ironballz

A friend of mine has an old cabinet that he wants to put a shelf in; the finish was torched and polyurathane, does anyone have any tips on how to do this?

aclose

it's pretty easy actually. i've only ever done it with Pine, but believe you can do it with any wood. we just used a small propane torch like you'd use for plumbing. get the torch going and then move the flame over the grain slowly or until you get the darkness you're looking for. on Pine, it really brings out the grain with nice browns and blacks and light spots. you would definitely want to play with the technique a bit before applying it to your actual piece.

ironballz

Thanks for the help. Is there any secret to getting an even burn? I've been using scrap pieces of yellow pine but I get small patches too burned.

Youngman

You can use a tiger torch, it seems extreme but is fast and even. I did a complete rough sawn set of built in book cases about 25 years ago for a customer. Worked great. Not my taste but looked real nice when the poly dried and the books were put in.

aclose

i don't know that it's possible to get an even burn. the extra dark spots are either sappier or drier than the lighter spots. i don't remember which. after you've practiced burning some cheap wood like Pine, you'll want to practice on whatever species your end project will be made of. each species will burn it's own way. some will be more even than others due to pitch/lack of pitch in the wood. the best way to learn is just to experiment a little.

TexasTimbers

I burned a bass amp once.
It was all the rage back in the 70s. Yes you can get an even burn - use the widest flame you can get and keep it moving all the time.

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Flame Box Elder

ironballz

Thanx everyone!

TomD

Didn't some of the old propane plumbing kits for home owners come with a paint removing tip that would spread out the flame? It sounds to me this would be what you guys are after. BTW, the only wood I ever burned, burned until it was finished with no further help.

Tom