cocobolo

[Fatstrat]

hey everyone,
i just turned some cocobolo and realized that the nice orange and black colours dont run all the way through. after a bit of research, i discovered that the color comes from exposure. Does anyone know about how long it will take to do this? Or what will accelerate it? And is it air, or moisture, or what that does it?

Thanks for all your help in this...my new hobby

 

[Dan_F]

It will come back in one to two weeks. Light seems to accelerate the process, put it on a window sill where is will (hopefully) get some direct sunlight.

Dan

 

[Russianwolf]

and it will continute to darken with more exposure becoming almost black on a couple piece I have. [8D]

I wish there was a way of stopping it when it gets to the state you want.[8)]

 

[Hello]

most pigments are UV reactant.
Synthetic pigments tend to either wash out, or otherwise deteriorate and natural pigments become more vibrant with UV exposure (to an extent, natural pigments will "wash out" too, eventually).
Some pigments, natural and synthetic react to heat too.
There was a post recently from a guy who put some purple heart in his oven to bring out the color.

 

[monkeynutz]

Originally posted by Hello

There was a post recently from a guy who put some purple heart in his oven to bring out the color.

Purpleheart will also "purple up" if left exposed to natural sunlight. Re-orient the wood periodically so all sides get equal exposure. Oh, and putting the blanks out in the sun before turning doesn't help. You've got to turn them down and then put them in the sun prior to putting on any finish.

 

[Sfolivier]

"There was a post recently from a guy who put some purple heart in his oven to bring out the color."

That would have been me. Before you ask, no, I haven't tried to bake cocobolo in my oven (and honestly probably won't ever try). I'm surprised by the change in color you are describing. Usually, fresh cuts have an orange tint while older, exposed, surfaces tend to have reddish, purple and generally darker colors. Eventually, with enough time and/or UV the wood turns brown.

What does your piece look like right now?