Stailized wood scales

Nonprophet · #1

I have been looking at scales for the Mule I intend to buy tomorrow and I was talking to someone about stabilized wood. Now I get the idea of what they are but what does stailization change about the way you work and finish them? Do they still need a finish sealer? Will they take stain, varnish or an oil like linseed? Do I have to do anything at all or can I just polish them really well and not worry about the grain darkening over time or soaking up oils from my hand and messing up the scales? Help!

The Deacon · #2

It depends on how the wood was stabilized.

If it has been properly impregnated with an acrylic polymer, which is the best form of stabilization, then it has literally been turned to plastic. It will still work somewhat like wood although perhaps more like micarta in terms of hardness. It will be totally waterproof, so it will not absorb stain. It requires no surface treatment other than sanding and buffing. I would not be overly surprised if some finishes would actualy damage it. You can even cut a thick piece into thinner pieces, and the inner "book matched" faces will be usable that way.

On the other hand, if it has merely been "dry" stablizied, it has just been surface treated with "super glue" to prevent warping during storage. Penetration is minimal, so once it has been cut or sanded you are essentially working with raw wood, with the exception that stain and finish may not be absorbed evenly.

Might want to read this as well.

butch · #3

spend the $ on the good stuff (PM if you want soem great ppl to deal with)
hand sand to 600-800 grit then buff will make for a nice finish

you can use a tung oil type treatment but it does not soak in (giving you a high gloss finish )

tonydahose · #4

butch wrote: you can use a tung oil type treatment but it does not soak in (giving you a high gloss finish )

i didn't know that. do you just use a clean flannel pad on the buffer to do it?

Nonprophet · #5

I think I'm getting it. So you can buff the wood like it was metal but most oil or finishes won't penetrate it, but there wouldn't be a need if you can buff it right? If you need a finish more glossy than that, you just put a polyurethane clear coat on it?

tonydahose · #6

with the stabilized woods that i have used on knives i just used rouge working up from black all the way thru blue, which is for precious metals and doesn't take any material off, it just polishes the material. i have never used any finishes on them. that is why i am asking Butch if the tung oil would get a glossier finish than the blue rouge.

Nonprophet · #7

would the same wet sanding paper I plan to use to polish a blade work you think?

tonydahose · #8

it would polish to a certain point but buffing really makes it shine. even a buffing wheel attachment to a dremel or a bigger one hooked up to a drill or drill press would work.

Nonprophet · #9

I use a dremel but wasn't sure if a drill would spin fast enough to really do much duffing. Gonna give it a try very soon! Got the mule to do and also buying a custom blank from a knifemaker to start the next trip into the depths of bladed tool rabbit hole!

butch · #10

some woods (koa oak walnut black palm ) can have some open pores in them even after stabilizing they can be back filled be it with tung oil or super glue

99% of the time i add nothing to the handles of knives but on my razors i always use CA as a clear coat for that deep high gloss look and extra water protection

tonydahose · #11

thanks Butch, i have done the super glue/epoxy trick before. so after that is done done will the tung oil make it any glossier or not?

butch · #12

no extra

the CA is a cold clear slick finish and the tung oil is a bit more warm and soft

but as said most will be more then happy witha nice handsand and a buff

the dremmel tool will be tricky to get a nice buff with as its such a small buffing wheel you would be better off getting a 6/8 inch bench grinder and puttign a soft buff on one side

tonydahose · #13

butch wrote: the dremmel tool will be tricky to get a nice buff with as its such a small buffing wheel you would be better off getting a 6/8 inch bench grinder and puttign a soft buff on one side

that's what i use, i just don't know if the OP wants to go buy one. if you do harbor freight tools has them cheap and they usually have a 20% off coupon that you can find.

Nonprophet · #14

What about stain? Let's say I want to darken my stabilized wood, can it be done or would I have to stain it then have it stabilized?

tonydahose · #15

the latter i believe, unless it was one of those porous woods that Butch mentioned and then the stain would only get to certain parts of the wood and look like crap. Caveat: at least that is how i think it works.

butch · #16

you can not stain the wood post stabilizing
thats why if you are buying blocks its best to get a picture and see what you are working with

yes the color you see on the web and on your computer are maybe different then the reall life but you will ajust ( start reading how a burl or other distortion go through the block as well )

Nonprophet · #17

Kinda what I thought, having said that I suppose if I want to stain wood then I should buy no stabilized wood and then do some sort of stabilization or finish myself right? I now know far more than I did and I thank you all!

SQSAR · #18

One trick I've used when you run across an open pore, or to fill an unintentional nick, is to hit it with a drop of thin CA glue and then quickly hit it with a very fine sandpaper (400 or so). the dust created by the sanding will mix into the CA, and it will harden pretty quick to both fill in the pore, and create pretty much the same color as the rest of the wood, G-10, micarta, etc. If, you need to fill a larger hole and want to do a color match, take medium or thick (gap-filling) CA and genderate some sand-dust and mix the two to create a putty, then apply to the hole, nick or whatever you need to fit. Let dry, then sand smooth.

Nonprophet · #19

I don't know CA. Define once for the dummy in the room (me)

tonydahose · #20

i don't know if this matters because the wood will be relatively small but it is a good pratice to treat the wood with a conditioner before staining so the wood will take the stain evenly