Getting the Wood

[ByBry]

I d/l the plans for carving a clockface which is set for a 12 x 12 board. I've looked high and dry to find a 12 x 12 piece of lumber to carve the clock as one unit. I know I can joint 2 pieces of 8 x 8 and make my own blanck but no matter how careful one is there will always be a seam.

Any ideas? Places to buy? Home Depot has wider pieces of oak & maple but nothing like a bloodwood which I love.

Suggestions?

[badger]

Some WoodCraft Stores have a special Lumber Section with some quality wood.

http://www.woodcraft.com/Category/1002123/Exotic--Domestic-Woods.aspx

[dbfletcher]

I d/l the plans for carving a clockface which is set for a 12 x 12 board. I've looked high and dry to find a 12 x 12 piece of lumber to carve the clock as one unit. I know I can joint 2 pieces of 8 x 8 and make my own blanck but no matter how careful one is there will always be a seam.

Any ideas? Places to buy? Home Depot has wider pieces of oak & maple but nothing like a bloodwood which I love.

Suggestions?

I will admit I'm pretty novice when to comes to wood, but I have done glue up several times on 1x8 oak boards from lowes to make actual 14.5" boards to carve larger signs. After sanding and staining... i am hard pressed to find the seam and I know exactly where it is! Oak is the only board i have glued up so far... and it probably has something to do with the nature of oak grain.. but if you pick your boards carefully, you can find two or more where the gain matches very close. I'm sure the long timer woodwookers can give more tips for minimizing the seams.

Doug Fletcher

[MCGEE2SKINNER]

Fletcher
Check lowes they have glue ups to 14". I have used them and they carve ok.

JIM

[Metalhead781]

Best bet for glue-ups get one board with enough length to glue up the panel and make sure u reverse the cup of the grain with this new growth oak. The grain and color will match allot better that way. I started my woodworking career on a glue rack, pneumatic cllmps 4x8ft was the biggest panel each rack would take, 30 total revolving racks. By the time that thing was filled it was about time to start removing the panels:-|

MH

[Ike]

I d/l the plans for carving a clockface which is set for a 12 x 12 board. I've looked high and dry to find a 12 x 12 piece of lumber to carve the clock as one unit. I know I can joint 2 pieces of 8 x 8 and make my own blanck but no matter how careful one is there will always be a seam.

Any ideas? Places to buy? Home Depot has wider pieces of oak & maple but nothing like a bloodwood which I love.

Suggestions?

Bry if done correctly the seam should be barely visible. If interested I can show you how. These signs are glued up and you need to look hard to see the seams.

Ike

[bjbethke]

I d/l the plans for carving a clockface which is set for a 12 x 12 board. I've looked high and dry to find a 12 x 12 piece of lumber to carve the clock as one unit. I know I can joint 2 pieces of 8 x 8 and make my own blanck but no matter how careful one is there will always be a seam.

Any ideas? Places to buy? Home Depot has wider pieces of oak & maple but nothing like a bloodwood which I love.

Suggestions?
I think you would need to find some one that has a saw mill that cuts 30 inch logs to make a board like that. My mill cuts 16 inches to get an 8 to 9 inch wide board I need to use my chain saw and do some great trims to be able to make a good eight inch board. I find if you have your Jointer adjusted right and match the grain of the board you can make that seam match and it would be very hard to find.

Kenm 810 posted some great images to show that with his tables, it can be done. A good jointer and planer will give you the best board.

[hogiewan]

Kenm 810 posted some great images to show that with his tables, it can be done. A good jointer and planer will give you the best board.

I used the rip cut and joint operations on my CW to glue up a 14+" board to use for a sign. I had a 10" board and cut two pieces to 7 1/8 and ran the jointing operation (with the 3/8" bit) and then glued and clamped them together. You have to look hard to find the seam.

[jerrbitt]

Your best bet, and least expensive is what many have advised -- that is do a glue-up.

If your using oak or something similar with pronounced grain, the key is to match the grain. I've done a dining room table, coffee tables and the like and even though I know where the seams are, it is difficult to see them.

[Ike]

Your best bet, and least expensive is what many have advised -- that is do a glue-up.

If your using oak or something similar with pronounced grain, the key is to match the grain. I've done a dining room table, coffee tables and the like and even though I know where the seams are, it is difficult to see them.

I agree 100% gluing up boards is easy! Yes you can find a private lumber yard and find wide boards. Then you need to find a big enough planer to surface the board. Then the cost for these boards would be far more then just gluing them yourself.

Gluing boards are so easy and done correctly it is hard to see the joint. You do need a jointer, table saw, and bar clamps. It is a good excuse to buy theses tools if you don't own any!

This is the way I glue boards with great results. The lumber you get from lumber stores that are S4S have a bevel edge and if glued together as is you will see the seam due to a small v groove. To solve the issue you need to rip the edge at least the blade thickness on both sides. The best way is if you have a jointer is joint one side and rip the other side.

Then lay the boards side by side. Check the sides several different ways by flipping the board until you get the tightest fit. I have stopped using dowels or biscuits dues to when carving they get hit and show. Plus with todays glue it is not needed. I like using Gorilla Glue I use gloves due to the mess but I follow the direction wet both edges and apply an even layer of glue and clamp. I know many do not care for Gorilla glue, but I do!

I make sure I have enough clamps for the job. For example a 2' by 4' sign I will use 6 clamps for the job. Four on the bottom and place the boards and line up the 2 to be even and lightly tighten the clamps to hold. Then I put 2 on top between the 4 and lightly tighten. The 2 on top will stop any bowing, then one by one tighten until the glue squeezes out.

Another good investment is bar clamps pads to avoid dents if you over tighten. Or you can red neck it like me, use a thin block of wood or duct tape.

I have added it to the list of videos to make!

Ike










I am offering if anybody needs some glued up blanks I will be more then happy to make one for you! I will charge material plus $3.00 a board foot.