When to use Stabilization

[Patio]

So I have another newbie question, this time on stabilization, in particular, when should one stabilize and when is it not necessary.

For example, I have some acorn trees and pine trees on my properties and if I wanted to cast those, should I be stabilizing those first? I have been reading about drying the things you want to cast, but I'm not sure when one should stabilize the material you want cast.

I also made a cast of a banksia pod the other night and didn't stabilize it, it cast fine, and I coated in CA and then polished. It looks nice, but I don't know in the long run if it will hold up.

So that in a nutshell is the question, when should one stabilize their materials that are to be casted.

Thanks everyone!

Pat

 

[lyonsacc]

My opinion (and everyone has a different one) is that you should stabilize a piece of wood when it is too fragile to turn as is. Some burls, spalted wood, stuff that has been out in the weather for a while.

I can turn most buckeye burl without it being stabilized, but I have to be a lot gentler and will be expecting something to fall off or a hole to develop that will be some sort of fill.

Last year I turned a piece of burl that turned just fine. 4 months later the pen developed little cracks. I still have a piece of that burl left and have already stabilized it.

Made a nice Masur Birch pen a couple years ago. Wood was very soft. I'd be tempted to stabilize that wood the next time I turn it.

Unfortunately I don't have any experience with casting, but I suspect the "need" to stabilize something would be similar.

Dave

 

[Patio]

Thank you for the reply! And what you've said makes sense. I just wasn't sure if you needed to stabilize all wood when you are planning on casting it or not, etc.

This is such a great forum, really appreciate all the advice!

Pat

 

[glycerine]

Are you talking about casting the wood itself or the acorns and pine cones from those trees? And if wood, are you talking about small pieces such as branches/twigs?

 

[Patio]

Hi,

I was referring to the acorns themselves and the pine cones. But also in general, should any pieces of wood be stabilized before being cast in resin? I know the stabilization is great for punky or soft wood, etc. But is it a wise or good idea to always stabilize wood before casting?

For example, the banksia pod I cast the other night. I didn't stabilize it and just cast it in some alumilite, it did fine but my concern is in the long run will it have any effect of not being stabilized?


Thanks,

Pat

 

[Harpazo]

Take this with a grain of salt as I am new to stabilizing as well. But if I understand the process and it's benefits I would want to stabilize most woods. Basically, you are turning the wood into plastic by hardening the resin. No more worries about wood movement. No more cracking with time. I would also expect the shine would improve overall.

Some woods are not suited to stabilizing though so there are exceptions. Oily and super hard wood probably aren't. Except for spoiling resin solution with oily woods they may still be worth a try (until you learn which woods work best) I see little reason not to stabilize and learn by doing.

 

[Patio]

Thanks Harpazo for the reply. This is the kind of info I'm looking for. I'm new to stabilizing (never done it, just ordered a setup from Curtis tonight) but have read a lot on it.

I just want to experiment with different things but want to have a good base of whats the most appropriate thing to do and what isn't. if its a waste to cast things not stabilized, then I don't want to head down that path.

Thanks again for all the suggestions from everyone, its really good to have all the input and see examples, successes, failures from everyone.

Reading through this forum is fun, time consuming, and yet the time seems to go by quickly. I see so many things I want to try and experiment with, its a lot of fun, and has piqued my interest immensely.

Thanks again!

Pat

 

[steve worcester]

stabilizing saturates the medium, but on cooking, you will get some bleed out.
If it were a pine cone, the DRY cone would get stabilized and be able to turn it, but you will have a whole bunch of bloom on the outside. The resin seeps out and drys. I don't know what happens if you then cast it. If the blooms of resin would seamlessly turn without noticing to the resin. Maybe some one has tried it.

Casting though doesn't fully saturate into the medium (too thick and the hardening happens too fast to penetrate), so when you turn deeper into the medium than the resin has penetrated, you are turning that medium without resin.

 

[conandy]

me too..

I, too, have been trying to learn up on stabilising vs casting. I have watched the Cactus Juice tutorials quite a bit, and seen a number of casting tutorials as well, but have some of the same questions as the OP.

Up to this point, I have assumed that if the raw material (banksia pod for instance) could be turned without stabilizing, then simply casting it in resin would be good enough to turn, although the product after turning would have a surface that varies from acrylic to "wood" (or other material). A finish that goes on top would have to be fully compatible with both materials. What I have wondered is whether something like this that has only been cast (alumilite, etc.) and not "stabilized" could be finished just like a solid acrylic blank (polished only). I assume the answer is "No", but would like to hear from the experienced folks here.

But if said blank had been stabilized and then cast in alumilite, can I assume that the piece would polish up like pure acrylic? or would it still require some sort of top coating process (CA, etc.)?

Thanks for any insight. I am still perusing and searching the threads to see if this has been clearly answered somewhere......

 

[MesquiteMan]

Basically, you are turning the wood into plastic by hardening the resin. No more worries about wood movement. No more cracking with time. I would also expect the shine would improve overall.

Just to clarify for those who may be totally new to this...stabilizing does NOT magically turn wood into plastic. All it does is fill any empty space in the wood with a plastic resin. Depending on how well the job was done, it may or may not stop movement and cracking. If done properly, it should drastically reduce this but I would never say it will eliminate it.

 

[conandy]

Thanks, Curtis. Since my last post I have found a few more discussions on the topic. Looks like the bottom line is that, depending upon the final product wanted, and the stabilized product being started with, polishing it up like acrylic MAY sometimes work without a topcoat finish like CA, but most likely a topcoat finish is going to be required, as least for a smooth glossy product.

So much to learn....

 

[robertkulp]

As an example, I just stabilized some Buckeye Burl pen blanks with Cactus Juice and turned one for a Jr. Gent FP. For a finish, I sanded with Abranet to 600 and then applied about three coats of thin CA. Then, three wheels on the Beal Buff and it's like glass, but without a thick coating of CA.

Stabilizing the buckeye made it so much easier to turn. The eyes and swirly grain are difficult to work and can have small voids. The CJ held everything together and the blank turned very quickly. Finishing was easier and quicker because it required less work and fewer coats. The final polishing really made it pop.

Not all wood needs to be stabilized, but some can really benefit. I just did a piece of furniture that was falling apart. It would crumble if you held it too tightly, but CJ held it all together and made it turntable. It was for another turner and he got two nice Gatsbies from it.

Cactus Juice is great and Curtis' advice is just as great. There are a number of threads here about stabilization. Be sure to check them out.