Hey there sir! This is my 1st time watching, and am I ever glad I did! Heard about you through Casey M. With high praise. I'm just getting into this Resin/Wood Hybrid stuff, and have a couple of questions for you, if you don't mind. Do you dye stabilize after a completed stabilization, or can it be apart of the initial process? Cheers!
Hi Zac, Woooooooooooaaaah I find all this exciting. Not actually knowing what has gone off inside the blank until it's turned! You are to blame for the reason why I'm now thinking about coloured wood. I don't have any of the equipment myself but I'm always looking on Ebay and Etsy. Keep up the great work Zac 👍😉👍
Thanks Robert, I'm glad that it is helpful. Pretty easy process really, and you can really do lots of fun stuff with the dyes! Have fun experimenting :D
Hey Zac! thanks for these videos! I've just started to get into stabalizing and casting my own wood, you've saved me a ton of trial and error. Your videos have easily been the most informative ones I've found.
That's awesome you're getting started stabilizing, and I'm really glad that my videos have helped out! That's always my main goal with the videos, and it's great to hear that they are helping. I hope to see what you make, shoot me some pics if you get a chance
Great video! Thanks so much! I'm pretty much brand new to all things resin and turning. Got my first old used lathe a couple weekends ago and am now addicted. Quick question for you. To speed up the process on the second and third colors, could you draw a vacuum for a while, then drive the resin in faster with 60 or so pounds of pressure in a pressure chamber? Might save hours of vacuum time, but again... I'm brand new to all this and am ignorant of the process. Thanks so much for the videos! I'm incredibly excited to try this out!
Hello, Zack. Inform me please about your vacuum pump (with which you stabilize the wood and clean air from the resin). I am interested in: what is necessary engine power for maximum impregnation of wood, resin? (Thanks for the fact that people are giving tips and write such interesting video =)) (English did not know and translate with the help of an interpreter. Even so, I am very like to watch your Video monitored.)
How did I miss this video? Just tried my first batch while waiting on pen kits to arrive. I soaked around 24 hours, baked about 90 mins. Blanks were 3/4" to 1". looks like all the juice ran out into the foil. Not sure if it was too hot, or maybe wood got a little moisture back in it
great video and very helpful! Questions ... 1) are you pouring cactus juice into your cups on stage one to just dye the blanks? I cant see the label and maybe I missed you saying it. 2) why wrap in foil when baking? Also, what is a good amount of time to bake or a way to figure out how long is long enough? 3) How long do you let the blanks soak in the first dye process before you go to round 2?
How do you go about stabilizing AND casting wood? What is the order? I double-dyed some buckeye as you show how to do. (They turned out great! ) But buckeye as you know, has a lot of voids, inclusions, etc. and some of the dyed pieces have the live edge on them. The stabalizing process (the baking) made some resin leak out and partly fill the voids. Can I now cast the pieces with alumilite to fill in those voids? Or should I have done the casting first, then stabilized them? Thanks!
Is that a new oven, how much better does that one work, and what's it called...great video looking to get into this stuff and wanting to know all my options equipment wise before I buy anything
Yeah, my Dad bought that a while back, so I started using it too. Way bigger and far more accurate/consistent temps than the little toaster oven. It's an industrial/scientific gravity oven made by Blue M. He got a smokin deal on it, they're a bit pricey usually. If you can find one used for a decent price, snag it!! They work fabulous for drying out wood and baking cactus juice
Zac we’re do u get your raw burl from I get mine now from a guy out in California for eight dollars a pound right now but he’s limited to what he has mostly Buckeye Burl
I stabilized a maple burl with a red color. Turned out very pink. Is there a way I can reverse this, or add another coat? I’m concerned I won’t be able to penetrate the resin. Any tips?
I have a gravity lab oven that I use. Highly recommend it if you can find one on Craigslist. Pretty expensive new though. Other ways to go are toaster ovens or meat smokers. The lab ovens are the most stable temperature and safest though
Good info. I'll be using some of the tips you mentioned. I like the oven you have in the shop. What kind is that? Seems like a perfect size for this stuff.
