Replies

1. 
   jgaiennie | Feb 10, 2003 06:19pm | #1

   Wiskey,

   It's probably old growth longleaf.

   I've used this material a lot.  The only way I know of to re-silver the lumber it to put it out in the sun and rain for about a year - maybe two.  You might try tossing a sample out in the lake for a few days and see what you come up with.  Really.  I've heard that works.

   You might experiment with a "sand through" look.  I think that works pretty well when working with silvered wood.  It seems that you want to preserve the old weathered look as much as is possible, but you want to cut the piece to the required size, resulting in some exposing of freshly sawed wood.  If you sand the edges and highpoints of the whole piece down thru the silvering exposing some of the unweathered grain underneath, it creates a sorta highlight look with the highlights being the same color as the freshly sawed wood.  Those highlights give the piece a visual unity.  IMO you would want to stop sanding short of getting too deep - that would make it look "contrived".

   My house is full of old longleaf beams.  Originally, when we bought them, some were painted, some raw, some silvered.  We sanded them all just to the point of barely removing the surface, but leaving them rustic looking.  It shows the color of the wood, but they still look old.  IMO, you definitely want to remove all roughness that would cause splinters and uncomfortable touch.

   You can see some of those beams here: 

   http://forums.taunton.com/tp-knots/messages?msg=10017.1

   We coated them with a blend of beeswax, linseed oil and turpentine - applied hot - which gives them a subtle satin sheen.

   The door jamb on the right side of the wine cabinet and the wood flooring is the same wood - just freshly planned and varnished.

   jdg

1. 
   Wiskey | Feb 16, 2003 09:02am | #3

   Thanks for your response. I really like the looks of what you have done.

   I'm inspired to do more and I may be able to get more wood. Thanks again.

2. 
   JsHerbel | Feb 11, 2003 04:12am | #2

   I've had very good luck with both acrylic and oil base artist's paints in matching fresh saw cuts to the gray, weathered patina on barn wood. 

1. 
   Wiskey | Feb 16, 2003 09:04am | #4

   Thanks I'll try it.

1. 
   macalex | Feb 16, 2003 09:40am | #5

   There's an important point here for everyone using heritage timber.

   I debated this point recently on this forum with a guy using barn timber to make outdoor furniture, and I've just bought and sorted a truck load of 140 year old kauri floorboards - and where it came from is at least as important as how good it is. So for me, this is a current issue.

   Some things to think about (there's no right answer):

   It's almost always obvious that the wood is recycled, so why try to pretend otherwise? If what you are doing is showing respect for the heritage of the timber, try to preserve at least one original surface, but machine and finish the others as you normally would.

   I have found that with careful handling I can retain original sawn surfaces, with all their patina and colour and nail holes and tool marks - all their `heritage' - and produce a very attractive finish with a polish brush and lots of paste wax.

   I don't personally like the half-way approach - sand through the rough spots, leaving a few remnants of the original surface. It's neither one thing nor the other, and doesn't retain the full texture and narrative of an original surface.

   If what you want is good quality timber that you can tell a story about (`it was our barn', `we found it in a dumpster', `it came from so-and-so church' ... whatever) then who cares what the surface looks like - machine it to suit the purpose, retain or fill or plug the nail holes, and finish as you want.

   But I reckon, think about why you are using heritage timber, and think about what you want to achieve. What's the story you want to tell?

   Edited 2/16/2003 1:42:31 AM ET by kiwimac