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Finishing live edge slab?

5K views 26 replies 8 participants last post by  RefinedElements 
#1 ·
I'm making a shoe rack/bench very similar to this picture I found. I have a 2" piece of ash (I think). Haven't really worked with anything that wasn't from the box stores, so I have a few spots in the wood I'd like to fix but not sure how. I've already done the majority of the sanding before my belt broke. Of the two sides, one is much cleaner looking but has two knots or ingrown bark in it. What could I do to fill that? The other side, which I'd rather use because it lets more of the live edge show has a bigger hole with several tiny holes (ash borers I'm guessing) with a lot more surface splitting. What could I do to correct some of that? And what can I use to make the colors richer but keep the natural tone of the wood?

The guy I bought the wood from says it was kiln dried (don't know how long ago) and I've had it in my house for a few weeks now before I started working with it so it should be pretty acclimated by now I think.
 

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#2 · (Edited)
...Of the two sides, one is much cleaner looking but has two knots or ingrown bark in it. What could I do to fill that?
Here are several great post threads that may cover many of your quesitons and probably more...Enjoy reading them and ask your questions here if you have more?

Burl table top

Filling natural crack/split

Bow-Tie and Butterfly Joinery Systems

...What could I do to correct some of that? And what can I use to make the colors richer but keep the natural tone of the wood?
Natural-Traditional finish...if interested I can expand on that. Its also covered in some of the above links...

Good Luck!!! and please share pictures of your work when you have time!!! :grin:
 
#3 · (Edited)
I feel like a bowtie over the crack might be beyond my ability at this time. I'd need to practice on something a few times first otherwise I know I'd have gaps in the fitment. But, do you think it would even be necessary in this particular piece of wood since the cracks are less than an inch deep and not a full split in the wood? Or could it continue to grow?

And I've heard of this before, but didn't see anyone mention it in your links, mixing sawdust and wood glue to fill the voids?


I'll probably start welding the frame tomorrow if it's finally done raining.
 
#4 ·
And I've heard of this before, but didn't see anyone mention it in your links, mixing sawdust and wood glue to fill the voids?
I finished a walnut live edge piece to serve as a headboard a while back. I wanted the character of the voids to be a part of the final piece, so I filled those with CA Glue first. I would have used epoxy if they were large, but the CA glue worked great for our piece. The piece is perfectly flat after finishing, but the voids retain their depth and beauty.

I'm afraid the sawdust and glue would just look out of place on that piece. I typically only do that for very small blemishes in fully finished pieces.

This was my first live edge project and I think it turned out okay. My wife loves it and that's all that really matters!

Scott
 

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#5 ·
That's a pretty slab BUT the colors and grainage appears to be a different species and not ash that I'm accustom to here... I'm guessing a elm family BUT Jay didn't say any diiferent so it could just be a ash family I'm not familiar with.

The crack.....as a more traditionalist I lean to bowties /or sometning to lock the split movement from expanding. I done a bench and used a horseshoe as the lock.....I prefer 90% of the time to leave existing "flaws" as is and use them as interest points/accents. Your steel base will add to compliment as a mixed media bench. That slab would look awesome finished in traditional finishes as Heritage Natural Finishes. I can't add a link from my tablet BUT I have several threads with this style of custom art/furniture.

Post more pics as you progress....we love seeing projects as they're created to the finish project!!!
 
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#9 ·
Smooth and flat are different in many's opinion. Fine sanding and a Heritage finish you'd love.....it's almost silky smooth to touch, I feel in love with it as soon as I started testing and using it. I had people just come by the booth and be chatting and rubbing the finish the whole time, they were amazed at the feel.
 
#10 ·
I did notice that too Tim, but sense Phaelax didn't ask, I kind of pushed it off till later
The guy I bought it from told me it was ash, so I just took his word for it. He just mills whatever is on his property. I'm certainly not the expert on identifying trees.

A link to a few of my projects with the Heritage Natural Finishes.
The horseshoe is definitely something I haven't seen before. I've stuck with the BLO because I can pick it up locally from most stores. The Heritage I couldn't find at Woodcraft and didn't want to bother with ordering it online. Maybe in the future I'll plan something ahead and try it out.

Question about using linseed oil (or even heritage), can you stay the wood after it's been finished with the oil? I'm just considering possibilities, like maybe when it's done I decide later on I don't like the color or whatever.


I started filling the knots/bark inclusions with an epoxy. I used a heat gun to minimize bubbles. It's not perfectly bubble free, maybe I wasn't quick enough or poured too much at a time, but it's not horrible. I can live with the tiny bubbles. That's really all I've done with the wood this weekend, I mainly wanted to work on the frame.

I'm not going to show any close ups of my welds, cause frankly I'm embarrassed. I only had 6013 rods, which wasn't really ideal for the 1/8" steel tube, as I had to keep voltage low to prevent burning through (which I did too many times). When I was chipping away the slag, a piece flew up and hit me in the lip. That left a mark!

