Despite using a zero clearance table saw insert I ended up with some distressing tear-out on the quartersawn white oak panel of the headboard of a bed I am making for a friend.
I hoping someone out there can tell me a good repair solution, other than mixing epoxy and sawdust. My experience with epoxy/sawdust has always ended up with the color conspicuously different than the stain I attempted to match it with.
Thanks for any help, Tenderfoot Bob
Replies
Despite the fact that I've got my hands on the best filler anywhere, I can tell you that there's no good repair for that tearout. The only honorable thing to do is to rout a clean channel across the tearout region, and plant a decorative strip of some kind in its place. I know this is not happy news, but that's the way it is.
David Ring
http://www.touchwood.co.il/?lang=e&id=1
"the best filler anywhere"Ok, I'll bite. Please fill in the blanks:The best filler anywhere is _______________________________More seriously, this has me thinking. Using sawdust + glue has, essentially 2 problems:1. Sawdust has a lot of endgrain so will absorb more stain than the wood it is filling.2. Glues don't stain.What if one first seals the sawdust to reduce its absorbtion and then uses a porous binder?After that we only need to solve the grain problem :-)
Since I see that you're in Malta, you might be able to get a hold of this stuff. I usually don't write about things that are not available in the USA, because it just creates frustrations for a lot of people here, but you might be able to benefit from this:It's a clear resin made by Verinlegno SpA in Italy, called A018 Stucco per Legno. Comes in a 1 kg can. You pour a bit of the resin onto a pile of fine sawdust, mix it up and apply with a spatula. Contact with the wood fibers causes it to harden, and in about 2 minutes it's ready for sanding. There's no patching compound that's perfect, but this is by far the best I've ever used.Try to find a supplier. It'll be worth the trouble.VERINLEGNO S.p.a.
via Galvani, 7
51010 Massa e Cozzile, PT
ItalyPhone: +39057292711
Fax: +390572773608David Ringhttp://www.touchwood.co.il/?lang=e&id=1
Edited 8/30/2009 3:22 am by ring
I was afraid that there was no good option, but it was worth asking if there was. Thanks for responding.
Tenderfoot Bob
It's too late for this piece, but you always want to cut plywood in a way that has the saw blade working with you and not against you. This means that you want the "good" side facing up when you use a table saw and "down" if you're using a circular saw and guide. This technique has the blade teeth cutting the veneer into the core which acts as a backer. Cutting away from the core breaks the (sometimes fragile) glue bond and the veneer tears out.
Having faced your present problem many times myself, I can only offer two suggestions. (1) Cut a new piece as I described above, or (2) Come up with a bit of trim or molding that will hide the tearout. Option #2 is allowed if you subscribe to the philosophy that "It isn't a mistake if no one can see it" - lol
There is another option, but it takes a really good finisher who can "draw" the wood onto the filler. I'm no good at it, but my finishing guy has saved my butt a couple of times. - lol
There is a technique of using a number of plane shavings from similar quarter sawn oak and layering them with glue three or four deep over the tear out and clamping the whole thing together. Then you have to come back and scrape the excess away. Perhaps if you use hide glue you can make it almost disappear with the finish.
If the edge is all splintered, you might find something else to look at. Having had too much trouble with paper thin veneer on expensive hardwood plywood I'm looking for a plywood house that could supply sheets with a heavier veneer. I bet there are any number of people who'd pay a bit more for such a product.
I have Navy Island Plywood in my back yard and I've never bothered to ask them. Then I don't make my living from a cabinet shop either. They do have an interesting web site and video on how they make very fancy plywood panels.
Peter
Hi Bob.... You don't say how thick the plywood is, or if the grain is running horizontal or vertical, but that info may not be too important. Can you 'bury' the tear-out into a shallow dado or rebate that suports the piece, or... can you make the board just that bit shorter or narrower? Again depending on the design, can the bad edge be hidden behind some type of molding? Yes, we all make mistakes, and the sign of a good craftsman is how well he can hide his mistakes.
SawdustSteve Long Island, NY (E of NYC)
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