Grain darkening issues

[Designsync]

G'Day,

Have whipped up a new Mackay Cedar benchtop but having a few problems with the finish and grain direction. The grain direction in this stuff goes everywhere, left, right, up and down. The heartwood has a uniform finish but towards the sapwood is a different story.

The grain has darkened where the grain changes direction which looks like a sanding fault. I've sanded, sanded, and sanded a bit more for the same result.

The piece was rough band sawn for the mill. I've cut that back with a belt sander (couldn't find anyone with a thicknesser or woodwiz) running down the grain using 80 then 120 grit, then ROS from 80, 120, 180, & 240. The shown surface appeared . So did it all over again, and again the shown surface appeared .

Anyone got any IDEAS rather than criticisms.

[Tex B]

Ham,

Maybe the pics aren't that clear, but it looks really nice to me. Looks like an interesting natural feature, and not at all like a sanding fault.

Might try going beyond 240 to 400 or 800 (or higher), but I expect the feature will still be there.

I'd finish it and enjoy the rich tapestry of nature's beauty displayed in timber.

Tex

[Designsync]

Thanks Tex. If you look on the right side of pic 1 and left side of pic 2, they are the marks i'm talking about. Probably looks a bit more dramatic in real life.

BTW that finish is just a thin coat of water.

[DJ’s Timber]

Are you talking about the section the I have marked.

If so I would say that it looks like the grain is tighter from been compressed when the tree was growing.

Looks to be natural feature of the tree to me and nothing to do with the way you are sanding it.

[Designsync]

Yeh, that's the bit DJ. Just a shame that such a nice piece will be ruined by these stink'n marks.

Never mind, I'm sure in a year or so there'll be enough dings and scratches that any natural imperfection will look fantastic.

[ozwinner]

Try sanding to 1800 grit, I do on gooder stuff.
If the area is fiddleback you will get the darker grain no matter what you do with it.

Al

[AlexS]

Can you try this on a bit of scrap first?
Colour some woodgrain filler (not the wood filler that's a sort of putty)so that it's a the same colour as, but a bit darker than your wood. Rub it into the whole piece with a piece of hessian, leaving as little as possible on the surface. When it's dry, sand it back to the desired finish.

The effect you're getting is caused by light being reflected by cells that are almost parallel to the surface, and absorbed by those that are at more of an angle to the surface. In some timbers this is a desirable effect.

[ubeaut]

Finish it with shellac and it will probably look absolutely magnificent and change colours when you look at it from different directions or walk past it etc. The timber will refract the light and give you a brilliant display of depth and colour in that area.

Finish it with oil and it will most likely look dead and dirty.

But then a gain I could be wrong......... Nah.

[Designsync]

Thanks everyone. I'll try a few test pieces and see how she comes up.

Neil, best you send me some of your brew - see PM. And also, a big for that book of yours - bloom'n great read!

[Designsync]

Finish it with shellac and it will probably look absolutely magnificent and change colours when you look at it from different directions or walk past it etc. The timber will refract the light and give you a brilliant display of depth and colour in that area.

Finish it with oil and it will most likely look dead and dirty.

But then a gain I could be wrong......... Nah.

Not wrong! The Hard Shellac came up better than expected.....I'm hooked. The pictures don't show the true colour or lustre.....note to self, must buy new camera!

[DJ’s Timber]

They have come up very well, bigger pictures would be better but you can see that they have bought the color out and the grain just pops out

[The Bird]

Well I'd agree with Tex on that, it looks great.
Whats actually happening is as you describe. Its a grain direction change which means that any finish you put on it is being taken up at a different rate from the heart grain, sand all you like but what you get is a beautifull natural feature, sit back have a beer and enjoy the great inconsistancies in the timber, thats why we love it.
The Bird