What's the best way to fill cracks in burl

[Skordog]

Hi All,

I have a couple of questions. The first has to do with how to fill in cracks that are present in burl, although they can obviously appear in regular wood as well.

I have tried putting sawdust into them with CA but it does not seem to work.

Which leads to the second batch of questions:

Does CA have a shelf life? The stuff I have is about a year or so old and just doesn't seem to stick real good. I seem to remember that most CA would glue my fingers together instantly, whereas this stuff doesn't.

So, would a different bottle of CA and sawdust be a good filling material for cracks? If so, how long do you let it dry before turning or sanding again? Should I use accellerant? (I have some on order) And what about cracks that show up in a pen due to drying after it is assembled?

Thanks for your help.

Jeff

 

[Gary]

CA definately has a shelf life, and it sounds like yours is beyond the useable. I buy it in small bottles, label it with the purchase date, and toss it if it isn't used in 6 months.

For filling the cracks in burl eyes, try applying CA and sanding while it's still wet. It seems to work for me.

Cracks after assembling...that's a different matter. I know of no way to correct that. Maybe someone else does. Were your blanks dry before you turned them?

 

[JimGo]

I had a blank that broke in half as I was turning it. A few splinters were lost along the edges, but I was able to get it back together using CA and sawdust. Actually came out smooth, too, although the color was off because I used a few different kinds of wood (I had turned three or four kinds that day).

 

[low_48]

When I have large cracks in burls to fill I like to use 5 minute epoxy. I use sawdust as a filler. Many times I use walnut dust and don't try to match the wood, but make it look like a bark inclusions. I also use black universal colors to get some really dark fill.

Rich

 

[DCBluesman]

There are lots of ways to fill voids in burls...sawdust is just one. It can be filled with crushed stone, coffee grounds, black CA...the choices are endless. You can also fill these voids with glues other than CA. Good choices include wood glues (make sure they are clear drying) and epoxy.

 

[jdavis]

I agre with Lou. Well said Lou. We fill with CA and sawdust. We have alot of filling at times ( working with students).

 

[Skordog]

Thanks for all the responses guys. Nice to have confirmation on the CA. I'll get some new stuff on the way home today. Hopefully I'll have much better luck with some glue that works. And good idea of putting a purchase date on the bottle.

 

[ilikewood]

I agree with Lou. I use CA and fine sandings for small cracks or inclusions, and a 5 min epoxy with fine sandings or chips for large holes or pores.

 

[Skordog]

Brought home some new CA from the local hobby store. That's the stuff I remember. Instant finger glue! []

Seems to do a much better job of filling in with open grained wood.

Thanks again for confirming my suspicions that CA might have a shelf life.

 

[Travlr7]

I just got a very pretty piece of Cherry with some rot in it. Before cutting it into pen blanks, i filled the crack with coffee grounds followed by CA. It filled the void. I'll report on how it turned, later.

Bruce