Finishing Black Walnut burl

[CptTrog]

Hey, folks. First timer here.
Just started working with some BW cut a few years ago on my place. I also have a bit of burl ripped into three inch slabs with the bark still attached to the burl nodules that's been drying in the shop for about 6 years. I cut a 1 foot round (well sort of round) on the band saw, sanded down and steel wooled it w/#000. Awesome figure! Haven't done anything else to the piece yet. May turn a shallow bowl (if I can get to a lathe) or maybe a clock.
One of my slabs is about 5' x 2. at its widest nodules. Would love to try to make maybe a wall piece (inlay a mirror, maybe?) but want to utilize the rounded burls. Problem is this:
How do I remove the bark, get those needle-sharp points down to a safe level without removing them completely, then get a finish on it? All the flat surfaces I can handle but the sides are eating my lunch.

Photo attached below.
Thanks in advance!
Jera

View image in gallery​

 

[Sealeveler]

Welcome to NCWW.I don't know an easy way to remove the bark but to me the burl looks great with the bark on.Others will have more experience with the finishing.
Tony

 

[Glennbear]

Just a semi-educated suggestion here, if you can find someone with a blaster a "soft" media might accomplish what you want to do: http://www.harborfreight.com/25-lbs...edium=cse&utm_source=googlebase&hft_adv=10063
As far as finishing, spraying your finish would seem to be most logical (poly or shellac) :wsmile:

 

[Mike Davis]

I was going to suggest blasting too. Crushed Pecan shells or even uncooked hominy grits would be very gentle on the wood.

 

[richlife]

That is a beautiful length of burl!

On the bark spikes, perhaps you can back some coarse sandpaper with a thick piece of dense foam and sort of knock off or round the spikes to nubs by hand? Use the same technique with progressively finer grits to the level you want.

My preference (as Tony said) would be to keep the bark look if you can make it safe.

Rich

 

[JimD]

Relative to finish, I have a couple comments. I like to start with boiled linseed oil on walnut, especially if it has "fancy" grain which a burl certainly has. This will darken the wood a little and bring out the grain. If you let it throughly dry, I've had good success pulling poly over it. Walnut bleaches out in direct sunlight, however, so unless you are sure it won't get direct sun, you may want to use an outdoor varnish or poly with a UV inhibiter. I used a common minwax product (Helmsman?) from the home center and thinned it about 1/3 with mineral spirits to make a wipe-on for my last walnut project. It was a cup holder for the back of my convertible bimmer. So it will get sun. I have spray equipment but for a little project like this, the wipe on is a lot less trouble. I also do not like to spray oil based because of the cleanup. I didn't look real hard but didn't find any water based with the UV inhibiter.

Anyway, my recommendation for finish is a coat or two of boiled linseed oil, let it dry a week or so, and then multiple coats of a wipe on oil based poly with UV inhibiter. You can also just skip the linseed as I did on my cupholder. The oil based still popped the grain, it is just a little lighter colored (which better matches the other walnut trim in the car).

Jim