simple? wood ID

simple? wood ID 2

John MD

>this image is unfinished wood from the desktop.

desk was from Paris MFG, S. Paris, ME. and is probably at least from the '50's - maybe older.

thanks again, John

Possibly Yellow Birch?

Thomas Skaggs, Foothills of Mount Level

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Looks like birch to me

Denis Ch�nard, Orl�ans, Ont.

>The flame figure sure suggests it... And the location and time of manufacturing too.

DC

Re: simple? wood ID

Ernie Miller

>How soft is it? could be alder if it is soft

Re: simple? wood ID

Barry Irby

>That's funny, I'm right in there with you guys. My first impulse was alder, but the nice flame patterns tend to make me think of birch. If we had the "Smell" channel, I could tell the difference.

Birch

George@Colonel's Workshop-Havertown PA

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Re: simple? wood ID

John MD

>thanks, guys - its not a very soft wood at least compared to pine and its a desktop and theres no nicks or dings in the desktop so it cant be too soft.

believe it or not i just went and sniffed it and the best i can say is that it smells faintly like pencil shavings though not quite. really just smells like sawdust but not sweet like maple or harsh like oak or walnut.

is birch hard enough to be a desktop?

what finish should i use.

thanks/john

thanks how do I finish?

John MD

>thanks for the replies.

i guess its birch after all, though i though it might be cherry - there used to be a tinted laquer that ive stripped off (after all the paint).

i've heard bad things about finishing birch with blotching.

my daughter would like something a little darker than a natural finish - maybe not quite as dark as cherry, but i'll take what i can get -

any hints on finishing with wipe on stains and top coats??

should i use a sealer of some sort before stianing??

oil based or water based poly, or maybe something else - i'm thinking poly because its a desk and will get hard use....

i'm pretty much new to this wood working stuff so i hope this isnt too basic. any help will be appreciated. i'd just hate to screw up this project now that my daughter's seen it...

thanks again/john

Soft Maple

JohnM in Mid Michigan

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