Hairline Cracks Appearing after Finishing?

[gmreeves]

I turned a nice piece of Amboyna for a Tycoon kit and it looked great after turning. I applied about 8 coats of thin CA and polished and waxed it. I installed the hardware and everything has been fine for a few days. Now, all of the sudden, I am noticing that the finish is a little wavy and I have three or four hairline cracks beginning to form in the finish. Is the wood changing because of the humidity causing the cracks to form? I bought the blanks from PSI and they were not coated with any wax and appeared nice and dry. I don't have a moisture meter to determine the level though. I turned a Cocobolo the same night and so far it is fairing well. Any thoughts on what has happened and ways to prevent it in the future? Can I salvage this pen?

 

[PenMan1]

There are so many variables involved here! A close-up photo or two might be helpful for diagnosis.

 

[gmreeves]

All right. Here they are. Don't mind the black line on the cap section. That is just a dog hair.

 

[1080Wayne]

I suspect the wood is still drying out . I would disassemble , sand the finish off , let sit for a couple weeks inside the house (not in direct sunlight) , and re-finish .

 

[gmreeves]

That's kind of what I was thinking but dang it it looked like a good pen until this happened. Oh well, I guess I can wait a little while before finishing it. Are there any inexpensive moisture meters that are reliable that any of you would recommend I look at purchasing?

 

[PenMan1]

suspect the wood is still drying out . I would disassemble , sand the finish off , let sit for a couple weeks inside the house (not in direct sunlight) , and re-finish .

Exactly my thoughts. Still drying. A little inexpensive moisture meter in the shop sure is handy.

 

[TellicoTurning]

That's kind of what I was thinking but dang it it looked like a good pen until this happened. Oh well, I guess I can wait a little while before finishing it. Are there any inexpensive moisture meters that are reliable that any of you would recommend I look at purchasing?

Greg,
I had one that I did for a pen swap and after I sent the pen to my swap partner, he discovered the cracks and wavy finish... I don't have a moisture meter either and didn't realize how wet the wood was... was a disappointment for both of us as by the time he got the pen, it was really crappy... it was beautiful when it left here... I have it back and hope to refinish it for myself...

 

[1080Wayne]

A small postage or other scale capable of weighing in 2 gram increments is much more accurate (but a lot slower) than a moisture meter for determining if a blank is in equilibrium with your local conditions . Weigh it , leave it a week , re-weigh . If less than 5% change , you are probably okay to turn it if it is a local wood . If a very dense exotic , I would personally wait a month or longer .

 

[robert3]

Hi
Here is my experience with the same problem you got. I had these cracks appear in some of my Amboyna Burl Pens and thought also that they hadn't been dry all the way. Wrong!! As i thought about this problem i recalled that all the blanks i used had come from the same Burl i cut for blanks myself. So i was wondering how it could be that some blanks from the same burl crack and others don't. To make a long story short, i put to much heat/friction to the blank while i was sanding/finishing. Look at your process and see what you could do different. I watch now more closely that i don't allow the sanding/finishing media to heat up the blank.Since then i'm "crack free" lol...

Robert

 

[Nickfff]

It could be from not sanding/chamfering the tubes before assembly. When it is pressured at assembly it can cause small cracks to appear from the pressure of assembly...

 

[chriselle]

This is wood movement. I've had this annoying problem over the years and have given up on all but commercially stabilized blanks. Don't bother trying to fix.....it's a waste of time as I will guarantee cracks will appear again.

 

[galoot_loves_tools]

That's kind of what I was thinking but dang it it looked like a good pen until this happened. Oh well, I guess I can wait a little while before finishing it. Are there any inexpensive moisture meters that are reliable that any of you would recommend I look at purchasing?

Harbor Freight has an inexpensive meter:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=67143

I have their older model, it works quite well.