Younka
Member
If any one knows where to buy Snakewood burl or if you have any i would love to get some. I know its really hard to find and I have never seen it before, so willing to pay the price.
Thanks,
Logan
Thanks,
Logan
Looking for Snakewood burl!
- Thread starter Younka
- Start date
Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad
Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad
ed4copies
Local Chapter Manager
I assume then that you also know it is HIGHLY LIKELY to crack, once you have made a pen.
(Just a word of warning, in case)
Younka
Member
Why do you say its likely to crack? isnt it the hardest wood?
ed4copies
Local Chapter Manager
Because in 15 years of making pens, I have seen MOST crack. You may be different--but don't plan on it.:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:
Younka
Member
Okay thanks, but even if i stabilized it do you think it would still crack?
ed4copies
Local Chapter Manager
I try not to discourage innovation----but you may want to "ask around" to see if anyone has tried that and why they failed.
bitshird
Member
As dense as the wood is, and the oil content, it may not stabilize very well, One member that has had amazing luck with rare timbers and Snakewood is Charlesh, he too is in Canada, Regular Snakewood is hard to find, but I've never seen any Burl, and like Ed said, almost all of the pens will crack at some point. It is a beautiful timber as is Ebony, and they both share that foul tendency to crack.
If you luck out and find any, be prepared to spend many months allowing the blank to acclimate to the conditions of you shop. then another month or so drilling, reacclimating the drilled blank, re drilling, and turning, BUT don't just assemble it when you finish turning, let it stretch, shrink and move a few weeks, Check for cracks, fill them with CA and refinish, at that point, you should have a stable pen.
If you luck out and find any, be prepared to spend many months allowing the blank to acclimate to the conditions of you shop. then another month or so drilling, reacclimating the drilled blank, re drilling, and turning, BUT don't just assemble it when you finish turning, let it stretch, shrink and move a few weeks, Check for cracks, fill them with CA and refinish, at that point, you should have a stable pen.
Russianwolf
Member
The harder the wood, the MORE likely it is to crack. As thin as we turn these pieces, the easier it is for them to move. And when they move they crack instead of flexing.
As the other have said, I've never seen snakewood burlesque before but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Good luck finding some.
As the other have said, I've never seen snakewood burlesque before but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Good luck finding some.
Bree
Member
To keep mine from cracking I TOTALLY encase them in plastic so there is nowhere for moisture to move... like something encased in Lucite. Even then there are no guarantees with this stuff. It is pretty brutal. One trick is to let it crack and then fill the crack... that de-tensions the wood. But nothing is certain with Snakewood. A lot of it is pure luck.
I would try a different wood. So many other great options. Why roll the dice with Snakewood??
My $02.
:wink::wink::wink:
I would try a different wood. So many other great options. Why roll the dice with Snakewood??
My $02.
:wink::wink::wink:
CharlesH
Member
Hey there,
Very high end knife makers do use stabilized snakewood with great results.
High end poolmakers do use snakewood with great results.
I made a few pens of snakewood, they all cracked, my way of seeing this is the following. It's a oily wood and it is really dense and the amount of wood left on a pen is so small so when the wood moves it cracks from top to bottom of the pen barrel. I think it is related to the humidity/temperature variation.
I made a handle on a tool with snakewood and the tool is in my garage all year long and it is not heated, the handle has not suffered any of that cracking. I think it is related to the thickness of the piece of wood.
The only hope I have now is making a snakewood pen out of a cigar kit, it's one of the kits that left most wood on the pen. I made a few ebony pen with this kit and I had no problem and ebony is supposed to be really crack prone.
Hope this helps,
Charles
Very high end knife makers do use stabilized snakewood with great results.
High end poolmakers do use snakewood with great results.
I made a few pens of snakewood, they all cracked, my way of seeing this is the following. It's a oily wood and it is really dense and the amount of wood left on a pen is so small so when the wood moves it cracks from top to bottom of the pen barrel. I think it is related to the humidity/temperature variation.
I made a handle on a tool with snakewood and the tool is in my garage all year long and it is not heated, the handle has not suffered any of that cracking. I think it is related to the thickness of the piece of wood.
The only hope I have now is making a snakewood pen out of a cigar kit, it's one of the kits that left most wood on the pen. I made a few ebony pen with this kit and I had no problem and ebony is supposed to be really crack prone.
Hope this helps,
Charles
Last edited: