Ebonized bowl

9/11/04, 3:09 AM #1

Duane C.Leach
Guest

Ebonized bowl

Duane C.Leach

>This is in response to a therad a few days ago abuot ebonizing wood. This bowl was rough thuned from green ambrosia maple just like normal. Then I stuffed it full with the cheapest steel wool I could find and white vinager. Let it set on a rack over a bucket to catch the drippings that seeped through. The drippings were poured back into bowl 3-4 times per day. After desired staining was met the bowl was emptied, warshed,sealed and left to dry.From here on it's treated like any other bowl.

The blackness depends on wood species,how long it's treated,how much steel wool is used, and many more. Process works best on end grain and can go thruogh several inches of end grain. Some of the surfaces not in contact with liquid will dry and crack,use a spray bottle and fresh water to keep them wet.Treatment for several weeks will let a dark red rust to apear.

Re: Ebonized bowl

9/11/04, 3:22 AM #2

Brad Homman
Guest

Re: Ebonized bowl

Brad Homman

>Beautiful, and interesting, thanks for sharing!

Re: Ebonized bowl

9/11/04, 6:32 AM #3

Frank Joseph Mantua NJ
Guest

Re: Ebonized bowl ? qusetion

Frank Joseph Mantua NJ

>Will this work with other woods as well. ?say pine or white oak ?

Re: Ebonized bowl

9/11/04, 12:58 PM #4

Duane C.Leach
Guest

Re: Ebonized bowl ? qusetion

Duane C.Leach

>I don't know what it do will to pine. But oak will turn black fairly fast. Other wood that work well are cherry and maple these are the only ones I have tried so far.This one is hard maple.

Re: Ebonized bowl

9/11/04, 2:09 PM #5

Wayne Allen - Carson City. Nevada
Guest

Now that is a great idea !!!

Wayne Allen - Carson City. Nevada

>Duane -- Thanks for the idea. All other posts regarding ebonizing use the thought that the ebonizing solution is cooked up and then applied to the turning. Your idea provides an interesting and unique way to apply the ebonizing solution, giving a totally different look. Thanks -- Wayne

Re: Ebonized bowl

9/11/04, 3:44 PM #6

Jennifer@Indy.USA
Member
Offline
4,681 posts

Registered: 1/5/04

Re: Ebonized bowl

Jennifer@Indy.USA

>Hi Duane,

Nice to see you posting here at Wood Central. Hope the club isn't keeping you too busy : )

Are you sitting the bowl upside down on the rack so it drains? Are you doing this in the roughed out stage?

Thanks!....Tell Ned and everybody I said hello!

Jennifer

- - -

Hello Everybody! I figure I've been hanging around WoodCentral for a few years now so I might as well officially post a Bio. I'm Jennifer and I reside in the heart of the Midwest in Indianapolis. You'll usually find me hanging out on the turning side of WoodCentral, but I check the Main forum too. I started woodworking about 25 years ago mostly interested in flatwork; small furniture and other items to use around the home. Then I discovered the lathe and became obsessed with it. I've been turning for about 23 years now. My love and excitement for turning has taken me into the world of teaching and frequent demonstrating. Lots of experimenting with textures, color, burning over the past several years. I've recently begun dabbling in metal clay work and have started incorporating it in to my turnings too. It's another toolbox full of toys! When I'm not turning, I'm hanging out with the love of my life and most honest critic, my husband Clay. In order to keep the lathe spinning and the lights on I spend the other part of my day at an ABC television station directing the evening newscasts.

Re: Ebonized bowl

9/11/04, 8:36 PM #7

Duane C.Leach
Guest

Re: Ebonized bowl

Duane C.Leach

>After the bowl has been roughed out then apply treatment. To stop the staining action dump the steel sludge out and warsh with clean water.It's best to do this in the yard with a garden hose as this stuff will stain just about anything.

Re: Ebonized bowl

9/13/04, 1:03 PM #8

Brad Vietje
Member
Offline
3,280 posts

Registered: 1/5/04

Re: Ebonized bowl

Brad Vietje

>Duane,

This is a nice technique for end-grain turnings -- I like the different staining of end grain, side grain, sapwood, etc -- seems much more organic than applying a prepared "stain" of ebonizing fluid to the entire piece to get solid black. I'll try this on a few end-grain pieces I have in process.

Question: can this be combined with bleaching in any attractive and/or useful way ? Which process trumps the other ? Will wood ebonize if its been bleached, and vice versa ? I only ask because that might be a neat way to further exploit the differential ebonizing reaction you get.

Safe Spinning,

Brad Vietje

Thetford, VT

Re: Ebonized bowl

9/14/04, 2:54 PM #9

Duane C.Leach
Guest

Re: Ebonized bowl

Duane C.Leach

>Hi Brad I don't know weather it would work or not. You might try it after the wood has dryed. Bleaching while wet would dilute the bleach. Remember, what we are trying to do here is to make something look like nature did it, not man. Good luck and let me know how it turn out.

Duane

Re: Ebonized bowl

9/21/04, 1:37 PM #10

Pascal Oudet
Guest

Re: Ebonizing and bleaching

Pascal Oudet

>Hi Brad,

you have 2 opposite things: on one hand, ebonizing with iron acetate works because of the chemical reaction of tannin with iron.

on the other hand, if you want to bleach tannic woods, you first need to wash out the tannins (at least the way I do it, bleaching with hydrogen peroxyde). So I don't feel ebonizing would work after bleaching.

I've played with both experiments just last week, and I have some samples at various stages of the treatments. I'll give it a try and let you know the results.

btw, I use rusty nails+vinegar, and it works fine on chestnut (see picture), oak, cherry, locust.

Pascal

Ebonized bowl

Posts