Glad it is helpful! I honestly have no clue what brand that oven is, I'll have to look at it. It was something my Dad picked up used, and I just commandeered it from him LOL I'll try to check and see if I can find a name or model number on it
Have you tried spraying masks on areas of your blanks to control absorption? Some sort of mold release, maybe acrylic paints. Also, you could greatly decrease soaking times with vibrating in vacuum, though it's a bad idea to vibrate entire airtight chamber. You can use vibrating tables with beakers inside larger chambers though.
I don't think masks would work really since it would only be applied to the top surface, the stabilizing resin soaks into the structure of the blank rather than topically, and capillary action would negate the mask. Or it may not soak in on one area of the surface, but for turning blanks it really wouldn't matter what the surface looks like. I'm pretty sure vibration would have no effect on the soaking process either, it requires time with atmospheric pressure wiggling it won't really accomplish anything
I don't think masks would work really since it would only be applied to the top surface, the stabilizing resin soaks into the structure of the blank rather than topically, and capillary action would negate the mask. Or it may not soak in on one area of the surface, but for turning blanks it really wouldn't matter what the surface looks like. I'm pretty sure vibration would have no effect on the soaking process either, it requires time with atmospheric pressure wiggling it won't really accomplish anything
Vibration is mostly useful for vacuuming, it definitely helps me degas epoxy by making bubbles stick less to surfaces, I've never tried stabilizing wood though. I know people using wax to seal end grain of wood logs to prevent moisturising or overdrying, thought it would have some effect on soaking as well. Maybe I'll try it some day.
Hey Joe, I have links to stabilizing tools and equipment I use on the accompanying post on my website: nvwoodwerks.com/my-double-dye-stabilizing-process/ I got this batch of Buckeye Burl from Cook Woods, there's also North West Figured Woods, eBay, Facebook turning supplies groups, and local hardwood dealers too. Usually you'll get the best prices buying it from individuals on eBay/Facebook or locally
Interesting Zac. Nice looking blanks. When you do the first stage and soak the blank, how far up the blank beyond the level of the dye in the container does the dye go? I'm guessng it depends on the wood species. JimE
Yeah it depends, some pieces of wood will suck it up pretty high into the piece. I had to swish the dye around a bit to get more area covered on the pieces I was using in the video
So did I get this correct? Dry..... Soak, bake.... vacuum, bake? Also what is full vacuum? Do you recommend as much vacuum as pump will pull or should you always be bleeding off some air? (DONT WANT TO RUIN MY PUMP!!) Thanks! Great product, and great video!!!! Ely Knives and Silver
Yep, you got the steps down. You want to have the pump fully closed down whenever you're running it. I shouldn't have said "full vacuum", just meant you want to skip vacuum on that first round, then do vacuum after you've baked in the first soaking
Good coverage. Maybe not the right forum to ask this, but does stabilizing do anything to change the nature of end grain for turning? Looking at small boxes, not big pieces.
That's a good question. What were you trying to change about it? Stabilizing will stiffen the fibers up and fill tight grain a bit. I turn mostly resin though, so I might be missing some other benefits that it might offer
Seems like if the resin is being pulled into the fibers, it would essentially make turning into end grain more like turning cast resin ... but maybe the fibers don't get as saturated as I'm picturing. Overthinking - it's what I do.
Right, I just dip them for a while like I did in the video, bake, then do the second color with the full vac treatment. It depends on how big they are kind of, all the resin has to cure inside. I usually leave it in for the afternoon just to make sure it's all cured
You have to bake it after the first to lock in the first color if you're doing multiple colors like that. If you didn't bake those colors in first, it would all bleed together when you submerge and do the full vacuum stage. Might turn out interesting, but probably not going to get the desired results
I have a maple log with lots of holes from ants. Should I: cut into pieces suitable for pen blanks; oven bake to remove all moisture; follow process in this video? Initially, Some of your pieces weren't whole blanks. Catus Juice will make them complete turning blanks?
Yep that's the steps I'd take. Cactus juice won't fill large gaps, that's better suited for casting resins. Small pinholes should get filled with Cactus juice though.
Hey Zac nice video, wish I would have watched it sooner though. So here is my question, can you dye wood that has already been stabilized? I have some that I am sure are not dyed all the way through but have gone through the full stabilizing process. Some of them have been through it multiple times (combination of trying to do too much with one blank and/or rushing the process). Also, I have some that have turned into dull blend of all the colors used, is there any saving them? Basically like my question above but for the dyed areas.
That's a bummer!! Well, at least you've seen it now =D It's possible to get more color in after they've been stabilized, but you never know how much of the dye you'll get in there, and you have to leave it under vacuum for days, then soak for a week or more. I'm not sure how you'd get the color out once it's in there though, definitely not once it's baked in though
I ordered a vacuum chamber and cactus juice just yesterday, because I have an itch to make some 1911 pistol grips out of some oak logs that have been sitting and rotting/spalting in my back yard for about 3 years... then I told my uncle who makes knives about my new endeavor, and he wants to buy blanks from me, too... yay for COVID lockdown projects that turn into actual money makers! thanks @Zac Higgins for these videos!
Hmm, I'm not sure Gabriella. You could apply dyed Cactus Juice similar to the way I did it on the first stage in this vide, then maybe set it outside on a hot day or use a heat gun to cure the CJ and bake the color in. Probably easier to just use regular wood dyes though
I'm not sure, my Dad picked it up used. It's called a gravity oven, and they're usually pretty expensive. Another decent option is a smoker. They're only a couple hundred bucks and give you lots of capacity. If you can find one used, even better!
Can anyone tell me if the HF vac pump is sufficient and or good for 10 quart pot for stabilizing, I under stand it has a vacuum pull of 22 microns ????
Hey Daryl, no the powders are too large to penetrate the interior of the wood. Plus, they require light transmission to produce the coloration so it wouldn't really help much. TurnTex just came out with some new dyes though that you might be interested in, totally vibrant colors and some new colors that you couldn't create in stabilized wood with the Alumilite dyes. I'm anxious to try them out myself, been impressed with the ones I've seen others do so far. www.turntex.com/product/cactus-juice-resin-and-dyes/2-oz-dye-detail
If you mean after the cactus juice/vacuum step, you don't want to go over 200 degrees or the cactus juice can seep out of the inside of the blank more. Leaving them in the oven won't harm them in any way though, same goes for drying it. Often times they don't turn out as good if the wood isn't fully dry though
Hej Zac Watched many of you video's , good stuff. learnt a lot. My question is Can wood be bleached deeply the same process as stabilizing or dyeing Thanks from Sydney Australia
Hey Mervyn, I'm sure it can be done but I'm not sure what the best and safest method would be. Some chemicals can be dangerous when you put them under vacuum, so it would just be a matter of finding the right bleaching agent I think.
Definitely! You can stabilize just about any material you like. I've even stabilized dog food, mushrooms, acorn caps, and lots more. Pine would definitely benefit from stabilizing since it's so thin, it would stiffen it up a good amount and make it a little easier to turn overall I would think
@Zac Higgins - Can you help with some advice? I dried my blanks for 24 hours, then did the 1st color soak in cactus juice with the alumilite dyes, cured these at 210-215 or so for 3 hours. When I unwrapped them from the foil the dyed juice was hardened around the blocks and I thought it had worked well. I did a quick light sanding to clean the up the outsides like you recommended... only to find after light removal all the wood underneath looks like it did originally, I guess all the dyed juice did not absorb and impregnate into the wood... Where did I go wrong here? Any tips on what my issue was? I did not pull vacuum on this first round just soaked for hours, wrapped up and went to oven to cure. Any helpful advice is much appreciated.... Also one last question, how much Alumilite dye do you use on these? I had 4 oz of cactus juice in each cup and did 4 drops of dye for each one... is this not enough? Is this my problem or an unrelated issue?
