Stabilizing Thin Wood Carvings

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Stabilizing Thin Wood Carvings

The Problem with Fragile Wood

It can be difficult to work with thin wood. Thin wood can be fragile. It breaks easily. I know this from experience. I once broke the same piece of wood twice!1 This is why it's important to stabilize thin wood. This will make it less likely to break.

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How to Stabilize Thin Wood

There are a few different ways to stabilize thin wood. One way is to use shellac. Shellac is a type of finish that can be used to seal and protect wood. You can dilute shellac with alcohol to make it penetrate the wood more deeply.

Another way to stabilize thin wood is to use resin. Resin is a type of adhesive that can be used to bond wood together. You can use a penetrating epoxy resin to stabilize thin wood carvings. I recommend using a product called TotalBoat penetrating epoxy. This product is available online and in some stores. It’s a two-part epoxy. Make sure to use cheap brushes when applying this product. The epoxy will ruin normal brushes.

After you have applied the resin, you can then apply a lacquer finish. This will give the wood a nice shine and protect it from scratches. I like to use Mohawk satin lacquer. It gives the wood a nice sheen. You can adjust the sheen by choosing a different lacquer.

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The Results

I have used this method to stabilize many of my own wood carvings. It works very well. The resin penetrates the wood fibers and makes them much stronger. The lacquer finish gives the wood a nice shine and protects it from damage

I hope this blog post has been helpful. If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment below.

TotalBoat Clear Penetrating Epoxy https://amzn.to/46iK2Yi

Mohawk Catalyzed Clear Finish Satin Pre cat https://amzn.to/42CYjfi

Chip Paint Brushes https://amzn.to/3PdRkX2

Tips for Using Resin

  • Use a cheap brush.
  • The resin may get bubbly. You can use a heat gun to get rid of the bubbles.
  • The resin will bring out the grain of the wood.

School of Wood Carving online

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Where to Learn More

You can learn more about wood carving on my website- schoolofwoodcarving.com.

You can also take classes at the Marc Adams School of Woodworking. You can find more information on their website, markadams.com.

I hope this blog post was helpful.

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