Did 10x better today when I welded on the flat steel in the weave. Which I will say, trying to weave this was a bit tough. I think the bench is about 42" long and the frame is about 9" deep. It might not look like it, but that weave pattern ate up 18 feet of flat steel! And I still need just a little bit more to finish off the ends. I'm going to paint it with rust-oleum's oil rubbed bronze spray paint. It's what I used for the metal on my dining table and I've used it on a decorative cannon I built for the army. I really like the color and texture it has.
 

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#15 ·
The guy I bought it from told me it was ash, so I just took his word for it. He just mills whatever is on his property. I'm certainly not the expert on identifying trees.


The horseshoe is definitely something I haven't seen before. I've stuck with the BLO because I can pick it up locally from most stores. The Heritage I couldn't find at Woodcraft and didn't want to bother with ordering it online. Maybe in the future I'll plan something ahead and try it out.

Question about using linseed oil (or even heritage), can you stay the wood after it's been finished with the oil? I'm just considering possibilities, like maybe when it's done I decide later on I don't like the color or whatever.


I started filling the knots/bark inclusions with an epoxy. I used a heat gun to minimize bubbles. It's not perfectly bubble free, maybe I wasn't quick enough or poured too much at a time, but it's not horrible. I can live with the tiny bubbles. That's really all I've done with the wood this weekend, I mainly wanted to work on the frame.

I'm not going to show any close ups of my welds, cause frankly I'm embarrassed. I only had 6013 rods, which wasn't really ideal for the 1/8" steel tube, as I had to keep voltage low to prevent burning through (which I did too many times). When I was chipping away the slag, a piece flew up and hit me in the lip. That left a mark!

Did 10x better today when I welded on the flat steel in the weave. Which I will say, trying to weave this was a bit tough. I think the bench is about 42" long and the frame is about 9" deep. It might not look like it, but that weave pattern ate up 18 feet of flat steel! And I still need just a little bit more to finish off the ends. I'm going to paint it with rust-oleum's oil rubbed bronze spray paint. It's what I used for the metal on my dining table and I've used it on a decorative cannon I built for the army. I really like the color and texture it has.
Sorry, once oiled /finish of any sort it's tough to add stain as it doesn't get into the wood then....there are top surface mixes BUUUUT in my opinion they're better left off and let the beauty show.

NICE base!!!! Looking good !!!! Thanks for the pics !!!!!
 
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#12 ·
phaelax,
That is a very nice table! It looks like a lot of intricate metal work, too!

My son and daughter-in-law asked me to build them a coffee table that has a metal frame. I haven't welded since a shop class in high school and, even then, my instructor suggested that I focus on the woodworking class instead! I think I was grinding for days to clean up a few welds in a serving tray I made. I can appreciate how hard that must have been.

Fortunately, one of my friends is a fabricator for a high-end car restoration/hot-rod company and he has agreed to fabricate the frame for me! That will make my life so much easier.

Post more pictures when you get it finished and in place. I'd love to see it.

Scott
 
#13 ·
For someone who welds every day, this should've taken maybe an hour or less if everything was cut. I'm a bit out of practice myself but even before I didn't do it every day. I also think mig welding would've been easier than stick for this job but it's all I have. At one time, I could've stick welded a tiny key chain without issue.

I was a little concerned at first with the bench being top heavy, but after adding the cross pattern at the bottom it added a good bit of counter weight.
 
#17 ·
Yes....Some even do top and bottom...they can be made from anything that would hold it stable, I've used horseshoes in one build and filed marks to match band marks to appear it was internal when sliced.

MOST bowties we see in furniture now a days are more show than true structural. I think there's actually a % of depth according to thickness of slab to be technically correct.

Great question!!!!
 
#19 ·
Hi Phaelax...

I'm not fond of metal and wood together...(typically...:|:vs_whistle::vs_worry:)

You have done a really good job, and this is the acceptation...and/or...the way I see it being done well...Great Job!!!

You might try one of the 網代 Ajiro weave pattern if you try this again. These look more complex, yet because most of them are based on "double" (or more) skip weaving methods they lend themselves well to heavy weave material like wood plaiting and metal ribbon like in your project...Food for thought?

Again, great job!!!
 
#21 ·
"Plastic Finishes"...not a "good or bad"...thing...just a choice...



Hi DB,

You nailed one of the primary concerns I have for "slab wood" as I don't trust that the wood is:

1. Fully dry...

2. How it was dried...


There is also...what style and affect...is wanted for a piece of furniture?

Epoxies (when the correct type is properly selected and used...many or most aren't) can yield very durable surfaces...That is until they don't...!!!!

