# I have cut a few big rounds off of a red oak and want to turn them into a nice table



## JT78 (Nov 11, 2008)

I have cut a few big rounds off of a red oak and want to turn them into a nice table Im just wondering what color stain is going to really look good or should I just put polyurathane on it? here is a pic of the wood now as it is been drying for about a week.


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## Jonny Quest (Nov 11, 2008)

How about Husky Orange?

Nice saw, BTW.

JQ


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## JT78 (Nov 11, 2008)

What Im wondering is will the poly bring out the red in the center? And thanks about the saw its a 395 and a blast to run.


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## B_Turner (Nov 11, 2008)

It's a common hope, but it's very difficult to have endgrain disks like that hold together while drying.

I would expect radial cracking to begin soon. Wood is simply not stable in that direction. That is why most tabletops are side grained "boards."


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## JT78 (Nov 11, 2008)

Thanks B Turner Im very new at this so excuse some of the newby questions but what would happen if I poly it before it gets dry enough to start cracking?


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## B_Turner (Nov 11, 2008)

JT78 said:


> Thanks B Turner Im very new at this so excuse some of the newby questions but what would happen if I poly it before it gets dry enough to start cracking?



There are always variables, like each tree is different and local environment, etc. but typically your odds aren't good to put it mildly. You have the structure of the wood directly opposed to the way the wood has been cut. (Ever notice how few solid round tabletops in oak you see?)

In drying wood, it's a compromise of slowing the drying down enough to reduce cracking vs mold, staining and decay.

The most common suggestion would be to coat each side with a couple liberal coats of endgrain sealer, and you could certainly try that. Then get the wood out of the wind, it is the enemy. Need somewhere cool, dry and only a tiny bit of air circulation. Also physical orientation matters while drying because gravity pulls the water down and the upper side always dries faster causing issues.

If I had in mind for an engrain tabletop, I would probably cut the disks in half through the split and pith, and then seal and sticker the wood just like it was lumber and start babysitting. Once dry (couple years in this case), I would clean it up and reglue. Lots of trouble for sure.

But go for it, what are you out?

Note: Depending on size I would either cut the disk in half on my large bandsaw or more probably with a long bar endgrain. That way I would have a really straight cut for later rejoining. Noodling the cut would result in a more difficult job of jointing the halves for glue up.


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## irishcountry (Nov 11, 2008)

I am not a woodworker but what if you could inlay something circular on the underside of the "cookie" I had seen aggiewoodbutchers wide slab table had some double V shaped peices inlayed on the bottom to control cracking and I have seen some tools in Baileys that pound in S shaped peices of metal to keep slabs from cracking what if you routed a circle in the bottom of the peice and glued in a circular or cross shaped peice of metal or wood?? Just a expiriment to try?? I'm sure if someone on here has done it successfully they'll chime in. Good luck I second the 395 nice!! irishcountry


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## olyman (Nov 11, 2008)

how about this??? go to someone that has a steel strap banding machine--3/4 or wider band------and band the top,middle, and bottom of the logs------may keep it together while it drys---the lumber yard here in town has one---works great for many things!!!!!!!!!!!


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## excess650 (Nov 11, 2008)

I had hopes for a similar project, but the chestnut oak didn't cooperate. After it had dried for a coupule of months, I decided that it was too thick, so cut it to 2" thick. It cupped like crazy, likely due to the fact that the outside was dryer than the inside.

A better choice would be the butt end of the log still attached to the rootball. With an Alaskan mill you could cut some beautiful tops. You have enough saw to do it.

I have several walnut and cherry crotch slabs to make coffee tables from in my garage, and hope to get some of them done over the winter.


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## Rookie1 (Nov 11, 2008)

Very cool idea,sounds familiar. Hope this helps. http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=75093


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## Sawyer Rob (Nov 11, 2008)

olyman said:


> how about this??? go to someone that has a steel strap banding machine--3/4 or wider band------and band the top,middle, and bottom of the logs------may keep it together while it drys---the lumber yard here in town has one---works great for many things!!!!!!!!!!!



I hope you own the machine, as the band will have to be replaced several times as the wood dries and shrinks. A ratchet strap would be better, and it doesn't work either...

