question about teak wood

[myshop1044]

I have a newbie wanting to carve on teak wood, does anybody have any experiance
with teak. will it dull the carving bit and how long will the bit last.

Perry B

[lawrence]

teak has the same silica problem that mesquite has - this will cause tools to dull faster than with other woods of the same hardness-- point being, the tree bark is open and allows blowing sand to enter the wood as it grows.... this being said, I've found that teak seems to be even more "dulling" than mesquite. I've done a couple of projects with it and in both cases charged a 15% premium for the wear and tear on my edges and the glue up problems.

A few carves shouldn't affect things all that much though, and there is no better wood for outdoor or marine use.

Lawrence

[chief2007]

Harder the wood, faster the bit will dull. I have seen teak wood carved. Would recommend that a simple project is ran to give the machine a good test.

Mesquite wood is very hard as well, but carves good.

As far a the time the bit will last depends on how much carve time is on it with the teak wood.

[myshop1044]

Back the teak wood carving. first I want to thank both of you for the comments.
I believe the carving will be about 4 1/2 hrs mim. Sooo Do you feel that this amount of time will dull the carving bit too much?
I just want to be on the safe side when I recommend to the newbie a different ty of wood.
Thanks again
Perry B

[lawrence]

I don't really think one carve will hurt the carbide bit at all... again, these bits really don't dull as much/quickly as a lot of folks think (they do get gummed up/dirty though- a good bath usually helps what seems like a dull bit.

What environment will the piece be used in? If it is maritime/outdoor or to match other pieces, then I'd say stick with it, otherwise there are lots of other options that still look good but aren't as expensive or hard.

Lawrence

[chief2007]

Should be just fine, and I don't see the bit getting dull on one carve.