Thread: Sheoak handle cracks

Yup ferrules are a must unfortunately , but you can make them very fancy to match you're doing. If it any consolation Sheoak cracks for me as well

Thanks for the info, Hughie!

Do you think glue is an option here?

Hi

can someone tell me why I think this timber is Bulloake rather than Sheoak? What have I got wrong in my learning?

Kind regards

CRaatz

Originally Posted by johknee

Thanks for the info, Hughie!

Do you think glue is an option here?

With fine cracks CA will be ok and it wont be very noticeable. They , the cracks,do look as if its still drying out, might have been a tad wet. But that doesnt help now.

Originally Posted by CRaatz

Hi

can someone tell me why I think this timber is Bulloake rather than Sheoak? What have I got wrong in my learning?

Kind regards

CRaatz

We are all still learning!

ID'ing cut timber from images is a mugs game. My guess is it's "bulloake" from IMG_2028.

Once the timber is cut it can become quite difficult to differentiate between individual species. Botanists identify species using a range of "keys" - for "sheoaks" one of the most significant keys includes the seed capsules / pods.

Do you think glue is an option here?

I thinks so as it looks not so hot and they may get worse and a ferrule may cover the worst of it. You can fill the bad ones with coffee grounds new or used I dont it would really matter, using the saw dust etc from the turning will look like a filler. Better to make a feature and blend the darker colour with the over all blank colour.

Originally Posted by CRaatz

Hi

can someone tell me why I think this timber is Bulloake rather than Sheoak? What have I got wrong in my learning?

Kind regards

CRaatz

Looks like Rose She Oak to me.
Rgds,
Crocy.

This is Buloke... with large medullary rays...

Buloke - handle.JPG

I'll strongly recommend remounting the handle(s) in the lathe and fitting a ferrule if at all possible.

Super-glue will work quite nicely as a cosmetic fix BUT... the haft on that scoop looks very short to me, so any 'heavy' scooping action will apply a LOT of leverage over a short distance inside the bore.

I suspect that in use these cracks (or possibly new ones) will quickly become a point of failure.

Much better to have a nice, looooong haft to handle for this sort of leverage and even then I'd prefer a ferrule as well.

(I realise that fresh ice-cream tends to be lovely, soft & creamy. But can you guarantee that the scoop won't be used on ice-cream that has been in the freezer over winter and would score highly on the Mohs scale?)

I would have put my money on Bull Oak or Hairy Oak as I still struggle to tell the difference (except Bull Oak is much harder, which is difficult to tell in pix ), but it certainly looks a little dark for She Oak. These "Oak" timbers are spectacular, but split readily in the log. I suspect there was either a slight, virtually invisible, crack present in the first place or it was not quite seasoned enough. Ferrules and glue will help, but if you have more of the same timber, I would be tempted to make up some new handles after inspecting the ends of the blanks carefully for hairline cracks.

P1070666 (Medium).JPGP1070667 (Medium).JPGP1070669 (Medium).JPG

In the pix above the butchers' steel has a ferrule at both ends of the handle. The scales on the knife handles do not have anything like that but are much thinner of course. The trim pieces on the corners of the knife blocks are also Bull Oak/Hairy Oak. As I mentioned before, I have difficulty identifying which is which despite having cut them from logs myself. Over time these timbers darken quite considerably.

Regards
Paul

Originally Posted by Bushmiller

I would have put my money on Bull Oak or Hairy Oak as I still struggle to tell the difference (except Bull Oak is much harder, which is difficult to tell in pix ),

I agree. Other than hardness the only way I have been able to differentiate between Bull Oak / Bulloake & Hairy Oak in images is that Bulloake has more "detail" in the "field" of the grain - somewhat like contours on a topographic map. That is how I made my guess.

Handy having access to the actual wood for an ID.