ebonizing

[turnerted]

HI
I would like to try ebonizing the rim of a red cedar platter that I'm making .
A test run on a scrap piece of cedar of my ebonizing solution ,rusty nails in vinegar , worked well and rapidly made it very black but it was obvious that the solution leaches into the timber beyond where it is painted . I tried to limit it with masking tape but it just ran under it . I sanded the edge of the stained area and it was obvious it was penetrating a fair amount . What I am trying to achieve is a black rim with a sharp demarcation with the natural timber of the "bowl" . Any suggestions ?
Assuming I can achive this, should I just give the ebonized rim a light sand and finish as I will the the rest of the platter , probably sanding sealer followed by Penatrol wood oil .
Any suggestions appreciated .
Ted

[Gil Jones]

Ted,
Iron acetate takes a while to dry, and will soak into a soft, porous wood causing the problem you are having. If the wood is too soft or porous, you could try a fast drying dye or black India ink. Maybe, if your choice of wood, plus its thickness and form permit, you could do a friction burn on the rim, or even a scorch by flame. Or black paint, after you cut a stop line in the wood.
Luck, and tell us how you resolved the issue.

[tea lady]

Maybe you could apply the finish to the bowl, then sand off the rim and apply the ebonizing stuff, then refinish the rim. Just a thought. Never tried it myself.:shrug: I just thought the finish would resist the ebonizing and you would have quite a neat line.:cool:

Another possibility would be to thicken the Liquid nightmare. Don't really know how. :hmm: Maybe add mayo.:rolleyes:

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

IMHO the best method is to scribe the desired demarcation line with the point of a skew during turning. Then it's just a matter of being careful when colouring... and not "painting over the line." I use the same method when staining other hand-drawn designs onto raw timber, except I use a sharp Stanley knife for marking out.

Sometimes I'll use a pyrography iron over the cut lines later for a bit of extra emphasis (or to hide the cuts) but they usually don't need it.

Oiling everything except the areas to be stained doesn't work very well, as the oil seeps along the grain too, just not as far. You still end up with a blurred line. Been there, done that. :;

[joe greiner]

I agree wholeheartedly with Gil and Skew, about the "stopping groove." With a little luck, any liquid that seeps under the valley into the wood beyond, will stay under the valley, and the far-side material above the valley will hide it. Application should probably be done off the lathe, with the valley facing upwards against gravity. Some simple tests of the wood and liquid combinations could establish a drying time before flipping the actual workpiece, for the other-side application.

Mayo? Bleahhh. Ewww. Yuk.:oo:

Joe

[bookend]

Another possibility, although I wouldn't use it with an oil finish, could be to create a groove at the demarcation line and fill it with a tinted epoxy as an inlay strip for contrast.

It could lend itself to interesting colour contrasts.I've never tried this so I don't know if your ebonizing solution will react with the epoxy, but it might be worth checking out.

[rsser]

Maybe a few coats of sanding sealer to stop the soaking in.

For a narrow or proud rim I just use a black felt-tip pen.

[percy seadog]

On day with too much time on my hands I tried ebonising and texturing prior to completing a large hairy oak fruit bowl.
I must have turned half a dozen trial pine discs, firstly texturing with an old piston knurl sizer tool, finally dot it to look realy good.
To ebonise the best result was a very light cut off groove to limit flow through the timber followed by repeated light applications of black nugget with a tooth brush whilst turning at the slowest speed. Buffed with cotton pad at high speed.
Once "perfected", I applied the technique to the rim of the fruit bowl. I then scorched the fine cut off groove, Hard burnishing oil finish, taking care not to polish the nugget rim and it is still great to this day.
Worth giving the nugget a trial.

[turnerted]

Thanks for the suggestions .
In a test run on scrap , I found that a couple of coatings of sanding sealer was pretty efective at stopping the spread of the ebonizing solution but I will probably cut a separation groove with the skew as well .
Ted