It's rare that a end grain "cookie" will dry without cracking ect...

Rob


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## Jacob J. (Nov 12, 2008)

I wonder if linseed oil would slow the cracking more than painting each side of it?


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## Mike Van (Nov 12, 2008)

Any steel on that oak will stain it blue, you won't get it out. Polyethylene glycol is about the only 'cure' to stop checking in something like that. You need a tub big enough to submerge the whole piece. Search it on google. It slowly replaces the water in the wood, makes it stable.


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## Sawyer Rob (Nov 12, 2008)

Mike Van said:


> Any steel on that oak will stain it blue, you won't get it out. Polyethylene glycol is about the only 'cure' to stop checking in something like that. You need a tub big enough to submerge the whole piece. Search it on google. It slowly replaces the water in the wood, makes it stable.



It generally goes by the name PEG, and it's best to heat it to around 140* when you put the wood in it... Once PEG'd, some finishes won't stick to the wood's surface properly, but it does work to stop checking and cracking. Also it add's to the weight of the wood...

Rob


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## BobL (Nov 12, 2008)

It sounds weird but one way to dry eucalypt cookies is to put them under water for a year or so and then dry them slowly. The water behaves a bit like PEG and replaces the some of the fluids in the wood allowing the wood to shrink slowly. This process works better for smaller cookies, and still leads to some cookies cracking.


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## olyman (Nov 12, 2008)

Mike Van said:


> Any steel on that oak will stain it blue, you won't get it out. Polyethylene glycol is about the only 'cure' to stop checking in something like that. You need a tub big enough to submerge the whole piece. Search it on google. It slowly replaces the water in the wood, makes it stable.


the bands are put on the outside of the bark---not end to end------


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## olyman (Nov 12, 2008)

Sawyer Rob said:


> I hope you own the machine, as the band will have to be replaced several times as the wood dries and shrinks. A ratchet strap would be better, and it doesn't work either...
> 
> It's rare that a end grain "cookie" will dry without cracking ect...
> 
> Rob


no--i dont own the machine--but in my case--i can borrow the lumber yard one next door to me--as i do business there-----


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## woodshop (Nov 12, 2008)

olyman said:


> the bands are put on the outside of the bark---not end to end------



Actually, I don't think banding a cookie that large will do much good. That wood is under tension and there is a lot of it when it wants to shrink radially as it does. Bruce Haodly in his book "Understanding Wood" tells a story of some rounds he cut once and took to a lecture (he is a professor) and he said they dried for a good while without cracking, but when he took them to class as a prop and set them down on the table the one just kinda "popped" and opened up a huge crack rather abruptly. It had apparently been under tension and just needed a little push to get it to go. Point being, you can band a huge round all you want, but at some point you will be taking that band off, and when you do it will open up if it was so inclined. 

If you really want a table with those rounds, and you don't want the mess, expense and side effects of PEG, I like the idea mentioned already of halving the thing, letting it dry, and then machining it true and put them back together as close to original position as you can. You could use a sawzall with a 6" blade to halve it... and then run those surfaces over a jointer when you're ready to put them back together. Dowels, pegs, mortise and tenon, pocket screws... lots of ways to glue/screw it together as solid as if it were never cut.


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## AndyR (Nov 13, 2008)

I also understand that cutting a cross section on the diagonal helps reduce the tendency to split radially.


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## woodshop (Nov 13, 2008)

JT78 said:


> What Im wondering is will the poly bring out the red in the center? And thanks about the saw its a 395 and a blast to run.



In general, any oil, lacquer or even poly finish you put on that red oak will tend to darken and bring out the red/orange color of that wood. Here is an example of red oak that is being given a coat of Danish oil... computer screens can distort actual colors, but you get the general idea. On those red oak cookies of yours, the oil will turn them darker and more red. If you use linseed oil or something that has linseed in it (Danish oil does) then over time the piece will get slightly darker, especially in direct Sun.


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## Metals406 (Nov 13, 2008)

Granted, these tables were not hardwood, just pine and fir... But we always glued and screwed a piece if cdx, or marine plywood, or? to the bottom... Keeps the table from falling apart though.


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