Replies

1. 
   Eef | Jun 04, 2010 12:43pm | #1

   chair,

   i guess you could glue a piece in.  i honestly have never heard of anyone, at anytime, doing this.  actually, it's kind of weird...

   the ends of boards crack.  it happens. alot.  is it that you do not have enough material without that end?

   eef

1. 
   Chairwright | Jun 04, 2010 05:30pm | #2

   filling crack

   There are some amazing techniques for fixing cracks and holes and dings in this business.  It sounded odd but neat to me when I first heard about it - it was a very good source - but I tried it on scrap and to get a good fit, the insert piece was so thin that it kept breaking when I tried to drive it in the crack.  Maybe you campher it at the bottom and drive it in from the top?

2. 
   DonStephan | Jun 05, 2010 07:47pm | #3

   First, when did the crack appear, has it grown, how wide is it.  It would be a shame to devote time and effort to "repair" only to have it continue six months or a year from the repair.  If it's tight and old, a dutchman could be used to keep tight.

3. 
   miminut | Jun 30, 2010 01:35pm | #4

   consider celebrating the crack

   May I ask how you intend to use the board? If it were me I'd create a project around that board highlighting it. A coffee table,sideboard or a chest of drawers. Given that, I'd stabilize the crack while simultaniously celebrating the flaw.I'd dam up the underside and end with wax paper and blue tape. Then I'd inject an ebonized epoxy into the crack and I wouldn't be concerned with filling the crack perfectly. Scrape and sand the ecsess epoxy around the crack. I'd apply 1 or 2 dovetail dutchmen across the crack for visual impact and call it done.

1. 
   Jfrostjr | Jul 04, 2010 09:19am | #5

   Kudos

   miminut, I applaud your approach. Thinking outside the box is a wonderful trait we often overlook.

   Even if his intended use of the wood is not suitable for your suggestion, your reply was excellent.

   Frosty

4. 
   KeithNewton | Jul 05, 2010 10:00pm | #6

   Gluing endgrain cracks

   I sometimes use CA glue, Cyanoacrylate, to repair checks in pieces that have checks  which would spoil wood that would otherwise be wonderful. 

   If you have not used it, it is as thin as water, and will flow right into a very tight crack that you can't even see. If you can close it with a clamp first, that will help make it disappear. Even if it doesn't close, I can usually get good results, by starting to flood the split, then scrubbing in some dust from my sander bag, followed by more glue, which wets out the dust. 

   In the end, it just looks like a darker line in the wood. 

   If when filling the split, the glue starts to flow out the bottom, I spray it with accelerator, which causes it to cure in a blink of the eye, causing it to self dam, stopping the flow. 

   You can find it at the sources for wood turning tools and supplies. 

5. 
   WillGeorge | Aug 11, 2010 01:43pm | #7

   Before I try that, does anyone have any experience, tips, or advice on this technique?

   I would suggest a BIG bottle of Cyanoacrylate Adhesive and a razor knife with many new blades to use. Squirt some into the crack and then poke around into the crack with a razor knife.. Wait a bit. Use a new knife blade and some more Cyanoacrylate Adhesive.. After a bit you will have the crack sealed but the surface will look a bit strange... I have even hammered a wedge into a crack and filled it with Cyanoacrylate Adhesive and removed the wedge... Just a touch up of the surface after.. The surface can be a challange to match!