HHH ironwood burl

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Hattorichop

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For my second handle I decided to use my favourite block of wood which I obtained for Randy Haas.
I have it sanded to 10 000 grit with some 3m micro mesh paper.
Im hoping Randy will chime in to give me afew pointers on how I should finish this wood properly.

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Wow, that looks great. Did you use any oils or other finishers?
 
I tried tung oil at first but I found it would not absorb into the wood and remained tacky.
I re-sanded it and left it raw.
Im not sure if I should try something else or just leave it.
 
That handle looks awesome! like you've done hundreds of them. You should try tung oil and shellac 50/50.
 
50/50 hey, Im assuming the shellac will help harden the tung oil. Is that right?
Thanks for the advice!
 
I tried tung oil at first but I found it would not absorb into the wood and remained tacky.
I re-sanded it and left it raw.
Im not sure if I should try something else or just leave it.

Lovely piece of work...

I wld like to think that the wood has to be protected.. from the elements and water.

a) Bees wax or carnuba wax (latter is harder)
b) Shellac or polyurethane (latter last longer)

Tung oil .. use it too much and the color will change. takes a long time to dry up. I usually leave 24 hrs between coats. These days, I mix it with mineral oil. Walnut oil and tung oil is suppose to make teh grains pop. Walnut oil will not change the color of wood..

I believe that mixing it with Shellac ( a mix of shellac flakes + either mineral spirit or alcohol), the spirits will act as an accelerant in the drying process..

Have fun
d
 
This is your second handle? Wow!
 
Don't you do all your work with hand tools? That is some serious time investment! Great job! :hatsoff:
 
Looks good,love the copper. You should not need to do anything but wax ironwood.
 
Don't you do all your work with hand tools? That is some serious time investment! Great job! :hatsoff:

Thanks Eamon,

I broke down and bought a beltsander and a drill press. I'm still waiting on the right bandsaw to show up.

So maybe just a coat of bees wax will work?
 
I just seen this, First let me say GREAT JOB on that handle! Very classy looking and well done.

As to the wood, I normally apply a few coats of wax to the entire handle. Then either buff or hand rub to desired finish. :)
 
I just seen this, First let me say GREAT JOB on that handle! Very classy looking and well done.

As to the wood, I normally apply a few coats of wax to the entire handle. Then either buff or hand rub to desired finish. :)

Right on! Your answer was the answer I was waiting for seeing as how I bought the wood from you.

Thanks for the kind words everyone, and the great block of wood Randy.
 
Beautifully done, as obtuse said it looks like you have been making handles for years.
 
Hattorichop, Happy to help, Ironwoods are quite beautiful and naturally have oils and resins that help to make the wood polish beautifully, Adding a few coats of wax will often take it to the next level. but sometimes it looks almost the same and you cant even tell that you waxed it :) I like Ren wax and have also used Lustra and other blends of auto waxes, as well as floor finished paste waxes with good results. Ren wax seems to be the easiest to apply and polish. Lustra and the paste waxes can be stubborn and take more work to polish by hand. Yet are well worth the extra efforts and will work good for this application.

I would wax the whole handle. and probably apply at least 3 coats to it and possibly more to the wood if needed to get the desired results. It looks awesome and my bet is its going look even nicer with the wax coats!

Above all, Have fun and enjoy the process.

Randy
 
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