Ca finish and wood moisture

[Kdoc87]

I know this may seem like a basic question, but I've heard people with opposing views on this matter. Does the % of moisture in a wood pen blank matter if it is to be sealed and finished with CA? And will it ever move or crack since it is cut off from the humidity of whatever room it's being kept?
Also, if the ca finish was applied with the normal bushings, that would leave the end grain not fully sealed...What do you think? Is this even an issue?
Thanks!

 

[Brian G]

My opinion is that, yes, the moisture percentage does matter even if the finished blank is entombed in CA. The wood will still expand and contract as temperature changes. Unless you use the double-secret, flexible CA that's better than all other CA, it will likely crack. Even if the CA doesn't crack, the interface between the two could trap the moisture trying to escape.

Think of a stick of wood as a bundle of soda straws fused together along the length. The exposed ends still allow whatever will fit inside the straws to pass through unless they are sufficiently plugged.

An inexpensive toaster oven, set to 250 °F and monitored by using an inexpensive oven thermometer, can be a useful pen blank drying system.

 

[edstreet]

I know this may seem like a basic question, but I've heard people with opposing views on this matter.
Does the % of moisture in a wood pen blank matter if it is to be sealed and finished with CA?
And will it ever move or crack since it is cut off from the humidity of whatever room it's being kept?
Also, if the ca finish was applied with the normal bushings, that would leave the end grain not fully sealed...What do you think?
Is this even an issue? Thanks!

Reformatted to show each question.


1) yes it matters. Wood moves and raw wood moves way more than stabilized wood. Moister % affects bloom rate.
2) yes it can move if the grain shifts. Hydrostatic pressure does flow in a 'sealed blank' even when ends are sealed.
3) I do recommend bushings still and the wood is drystone it's not an issue.

 

[Kdoc87]

Thanks a lot for the info! That was my original thought also but wanted some other opinions. I guess I've convinced myself to keep this one as an experiment...I really like it anyways (pic included).
I'll come back and update if it cracks!!:angry:

 

[Sabaharr]

I have never had a stabilized wood pen crack and mine are made in Southeast Louisiana right outside of New Orleans and near the humid swamplands. Even if baked in an oven they suck up water like a sponge from the air and stabilizing is the only thing that prevents that. Wood still naturally expands and contracts with temperature change but eliminating the moisture movement from drying will keep the expansion and contraction to a minimum when stabilized. Hardwoods may be a little less susceptible to this but not much. My first burl pen looks like a dropped vase that was glued back together from the cracks in it, but since I started stabilizing it hasn't happened again.