Lignum Vitae - green highlights

[jtate]

What causes the grain in lignum vitae turn green over time? What can you do to promote or prevent this (if you want it or don't want it)? I'm sure there's little one can do to prevent wood from doing whatever it does by its own nature. But maybe I can do to promote even more of this phenomenon. I kinda like it!

Julia

 

[jthompson1995]

put it in the sun

 

[Rifleman1776]

Julia
It's not phenomenon. Darkening and/or turning another color is just what woods do. Using finishes with UV additives can delay the process but even then it's problematic. This question comes up frequently with purpleheart. Purple before cut, brown after cut, purple later, brown much later. That's nature and the nature of wood.

 

[alamocdc]

Julia, it will "green up" faster if you expose it to UV (the sun) prior to finishing (I only use wax and the on mine). You can delay the "greening" by finishing it right away, but your best bet for keeping it delayed would be to use a UV blocking finish.

 

[jtate]

Originally posted by alamocdc
<br />... finishing (I only use wax and the on mine).

Wax and... What?

Julia

 

[alamocdc]

Oops... it should have said "I only use wax on mine". I started to add "and let the natural oils in the wood take over" but decided to keep it short. Apparently I forgot to remove ALL of my fat fingering. [:I]

 

[jtate]

Oh, thanks Billy!

I micro-meshed the daylights out of it and then coaxed the resin from the wood as per somebody;s suggestion to hold a papertowel to it till it smokes. I smoothed the resin over it and called it a night.

I gotta say, the natural resins from the wood, didn't really form much of a finish. I couldn't see that the layer of smoothed-over resin was still there within a couple of days. The smooth surface - sanded and micro-meshed thoroughly - is still lovely several days later.