Popular Post curlyoak Posted January 17, 2018 Popular Post Report Share Posted January 17, 2018 I love this wood. It is a lot of work to get to this point. When you plane you must leave it thicker than the final dimension. Because it will tear and leave big holes in the wood. Sanding is much more work doing curly oak. Multiple passes on my drum sander. It leaves deep groves even though the drum is 100g. Next I used my 5" makita random orb sander starting with 60 grit to get the drum marks out. Then to 100 then 220. Every top of every curl is very similar to end grain. That adds to the time and the amount of sanding disks required. One coat of sealer. I'm building a wall unit. Two book shelves. One on each end. 12 x 26 x 87H Frame and panel construction. In the middle will be a base unit with a 2" qs oak top. a door left and right and three drawers in the middle. Four doors in all. One on the bottom of each book shelf and 2 on the center unit. They will be frame and panel also with book matched curly oak. There will be a 4" thick shelf near the top between the 2 towers. I work 2 to 4 hour days on woodwork. I'm not interested in any more 8 hour days. That way the 2 to 4 hour sessions are pleasant and enjoyable. I like the ease of adding pictures here. Very nice accommodations on this forum. Thanks to whoever made it happen! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isaac Posted January 17, 2018 Report Share Posted January 17, 2018 Have you tried a card scrapper or perhaps a bevel up, low angle plane? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2018 I have not. I think you would be subject to tear out. And sanding is the safe choice. The wood is to valuable to risk it. Every fraction of an inch you are changing from with the grain to against. Over and over. You'd need a very sharp plane. It would still tear out. I liked the results. I'll stick with my process... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unknown craftsman Posted January 17, 2018 Report Share Posted January 17, 2018 Nice looking boards. I had the privilege to work with some curly white oak last year. It was super hard and difficult even my planer with a Bryd head left some tear back. Aj Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted January 17, 2018 Report Share Posted January 17, 2018 I run figured wood at a diagonal angle and switch grits & angles before all the flaws are gone. 120/150 /180 gets the rest of the flaws and the remaining scratches are so much easier to sand out. That is some real nice looking wood you've got. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 18, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2018 Steve, what kind of sander are you using? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted January 18, 2018 Report Share Posted January 18, 2018 I used a Peformax 16/32 for over 20 years.Recently upgraded to a SuperMax 19/38 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted January 18, 2018 Report Share Posted January 18, 2018 OP, that is some beautiful oak.... Ew, I just said that. Steve, I also run back and forth and it does real good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 18, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2018 Mine is a 16/32 Jet. I feel that it is under powered. As the area in contact became wider, it would bog down under load. My max width was 8". I do not remember the power of the motor. I'll check later... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 18, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2018 The joints of the styles and rails are backwards. A general idea... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted January 19, 2018 Report Share Posted January 19, 2018 4 hours ago, curlyoak said: The joints of the styles and rails are backwards. A general idea... I've made them backwards on a piece and i kinda liked the outcome. Not saying that you should i think the regular way is better. I just wanted to try it once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted January 19, 2018 Report Share Posted January 19, 2018 That’s some serious figure. Will this be used only for the doors and drawer fronts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted January 19, 2018 Report Share Posted January 19, 2018 Very light passes with your drum sander is the trick. My 16/32 had a 1hp motor. Maybe 1/16 to 1/8th of a turn of the handle. As the width of the sander area grows slow down the feed rate. Keep the abrasive clean ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2018 K Cooper, the panels you see will be used for the 2 towers. In the picture the panels are resting on the styles. The drawer fronts will not be curly. It is quartered white oak. I love figured wood. For my taste too much figured can be overwhelming. Kinda like Mr. T. Ten pounds of jewelry around his neck looks ostentatious. In that 10 pounds there may be some great art work. And that alone would look good. I like to show it off. Steve, I was making quarter turns and giving it 3 passes. I'll try your way. Do you make one pass per turn? It is a slow process. But I like the outcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted January 19, 2018 Report Share Posted January 19, 2018 As the grit gets finer I will take smaller percent of a turn. Tiny adjustments let you keep the feed rate up. I do a stack of similar parts at each setting. Pencil marks across the board are handy indicators that you've got all or most of that face done. Pencil marks the lenght of the board can be put in the scratch so you can tell if your getting those out. Running the boards at a slight angle lets you see the scratches easier, then go straighter as the grit gets finer. Yes it's tedious but the results are consistent, especially in figured or expensive wood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 20, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2018 Thanks Steve, good advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted January 20, 2018 Report Share Posted January 20, 2018 Glad to share ! I learned all that the hard way if passing it on saves you some grief it's worth it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 23, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2018 a group picture of the bulkheads of the2 towers. There will be a shelf 4" thick, or appear that way, Between the 2 towers. That is why the rails on top are different... The back bottom is notched for a marble base molding on the wall. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted January 23, 2018 Report Share Posted January 23, 2018 Dang that is come awesome wood. Are you panels pre-finished? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drzaius Posted January 23, 2018 Report Share Posted January 23, 2018 I'm very impressed by your choice of grain in those panels. I've really not seen much curly oak locally at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 23, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2018 I have 4 doors to make and they will have curly panels. I saved the best for the doors... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drzaius Posted January 24, 2018 Report Share Posted January 24, 2018 So curly, do you have a habit of hunting out rare & beautiful curly oak? Your name suggests you have a thing for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 24, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2018 I do like figured wood. Curly oak included. Due to cost, labor and materials, It is not so easy to get my customers to pay up. If I used some exotic high priced veneer plywood for the bulk heads in the picture, I could reduce labor by 75%. I'm fortunate that there are some that like it and are willing to pay for it. I only build on custom orders and order material as the project requires. When and if I find exceptional figured wood and a fair price, I buy it. Project or not. It does not come around that often... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drzaius Posted January 24, 2018 Report Share Posted January 24, 2018 Well, lucky for us you're sharing these projects. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlyoak Posted January 25, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2018 And thanks for your nice words. The project has slowed a little in the recent past. I'm suffering from the flu. Hate it but I'm get better each day. Besides, I'm retired so on a good day I'll work 4 hours. Hard to call it work though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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