wood stabilizer

[steeley]

I was thinking about sending out some wood to a stabilizer
any helpful hints a bout the process.

Thanks

 

[SpikeC]

I was thinking about that too, I ended up getting some Nelsonite and doing it myself with some maple burl. The project isn't finished yet butt is looking good so far!

 

[PierreRodrigue]

WSSI is the industry leader. They do the best job out there. Some home meathods produce fair results, but seldom get the penetration. WSSI uses methylmethacrylate, essentially filling the wood down tothe cell level with lexan (plexiglass).

 

[apicius9]

I have good experiences with the quality of the stabilization done by WSSI, but I found them to be very unresponsive and finally started using knifeandgun.com for my wood. I do not see a major difference in quality between the two, and K&G react to phone calls and emails plus they have a shorter turn-around time. I keep hearing that WSSI is good and reliable, so maybe that is an exception or I am not a big enough fish to pay more attention to. I agree with Pierre, most others I have tried are much less reliable and hit and miss - mostly miss...

Stefan

 

[Marko Tsourkan]

WSSI is the industry leader. They do the best job out there. Some home meathods produce fair results, but seldom get the penetration. WSSI uses methylmethacrylate, essentially filling the wood down tothe cell level with lexan (plexiglass).

Knife & Gun or WSSI are two reputable companies. Recently, I have made a handle from acrylic stabilized wood from a third. The block was not thoroughly impregnated and the drilling it was a nightmare, as it was clogging up drill bit as fast as I could clean it. From that time, only K&G or WSSI

M

 

[Delbert Ealy]

I have sent wood to wssi many times, sometimes in large batches sometimes small ones. Any time I have called I got Mike right away. I know they don't provide overnight service, so I am a patient customer. In fact, I can't tell you how long it has taken, because I didn't keep track. I am about to send out a batch, I have some wood coming in tomorrow.

 

[PierreRodrigue]

I have a feeling I had some stuff from the same place, real sticky inside. Never had a chance to try K&G, will give them a shot though...

 

[steeley]

Do you try to keep the size close to your outcome block or does size of block matter . and how do you check moisture percent in wood it has to be 10%.

 

[apicius9]

I just want to make sure: I am not trying to say anything bad about Mike or WSSI, it was just easier to communicate with K&G and - all other things being equal - I moved there. I'm a bit cranky today and may have come across more critical than I am, and I may just have had bad luck reaching Mike by phone a few times. And patience is helpful in any case, the process and the drying just takes some time.

I try to send my pieces in a little oversized, there is always a chance that they warp or bend a little bit and I need a bit of buffer. As for dryness, there is a limit of how dry it can get in Hawaii but so far I have not had any problems with that. I just try to make sure I let the pieces sit for a few months (actually years by now) before I send them in.

Stefan

 

[steeley]

Thanks Stefan

 

[l r harner]

i have used both listed and also a 3rd
ther are only a hand full of ppl i trust
i am tring out a new group that is local "ish: