I've received some blanks that have just the two cut ends dipped in paraffin and others that are entirely coated in varnish except for the long top and bottom.

How many and which surface areas on a blank should be coated and which should be left bare to promote drying and prevent checking? Iwant to hold these for a few years longer.

usually just the ends

The ends of freshly-cut blanks are dipped in paraffin to retard the loss of water through the end grain. After blanks are "dry", dealers sometimes plane the blanks and some apply a coat of finish, particularly on higher grade wood, to better display the figure and color.

quote:

Originally posted by butchloc:
usually just the ends

exactly!

That's what I wanted know, thanks all.

Please check post on " Salt Wood " on this forum .

It will hopefully give a lot of you better understanding on Air Dried verses Kiln Dried or KD blanks .

Shoot Straight Know Your Target . ...

The author, R. Bruce Hoadley is a professor of Building Materials and Wood Technology in the Department of Natural Resources Conservation at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He specializes in wood identification and wood properties, has written several books, and is a contributing editor and technical consultant for Fine Woodworking Magazine.


What does it all mean?
It's all in the book.

Thank You ; I have not only that reference book but several others of which aren't available to the General public .

One of the very best which are available to anyone is Tropical Timbers of the World ( USA Dept. of Agriculture )
Know Your Woods ( Albert Constantine )
Wood in Australia ( Keith R Bootle ) that may be difficult to find ?.

These are ALL excellent reference books as is
( R. Bruce Hoadley ) Understanding Wood .

I also use K's of hours or Many Years of first hand experience and knowledge when I post on Wood related articles . As I not only was a Purveyor of Hardwood Timber from around the World , for several different company's .

I also consulted to Several Authors as well as the CSIRO of Australia in addition to the Forest Products Lab in Madison WI.

I also helped set up several reforestation programs in Africa , South America as well as North America . So did a lot of other people in this field of work .

I'm still NO Gun Smith
not even a professional Stock Maker !. How Sad is that !. I have how ever made stocks as well as cut blanks even laminated several , Supplied stock makers with some of those blanks .

Shoot Straight Know Your Target . ...

I would like to add a QUESTION to this if no one minds. It may sound a little dumb but here goes. I understrand that the end grain is sealed to keep the moisture from releasing to fast. Most people use anchor seal or paraffin as stated above,and i would bet most of this stuff it made somewhat the same. I have also seen the ends painted with a exterior house paint, does this work as well, after all you are sealing the end grain either way?

I don't always seal the end grain.
I may put up with some small checks and the that off the ends.

I don't think they paint the end grain in a kiln, they ad some moisture to the air for a smaller moisture differential, and raise the temperature for a faster movement of moisture.

Some people may be sealing the end grain so nothing bad can happen, but is overly slow. This would be the CYOA strategy.

What does it all mean?
A sightly permeable paint might be optimum for some situations.

quote:

Originally posted by srtrax:
I would like to add a QUESTION to this if no one minds. It may sound a little dumb but here goes. I understrand that the end grain is sealed to keep the moisture from releasing to fast. Most people use anchor seal or paraffin as stated above,and i would bet most of this stuff it made somewhat the same. I have also seen the ends painted with a exterior house paint, does this work as well, after all you are sealing the end grain either way?

I have tried house paint on a couple of occasions to seal the ends of logs to slow end checks. My opinion is it was a good waste of house paint. Paint IMO,is not elastic enough to seal the ends for any more than a few days.

I have had good luck with tar though. Down side is the ends need to be trimmed to get rid of the tar when milled. Tar is cheap and readily available so I just tarred again after milling.

Jim

I would recommend Latex Exterior grade paint if one is going to seal the end grain of blanks with paint .

It's flexible enough , the key is to dilute it slightly on the first couple of coats. Then a few days apart , apply full strength a few more coats over a few days time . It will stop most of the end checking , but NO PRODUCT stops it all !.
Some retard it better than others how ever .

A comfortable resting place is MOST IMPORTANT !. Where extreme Temp. and Humidity changes DON'T OCCUR !. Such as Santa Ana winds they Ruin wood !.

Shoot Straight Know Your Target . ...

Thanks guys! good information...