Wondering if I cured at too much heat. Cactus juice directions said 200 and realize I did go a bit higher on accident, wondering if that is why it all bled out
I'm guessing that the temperature was too high and too little dye. When the temp gets above 200, more of the CJ seeps out. If possible, it's best to set the temp between 190 and 200. For dye, a good starting point is 1 oz of dye per gallon of CJ. Could be a little more, could be a little less depending on the wood species and characteristics of the specific pieces you are stabilizing
First off, thank you for taking the time to answer me, that is awesome of you to do so and I know you could just as easily have ignored me. Obviously # of drops can range, but google had 591 drops in an ounce. After doing some math, that means if I have 4 ounces of CJ then about 18-19 drops are needed, does that sounds about right to you? And I'll be a lot mindful on the temp range next time
I'm not sure how many drops it would be, but the way dye stabilizing works you basically just have to keep testing things out until you find the right amount. Keep notes of how much CJ and dye you use on each batch, and you'll find the combination that works
Thanks! Stabilized wood is usually a bit harder on bits, but it shouldn't kill it. I cut blanks on the table saw, and it definitely will dull the blade faster than wood or even solid resin, but I think you should be able to rout it ok. I've never tried it myself, but in theory it should be no problem
Thank you. I am looking into this for guitar tops and a certain company charges $600 to $800 for a resin infused multi color dyed 5mm thin guitar top. I need the recipe because I can`t afford the puddin!
If you mean the tips of the 1 oz. bottles, I know exactly what you're talking about! Did a video about it even: ruclips.net/video/gAqlqDAS3EM/видео.html You have to cut or gouge them out with an ice pick
Zac Higgins yes exactly lol. Thanks for the link, truly appreciate it. Wishing the best to you and yours. Happy New Year! PS - I finally have everything to cast and stabilize, thanks to your awesome tutorials and inspiration to get started. -Steven
I've tried this process step by step multiple times even over soaking the wood just to make sure it was penetrating. But after baking at exactly 200 degrees my wood is still not getting penetrated more than 2 cm. I'm using chitlin Burrell and I can't figure out what's going on. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated
Hey Cody, I'm guessing it might be the wood. Some wood species soak up the Cactus Juice and dye more than others. I've never worked with Chitlin, but if it's a super dense wood it won't soak much up. I usually use buckeye or maple burl for mine, and both really soak up the CJ well
Hey Brad, that one is a 4" by about 14" tall. TurnTex has a 6" and an 8" as well, I have to say the 6" is probably the most versatile size. It provides a good deal of room and isn't as cumbersome to fill and empty as the 8". The 4" works great too, but it definitely has limits depending on what size wood chunks you plan to stabilize
@@ZacHiggins Tks for the response, I was thinking of 4"x16" as it fits my budget & seeing yours in this video now, I'm sure that's what I'm going to get. The 6"x14" would be perfect, but again a bigger jump in cost and I'm not sure I want to spend that much coin.
Yeah, you want to reintroduce atmosphere/release the vacuum when soaking. What happens is the air pressure will force the Cactus Juice into the interior of the wood
No one ever talks about air compressors. I am assuming you don't need a very big one, seeing you only have to get 60 psi into you pot. Like a 3 gal. 1/3 HP 100 PSI. Would this work ok?
You would want to use a vacuum pump & chamber for stabilizing wood, not pressure. Check out my stabilizing videos to see the process: ruclips.net/p/PLoeB-EPC_91vC03jk5hS8SH_7Ow4nqyZL If you're talking about for resin casting, then yeah that would likely work. I'm not entirely sure though, I have only used an 80 gallon 5HP one myself, but I know that people get by with the portable pancake compressors and similar. Not sure what the specs are on those small pancake compressors, but I definitely wouldn't use something less powerful or smaller than that.
Vacuum pump is for stabilizing wood. It pulls all the air out, allowing the resin to fill all pores. Stabilized wood can then be used with resin in a pressure pot. I bought the harbor freight pressure pot for that reason.
You could do that, but it generally won't produce as vibrant colors. When you use vacuum, the blanks get fully saturated with dyed resin at the cellular level rather than just soaking a bit. There is air inside the wood, which blocks areas from soaking up the dyed resin unless under vacuum
They are made by Curtis Seebeck at TurnTex Woodworks, he also makes and sells Cactus Juice stabilizing resin. Here's a link to the chambers: www.turntex.com/product/cactus-juice-stabilizing-chambers
Anyone ever try vacuuming blanks after dying wood to get the extra resin out to better help the next stage of dying. In my head it should help doing multiple dyes. So in theory I think it should help but I'll try and find out for myself. It was an idea I just thought of
Say i wanted to do a heavy, single color all the way through, let's say a bright vibrant purple, but I wanted to just dye it cause it doesn't need stabilizing, what would you recommend, I'm thinking about doing this to some wood handles for knives and swords
Also, do you know what the difference is between a vacuum chamber for infusing and one for degassing is? I can't seem to find an answer on google or here on RUclips
You would want to go with vacuum for the best saturation of one color. There's no difference between a degassing or stabilizing chamber, they both are vacuum chambers just called something different for different purposes
To be honest, I always use Cactus Juice. I prefer using it even if the wood doesn't need to be stabilized because you can bake in the color. I use Alumilite dyes or Cactus Juice dyes when I stabilize. Not sure what the best thing to use would be if you aren't using Cactus Juice, I don't think you want to use those without baking it in
You use vacuum for this process, you want to suck all the air out of the wood and replace it with the stabilizing resin. Check out my playlist about wood stabilizing to see how it works: ruclips.net/video/qo89fYKqcjU/видео.html
As I understand: 1. Soak a piece of wood in cactus juice (how much time?) 2. Bake the canteen (for how long?) 3. Sand it 4. Put the bar in the cactus juice with a different color 5. Vacuum it (24 hours?) 6. Bake again at 200 degrees (how long?) 7. To polish Thanks for the answer!
Time depends on the look you want. The longer you soak in step 1, the deeper the dye will go. You will bake it for your normal amount of time. For small pieces I do about 1-2 hours but what you are trying to achieve is an internal temperature of 200 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes or longer to cure the stabilizer. For step 5, vacuum until ther is no more air bubbles coming out of the wood. Then you can take it out of the vacuum and let it sit for 24 hours. After that is when you will bake it again and like I mentioned before, time differs for each piece but the goal you are trying to reach is an internal temp of 200 for 15+ minutes. Then sand and polish
Lots of lumber yards carry some burls and figured woods, there are also Facebook groups where people sell good wood for dying, and also on eBay. I've gotten some great pieces from Cook Woods and Northwoods Figured Woods, they are a bit pricey but have some awesome wood for sale. In fact that Buckeye Burl in the video was from Cook Woods I believe.
It seems like you left out some steps. For example, don't you need to dry the wood before you stick it in the dyed resin? Then wouldn't you need to bake the wood to harden that resin, then dry them again before going to the next step?
You're correct, you do want to do those steps. I cover the general stabilizing process in another video, this one was primarily intended to show how I create the multi color dye stabilized look
Thanks! I might do that on my live stream sometime down the road. I try to keep my RUclips videos pretty short though. Step by step videos tend to end up really long, but it works great doing it live
+Zac Higgins i dont mind a longer video if that means i make no mistakes with it ;) this because importing cactus juice to Europe is a bit expensive ;)
That's why I prefer to do in-depth stuff on my live stream. Even if you do a step by step video on RUclips, you can't include every minor detail in it. Live streams are much better because you see the entire process and can ask questions real time
Think I see a pressure pot in your workshop so why not use it to force cactus juice in your wood after vacuum to cut down on the soak times you were talking about. Nice video though man. Thanks.
I've never tried pressure during soaking. I'm not sure if it's high enough pressure to make that go quicker or not. I'll have to look into that, thanks for the idea =D
need to show how instead of saying how. I like to watch how, helps me understand better. maybe next video you can do that?
I agree. This is supposed to be a video on how, not an audio on how.
thanks for the video. I have my vacuum chamber and juice on it's way. this helped clear some things up and speed the learning process
Hey there sir! This is my 1st time watching, and am I ever glad I did! Heard about you through Casey M. With high praise. I'm just getting into this Resin/Wood Hybrid stuff, and have a couple of questions for you, if you don't mind. Do you dye stabilize after a completed stabilization, or can it be apart of the initial process? Cheers!
