finishing a cookie

[sawduster]

OK, I have these really nice cedar logs and I have sliced some really awesome looking cookies from them. I have been practicing finishing on the not-so-nice ones and getting nowhere fast ! I was paying attention when DaveO 'splained to me about end grain but I'm having quite a time with it. I eventually want to use some for scrolling panels

Will I ever get these smooth and able to take a nice finish ?
i'm obviously missing an imprtant step somewhere :dontknow:. Anyone got a little 101 for a rookie ?

Help .........please ! :BangHead:

Thanx for any and all input

 

[DaveO]

Well personally I like my cookies finished with frosting and sprinkles. But I don't think that is what you're asking about.
Are you trying to smooth the surface? Or are you trying to apply a finish to the surface??
Smoothing is going to be difficult as the end grain fibers are like the business end of a broom. They want to move instead of being cut. A very sharp low angle plane will do the job well. Or a lot of sanding starting at a low grit and moving through all the grits. You will want to sand to a higher grit than you would for face/edge grain work to help burnish the fibers and control the absorption of the finish.
Applying a finish...it's gonna soak in a lot, keep putting it on until it stops (this is assuming a clear coat or penetrating oil finish).

HTH,
Dave

 

[farmerbw]

So how big are they and what steps are you using on them now? All the log "cookies" that I've cut I've been able to smooth on my stationary belt sander, but I've not done anything over about 4-4.5".

Brian.

 

[FredP]

what dave said but a couple coats of sanding sealer or shelac to seal the grain first. then poly or whatever finish you are comfortable with.:icon_thum

 

[jeff...]

Heavy Bodied Sanding Sealer, then your favorite finish...

http://www.moffitt-smith.com/Product...102-04912.aspx

Thanks

 

[sawduster]

I've tried spray sealer ( lacquer ) , I've tried oils , I've tried sanding ( but probably not enough :embaresse ) I start out with beautiful piece of wood , lots of contrast in the rings and as soon as I put anything on it it all turns dark and you can barely see the rings anymore :BangHead: When I sand , the red from the heart contaminates the white of the edges and the whole thing ends up looking like poop :icon_scra
I've tried sealer then oil , oil then sealer , sealer only , oil only ,
Can anyone give me a little 1-2-3 with some more details ?

Thanx again

 

[DaveO]

OK, sand to a very high grit...at least 400 that will help to burnish the fibers and limit absorption of the finish. Remove the sanding dust between grits with compressed air. Once you've got it well sanded and cleaned off. Apply a ½# cut of dewaxed shellac (Zinssers Seal Coat is great 1 part shellac to 4 parts alcohol). This will help seal the wood and also limit the finish absorption. Then to keep the color of the wood as close to unfinished as possible use a water based top coat like Polyacrylic. It doesn't have the oils that give a yellow or amber hue.
You are fighting a tough battle, end grain by it's nature will get darker when finishes, and Cedar in general gets a lot darker with any finish applied to it.

Good luck!

Dave

 

[Travis Porter]

You are welcome to bring them by my shop and sand them on the wide belt. It shouldn't take over 20 minutes to sand them up to 220 grit if you have say 20 of them.

As for finishing, I think I would stick with some shellac.

 

[sawduster]

You are welcome to bring them by my shop and sand them on the wide belt. It shouldn't take over 20 minutes to sand them up to 220 grit if you have say 20 of them.

As for finishing, I think I would stick with some shellac.

Thanx for all the help guys :icon_thum
Travis that is a very generous offer and I will definitely be in touch :icon_thum
gotta cut some more though, as I have pretty much ruined the nicer ones :sad11: