_So who's on lockdown? :-) Here's a little something to pass the time while you're social distancing and keeping your mind off of the news. And maybe avoiding your family LOL! Stay strong, folks!_ #covid19 #lockdownwoodworking
Could you please do a informational/finishing video on Birch hardwood. Although I enjoy working with it and it is extremely affordable I'm not sure what all it would be good for. Also, I have struggled with finishing it. I've even used the pre-stain conditioner and it didn't seem to help. I attempted a gray stain once and that was very difficult... Thanks!! - Brian
Another amazing video! I've been a low level wood working "enthusiast" for many years and I watch these realizing, I know very little about wood working. I'm nearing retirement and look forward to increasing my woodshop time to daily. Your videos will help me look like I've been good at it for decades! Thanks for your time!
Mark, your videos are some of the best educational ones on the internet! I really appreciate the time you put into them and especially the content. I am new to woodworking and specifically I find the finishing process on all projects to be daunting based on the vast amount of products out there. I hope whoever gave this video the one thumbs down gets the Corona Virus.
My neighbor was throwing out a really old, huge coffee table a few years back. I brought it home, pulled it all apart, cut it up, jointed and planed it. Once I had all the old finish off of it, I could see it was all quarter sawn white oak.
The black grain filler on the white oak reminded me of an awesome Japanese finishing technique called "uzukuri." For those who don't know, uzukuri is the practice of raising the grain & going over the wood with a stiff bristle brush to create gouges. The lighter, softer wood brushes out faster than the darker, denser part of the growth rings, leaving a series of peaks and valleys. Black stain is then applied to the whole piece before it is lightly surface sanded to remove the top of the high rings. This gets them back to bare wood, while leaving the low parts untouched. The result is a bold, dramatic, extremely high-contrast grain, and the piece can then be stained any color you'd like without losing those dark black rings! Not as easy as using a black grain filler, but awesome nonetheless :)
I just comment on a random video and want to say thank you for your videos. They are really great and your personal style is awesome. I probably will never buy from you (unless you can offer free shipping to Europe :), but I love your content!
Another great video! I think I could actually sit through an entire college course on different wood types, different finishing techniques/options, and the details on the characteristics of different types of wood. Great energy as always and I can't wait to see more stuff. Stay safe.
Great tips, Mark! Love the two methods of darkening the grain on QS white oak. Love it! I have a ton of white oak and this is going to be my "go-to" method of finishing from this point forward. THANK YOU!
Thank you. I ALWAYS learn so much from your video pieces. You have a terrific, casual no hurry style to help us learn. Stay safe and healthy, and thank you again!
I love working with hardwood however sometimes plywood/MDF are better options due to veneering or expansion worries. Can you do a video on Plywood. For example- grading on both sides, the number of plys, the face ply how its cut, different versions (birch, baltic birch, russian birch etc). Specialty plywoods like marine, maple, walnut, white oak, etc.
Hi Mark, really appreciate how you break it down with excellent visuals! I definitely learned a lot. I’ll probably get some black grain filler and try it on some ash wood.
Nice presentation, and explanation of the sawing methods and their differences. Please consider expanding on the topic by demonstrating how to select project parts from within regular flat sawn boards, to emphasize grain appearance, stability, and figure. For instance, I like to use rift sawn grain for the legs of small tables, because it appears "quartersawn" on multiple adjacent faces. I get it by sawing parts from the edges of flat sawn boards, usually 6/4.
What a great channel, and No FLUFF content! YAY!, I have a project I am stuck on....Hoping answers to my Q will get me over the hump.... What are a couple of your TOP sealers for a white oak that you want to STAY white oak ...Meaning you like the look of somewhat fresh cut white oak? Or at least when the veneer arrives new vs exposed to sun. For kitchen cabinets I want to apply the stronest protecting product that does not yellow due to UV. I understand that the wood itself will darken, and I am thinking of a 5 to10% white utg , err or is it UTS white color first then to seal. Your thoughts?
UTC maybe? Universal tinting colorant? If that’s what you meant. You could try that, I’m with ya, I like that tan color of white oak without yellowing. Haven’t figure out the magic solution yet. On my list of stuff to try, but haven’t yet, is to use a water based clear top coat since they don’t warm up the wood color. And to “hold” the color I want to try something like Howards Sunshield as a UV protection. Arguably a conversion varnish is probably a pro’s answer but it requires HVLP equipment and skill
Very nice! -- QUESTION -- We have had horrible experience with kitchen cabinets made from plywood or other "fake" wood products - edge tape sagging down, facing material coming off at toe kicks, interior drawer bottoms that sag etc.,. We would like to get solid wood, preferably quarter sawn oak cabinets so we will never have these type of problems again. Are the increased price of such cabinets simply the difference in the cost of the wood, and all other costs remain the same?
What other common hardwoods can one find quarter sawn readily available? Rift white oak has gotten more expensive and I need it more for stability than appearance. Ideally with a similar hardness.
Would the black grain filler work just as well for quarter sawn Red Oak or do you suggest something else? I've noticed my Red Oak seems to be more porous.
I have a question about sealing wood vanity tops. I don't care for the look of thick poly, but that's all I have mostly used in the past. I have used WaterLox also but that looks too waxy, in my opinion. Do you have any suggestions on what to use?
That is not true Quarter sawn at:52. True quarter sawn is closer to rif sawn than to plane swan. The first part you have right, quarter the timber. Then you need to cut perpendicular to the rings. Another way of explaining this is to cut from the center of the log all the way to the outside of it. Your method gets further and further away from being perpendicular with each cut. It does not allow for right angle cuts to the rings after the first 2 cuts. Many articles say your method is Quarter sawn but they are not entirely correct. Your method at :52 is plane swan the hard way after the first 2 cuts off each quarter.