The same is true of polyurethanes and related "plastic film finishes." They work very well...till they don't. The issue then is the invasive nature of refinishing these types of furniture pieces as it is much more invasive than more traditional modalities. Which usually mean sacrificing a layer of wood in the stripping and/or sanding process...

The primary reason I (and most of my colleagues I work with) never use or recommend epoxies (accept for very technical applications usually outside the scope of furniture) is that modern "plastic finishes" are incapable of working in concert with the natural material that wood is and rending the graceful patinas that most admire about antiques and other vintage woodworking...

Traditional finishes can be much easier to apply and maintain as well over the life of the piece they are applied too...

Hope that helped?

j
 
#22 ·
You could fill all of those cracks by pouring epoxy in them after making "dams" of masking tap to keep the epoxy from running out.

BUT, seeing those cracks, my sense is that the board isn't done moving around yet and those cracks could expand later. Also, IMHO, an oil finish looks goofy when cracks are filled with epoxy. The epoxy doesn't really absorb the oil, yet the epoxied areas will look shinier than the oiled areas. To avoid this, a film building finish like varnish will create an even sheen.
 
#23 ·
I'm not fond of metal and wood together..
Typically I would agree. I hate seeing a large beautiful slab with cheap generic metal legs stuck to it. Which I think is what this would've looked like without the weave pattern on the bottom.

Anyways, I put a 2nd coat of linseed oil on it this morning and assembled it this evening. So unless I decide to add a varnish or urethane to it, it's done.
 

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#24 ·
Very nice Phaelax...I would call it done unless you want a richer or deeper traditional oil/rosin finish?

...BUT, seeing those cracks, my sense is that the board isn't done moving around yet and those cracks could expand later...
They certainly can...and even pull away from the epoxy...but large slabs can do that anyway over time if they have reaction wood inside them and/or are really wide.

Wood moves...and it never really stops...It is another reason that just "any" epoxy wont always do the job many think it will...

This is also another reason for joinery like "butter-flies" or related...

...Also, IMHO, an oil finish looks goofy when cracks are filled with epoxy. The epoxy doesn't really absorb the oil, yet the epoxied areas will look shinier than the oiled areas. To avoid this, a film building finish like varnish will create an even sheen.
I agree with that, but only to the point that if someone uses epoxy in this way and..."doesn't"...what that contrasting sheen, the alternative..."isn't"...more plastic on the wood...Not if the goal is to initiate a finish that is long lasting and possessing the ability to develop the patinas that traditional finishes offer. Plastic "film finishes" just can't do this, and will age much less gracefully over time by comparison...but it is a choice...not a "right or wrong"...scenario...

I'm one of those that also doesn't care for that glossy sheen that epoxies can have comparatively. However, that has quite a few "fixes" to neutralize and/or complete arrest the sheen in question, making it virtually indiscernible from parent wood and it tradtional finish affect...

If someone does choice and oil or other traditional finishing system this does not negate the...proper...use and implementation of epoxies if they are needed and/or wanted as a solution to some challenge within the wood...
 
#25 ·
I can't recall who said it, so I'll just credit this whole forum. I had read on another thread (not mine) about cutting a slab by fastening it to an already squared piece of wood and using that to be able to slide it through the saw and get a flat edge. Until seeing that suggestion I had no clue how I was going to get a straight line on this.
 
#26 ·
Doesn't have to be wood...



Hi Phaelax...

It doesn't have to be wood...

I don't use our table saw that much (it scares me...:vs_sad::vs_shocked::vs_whistle::vs_smile:) as the 16" blade (or 18" blade when in it) just is too cumbersome to me to deal with...but it does have its place as it can act as a "jointer" for most "glue up" cuts and other applications...

For large slabs, its much easier to use math (aka geometry) and a snapped ink line to create a straight line to cut and plain to...With the rail saw on a Mafell or Festool its a edge that can be glued...

If all someone has is hand tools (the way it use to be) this snapped line works just as well with a ripping saw and a sharp plane...

Or...one can use a snapped ink line (their really fine) and a steel/aluminum "straight edge" to guide a circle saw with a sharp and/or new ripping blade...

All of these do as good (perhaps better?) job of ripping a flat edge and it is easier (by comparison) than all the machinations of using a table saw (usually) especially with medium to large slabs...
 
#27 ·
If you aren't comfortable with bowite joinery then as much as I hate to suggest it, I would go with an epoxy fill.

But before you apply the epoxy. Make sure to inject thin CA into all the cracks. Let it dry and then do a fill. Unlike the CA, the epoxy will not get into the cell structure of the wood itself (too viscous). Most don't do this but I've learned it is worth the extra step to eliminate crack propagation, especially in small cracks.

We try to keep our tables as natural as possible. We address cracks with bowties normally. Epoxy certainly has its place. Some love it, others dislike. All personal preference at that point.

Here is a YouTube video with some advice on how to fill the cracks will minimizing the probability for air bubbles. I hope it is somewhat helpful.

 
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