Finish for African Blackwood

[PaulDoug]

I just finished turning a pen blank out of African Blackwood. I'm not sure what to use for a finish. I put a coat of Minwax poly on yesterday and it is still real tacky this AM. What should I have used? I'm hoping the Minwax will finally dry or that I can remove it.

 

[hewunch]

I have used CA and Plexi with good results. I usually seal it with thin CA first either way.

 

[Russianwolf]

as oily as African blackwood is, you may need to wipe it down with denatured alcohol to get anything to stick to it.

Most of mine just get polished up to a nice gloss and left natural.

 

[marcruby]

I'd follow Mike's advice - take the trouble to remove the minwax, get some good finishing wax and buff the heck out of it. If I'm going to finish it I start with a bath in acetone to cut the oil and then a coat or two of shellac to seal everything up.

Marc

 

[C. Scott]

CA will stick to Blackwood and Ebony. I usually put a CA finish on both woods and get excellent results. The secret that I found is to not wipe the wood with DNA or acetone or anything except a dry clean paper towel. I THINK the solvents cause the oil to wick to the surface of the wood. I don't know for sure, but since I have been using the following method, I have had any issues with CA on BW or Ebony. After turning, I sand to about 600 or 1000 and then apply thin CA while the blank is still dusty. The CA sticks every time, even to woods like Lignum Vitae.

That being said, I love the plain friction polish, but the folks that have purchased my pens like the slick CA finish the best.

Hope this helps.

 

[DurocShark]

A 1# cut of shellac will seal the oiliest of woods for whatever finish you like. Do it with a "super blond" or similar color and it won't change the color of the blank.

I love shellac, I just wish it was a bit more durable. But as a barrier to the oils, it works great.

 

[John Eberly]

Blackwood finish

Just finished 12 blackwood Barons for rewards at work. Making 12 gave me a chance to experiment with CA finish on this wood.

The biggest challenge that I had was getting the blanks off the bushings without having the CA lift at the ends. It is really obvious when you get a whitish band around the end of the blank from the CA coming loose.

I have always turned my blanks, finished, and polished on the lathe, then used a knife to score the CA on the workbench, rolling the blank and pushing down with the knife. This didn't work too well with the blackwood. I discovered that I got better results by scoring the finish on the lathe using a parting tool, sharp edge presented vertically to the bushing right at the end of the blank. Needs a very light touch, and then I did my usual EEE and Shellawax over the CA. Tubes came off the bushings real nice, and while I still had a little CA overhanging the ends, I was able to wet sand it away without lifting the finish on the blank.

Time will tell on the durability of this finish, but it's initially very nice.