James Johnston Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 I bought this table last year, with a solid walnut top. I have recently moved to Brazil and just noticed that a crack is forming at one end of the table. I was hoping for some advice as to what to do here, as contacting the place of purchase is out. The table-top is 4cm thick, the crack on the bottom runs along about 20cm and about 6cm on the top (see image attached). Is it normal for wood to crack like this? what do I need to do to stop it cracking? Any advice you can offer will be very much appreciated. Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 It's hard to tell much of anything from those pics...a shot of the construction of the table would be more helpful. But it appears to me... That's called a "check." It happens when moisture leaves the wood through the end grain faster than the long grain. There's not much you can do about it at this point aside from fill it with epoxy. Whoever built that table wasn't careful about cutting the ends of the lumber off, or he was working with lumber that wasn't dry, or another possibility is that your move to Brazil, where I assume it's quite humid, was an environmental change greater than that board could handle. Set the table up on end, create a dam all around the crack with blue tape, and fill it with runny epoxy. That should keep the check from splitting any more, but I'm afraid you're stuck with that crack forever unless you wanna lop off the end of your table. You could try to put a clamp on it and squeeze it together while the epoxy sets, but I don't think that will do anything since that board appears to be in the middle of the table. You'll also have to sand off the extra epoxy and refinish that area...so that's another challenge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 As Eric says it can be a challenge. Have a look at this video from Marc which shows how to repair a knot with epoxy. Filling a crack is the same. http://www.thewoodwhisperer.com/videos/fixing-a-knot/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Johnston Posted January 29, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 Thanks guys, I'll get to it this weekend. Not so concerned with the crack staying as it's barely visible from the top, more from the underside and edge. I just don't want it to get bigger, which my limited knowledge of wood tells me it would. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Johnston Posted January 29, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 I'm guessing that the best thing to do is remove the top of the table, tape the top and side and then fill from the underside (where the crack is bigger) and let gravity do the work. Hopefully, as the crack on the top side is very fine, there wont be too much of an impact to the finish. Will the epoxy dry clear? As in slightly darker than the existing finish? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 You can get epoxy in a range of colors, and you can add dye to epoxy to achieve a different color. A good epoxy repair job on long grain like that will often just look like grain or a mineral streak. Take extra time with the tape and get as close as possible to the crack so your mess is minimized. If you watch the video Terry posted, you'll see Marc use a shop-vac to suck the epoxy through from the other side. Your instinct about filling from the wider side of the gap is correct. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Pritchard Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 Depending on the width of the gap, you might not even need to dye it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AceHoleInOne Posted February 8, 2014 Report Share Posted February 8, 2014 I'm wondering if on the bottom of the table Just where the crack ends. You could drill a 1/4" hole (or something) careful not to drill through to the top Say halfway through to the top. A point to relieve the stress then work some glue in the crack and clamp shut. Or just make a repair on the bottom of the table with a Dutchman? Don't know what your skill level/tool situation is? -Ace- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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