Dead Finish Sapwood inclusion

[Luke Maddux]

I tend to approach sapwood with a furniture-maker's mentality... chop it off before it ruins everything.

That said, I know that isn't always the best practice.

I recently got some Dead finish, which I expect to use almost exclusively for tool handles and, possibly, some small furniture parts like drawer pulls. Nonetheless, it will almost certainly either be turned or shaped by hand on a small scale.

So I'm curious about whether or not I need to actively avoid the sapwood/heartwood boundary. This stuff can look quite stunning when you successfully include both, but I'm interested to hear any opinions on the matter.

For what it's worth, some of the blanks may be used for chisel handles which will see mallet blows, so keep that in mind.

On that note, how about with other hard, dense, drylands species like Gidgee, Rosewood, Brigalow, and others which have similarly pretty sapwood transitions.

Interested to hear what comes back. Thanks in advance for any feedback.

Cheers,
Luke

[dai sensei]

I've used the sapwood to advantage from most of the Acacias without any issues. Some of the borers do like the sapwood on drying timbers but haven't had any issues with finished products.

[FenceFurniture]

I've seen the odd plane from Terry Gordon with a bit of sapwood included, so clearly he's not too worried about it.

As you say, it can look terrific, so carry on. Only one way to find out if the chisel handle will split.

[Cliff Rogers]

Keep the sapwood. :2tsup:

[powderpost]

Keep the sapwood. :2tsup:


Agreed..

Jim

[John.G]

If you're worried, toss it in a drum of turpentine for 24 hours then let it dry out. That'll give you an effective long term treatment against decay organisms for internal useage.

[IanW]

Yep, I'll add another voice to the 'don't fret too much about it' group. Mechanically, the sapwood doesn't seem to be too fragile in the species mentioned. Some species of Acacias are susceptible to borers, some not, you either won't get any info on this or you will find it mentioned in various places. In any case, as Dai Sensai has said, borers are rarely a problem in small, finished articles.

Something I have noticed with the relatively small amount of DF (Archidendropsis) I've worked with is that its sapwood is under plenty of tension in the dry wood, as it is with most woods, of course. So expect a good deal of deviation towards any sapwood if you cut a piece that has a high sapwood to heartwood ratio. A marking knife handle I made that was about 1/3rd sapwood went from straight to an ellipse within minuites of taking it off the lathe. Small amounts retained as a decorative flourish on larger chunks of heartwood haven't caused me any grief....

Cheers,

[Luke Maddux]

Thanks everyone. The feedback is much appreciated.

I'm not particularly worried about borers in the finished items. The concern was primarily for what Ian mentioned, which was that the sapwood has potential to pull the wood around. It sounds like if I use it sparingly and selectively then I should be ok.

Cheers,
Luke

[IanW]

This morning I was finishing off a couple of marking gauges. I had this nice bit of Mulga, with a bit of figure in it (unusual for Mulga in my experience), and with very careful cutting, I managed to squeeze two marking-gauges out of it. I thought I would manage to shed the bits of sapwood that intruded into the gauge parts during final shaping, but it didn't happen. I was sure this bit on the stock would go when I shaped it: 376256
I came frustratingly close but I couldn't quite eliminate it. The bit on the beam was even larger, and a goodly bit has remained: 376257

I guess you just have to look at it as extra decoration. I'd prefer it wasn't there, particularly as it's not very symmetrical, but I don't find it too offensive. It reminds me of all those tourist-trap Mulga knick-knacks I used to see as a kid, which always included lots of contrasting sapwood. Haven't seen anything like them lately, but I suppose that's not surprising, since we don't use pens & inkwells so much these days. :U

Cheers,

[Luke Maddux]

Looks like a winner to me.

Honestly, I think it looks great on the hard, outback species to leave in a bit of sapwood. Too much and it becomes gimmicky, but a bit here and there adds just the right amount of flare.