help kick start the darkening. Oxidation seems to be more effective than uv light though. 

    I have a trash can full of cherry chips that i use in the grill and the top layer is darker than the underlying chips. It doesnt take long for the initial change but to get darker it takes lots of time and a clear coat slows that down. I did a coat of blo then let them dry before sitting them in the sun then clear coated after about a week or so using automotive clear coat. 

       I have some pics but with the camera and the too yellow lights they look much more yellow in the pics than in person.

       Oh also leaving panels in the sun too long on a warm day can warp the crap out of a panel. You really have to watch and make sure they dont get hot. I only have a small window here where there is enough sun but not insanely hot outside to do it. However this spring is the coolest we have had in many years so its been good for it here.

[jteneyck]

The chance of problems far out weigh any benefit.  They will darken in a few weeks/months anyway.  

John

[Bob Vaughan]

Potassium dichromate.  Dissolve in water to orange Kool-aid color.  Wipe on evenly.  Let air dry.  Lightly scuff sand the raised grain being careful around the edges.  That's the way furniture factories did it for years and years.  I tried it in 1977 and have been using it ever since.  I've read that lye works also, but that's nasty stuff.  Works on Honduras mahogany also.

Leaving the cherry as-is, it takes at least a year for it to darken, and more like several years.  Leave a flower vase in the same spot for a year and you'll have a light spot.  A customer of a woodworker friend did that.  When she moved the vase, she was horrified at the finish defect and demanded the table be refinished.  To be fair, the table was beside a window on the south side of the house.

[MichaelMouse]

Potassium dichromate.  Dissolve in water to orange Kool-aid color.  Wipe on evenly.  Let air dry.  Lightly scuff sand the raised grain being careful around the edges.  That's the way furniture factories did it for years and years.  I tried it in 1977 and have been using it ever since.  I've read that lye works also, but that's nasty stuff.  Works on Honduras mahogany also.

Leaving the cherry as-is, it takes at least a year for it to darken, and more like several years.  Leave a flower vase in the same spot for a year and you'll have a light spot.  A customer of a woodworker friend did that.  When she moved the vase, she was horrified at the finish defect and demanded the table be refinished.  To be fair, the table was beside a window on the south side of the house.

Fuming with ammonia or wiping with lye solution do work, and both are easily available, though they require protection for, and care by the user.

"Potassium dichromate, K2Cr2O7, is a common inorganic chemical reagent, most commonly used as an oxidizing agent in various laboratory and industrial applications. As with all hexavalent chromium compounds, it is acutely and chronically harmful to health."  -Wiki says it well

Air drying will give a good start, while kilns which steam to blend sapwood seem to set color back.  Since some finishes, like spar varnish, contain UV inhibiters, I'd stick to conventional indoor-rated types.  I use BLO to refusal under varnish.

[Roly]

Try putting boiled linseed oil on scrap and see if this is the finish color you are looking for.    After applying the oil I have placed it outside for a few hours without any problems but is was not on large panels.   If you are using a WB finish I do not think it will play nice with the BLO .     I used shellac as first coat over the BLO then a gel stain over it for effect.    All my finishes were oil based.   Roly

[Steve N]

If the finished piece is near/in a window it will darken quicker, just getting the ambient light you have in a non shuttered home will darken it. LOML and I both appreciate it's rich redness when it's new wood, and the dark brown a piece a hundred or more years old gets. I'm all for not rushing anything, but let it mellow on it's own. Guaranteed Mother Nature has the best recipe, and it's completely hands off.

[AHill]

Patience, grasshopper.  They will age naturally and look beautiful.  No risk at all.

[Sawdustd]

Bob -    Where do you buy the Potassium Chromate and do you buy it in crystal form or in bottles?

Dave

[navakahn]

Thanks, everyone.  Sounds like the sunning isn't the best idea for the large panels.  

Will go with plan b: just let the panels darken over time.  As desktops, they may have some spots that get less ambient light than others over time.  But I suppose that I can live with that.

Thanks, again,
j.