Hi Zac, Thanks for the help. Do you cook the wood after each colour dye or just let it soak in before doing the final dye / full vacuum / cook?
great vid Only question does the cost in time and materials pay for the work OR just get your own material done by others
Hi Zac, Woooooooooooaaaah I find all this exciting. Not actually knowing what has gone off inside the blank until it's turned! You are to blame for the reason why I'm now thinking about coloured wood. I don't have any of the equipment myself but I'm always looking on Ebay and Etsy. Keep up the great work Zac 👍😉👍
Thanks Andrew! Glad I can keep the gears turning in your head =D
Great video Zac! Thank you. Couldn't be more straight forward. I just started dying and stabilizing and now feel confident to double dye!
Thanks Robert, I'm glad that it is helpful. Pretty easy process really, and you can really do lots of fun stuff with the dyes! Have fun experimenting :D
Hey Zac! thanks for these videos! I've just started to get into stabalizing and casting my own wood, you've saved me a ton of trial and error. Your videos have easily been the most informative ones I've found.
That's awesome you're getting started stabilizing, and I'm really glad that my videos have helped out! That's always my main goal with the videos, and it's great to hear that they are helping. I hope to see what you make, shoot me some pics if you get a chance
Thank you for the video! I was curious how often you change the oil in your vacuum pump? Do you go by hours or by number of uses?
I'd like to see an update to this.
Great video! Thanks so much! I'm pretty much brand new to all things resin and turning. Got my first old used lathe a couple weekends ago and am now addicted.
Quick question for you. To speed up the process on the second and third colors, could you draw a vacuum for a while, then drive the resin in faster with 60 or so pounds of pressure in a pressure chamber? Might save hours of vacuum time, but again... I'm brand new to all this and am ignorant of the process.
Thanks so much for the videos! I'm incredibly excited to try this out!
Hello, Zack. Inform me please about your vacuum pump (with which you stabilize the wood and clean air from the resin). I am interested in: what is necessary engine power for maximum impregnation of wood, resin? (Thanks for the fact that people are giving tips and write such interesting video =)) (English did not know and translate with the help of an interpreter. Even so, I am very like to watch your Video monitored.)
How did I miss this video? Just tried my first batch while waiting on pen kits to arrive. I soaked around 24 hours, baked about 90 mins. Blanks were 3/4" to 1". looks like all the juice ran out into the foil. Not sure if it was too hot, or maybe wood got a little moisture back in it
great video and very helpful! Questions ...
1) are you pouring cactus juice into your cups on stage one to just dye the blanks? I cant see the label and maybe I missed you saying it.
2) why wrap in foil when baking? Also, what is a good amount of time to bake or a way to figure out how long is long enough?
3) How long do you let the blanks soak in the first dye process before you go to round 2?
How do you go about stabilizing AND casting wood? What is the order? I double-dyed some buckeye as you show how to do. (They turned out great! ) But buckeye as you know, has a lot of voids, inclusions, etc. and some of the dyed pieces have the live edge on them. The stabalizing process (the baking) made some resin leak out and partly fill the voids. Can I now cast the pieces with alumilite to fill in those voids? Or should I have done the casting first, then stabilized them? Thanks!
I appreciate this! Thanks for ALL your great videos!
Hi just starting too stabilise, did you bake the first color?
Regards Ray
Can you please reply here what things do I need to start making some? Thanks. Wonderful works!
Great video inspiration! Featuring it on our Cook Woods newsletter for our customers to take a look at! :)
Hey Ashley, WOW!! Thanks so much, I really appreciate it! I hope it will help some folks get creative with color =D
No problem! We love to see different woodworking techniques! Here is a copy of the newsletter to take a look at! (: conta.cc/2L0G3Fr
I have never seen your channel before, have you ever made any stabilizes wood vape mods?
Does the wood need to be completely dry before the first dye process?
Is that a new oven, how much better does that one work, and what's it called...great video looking to get into this stuff and wanting to know all my options equipment wise before I buy anything
Yeah, my Dad bought that a while back, so I started using it too. Way bigger and far more accurate/consistent temps than the little toaster oven. It's an industrial/scientific gravity oven made by Blue M. He got a smokin deal on it, they're a bit pricey usually. If you can find one used for a decent price, snag it!! They work fabulous for drying out wood and baking cactus juice
what kind of wood is good to use for this process?
Where did you get that fancy oven from?
Zac we’re do u get your raw burl from I get mine now from a guy out in California for eight dollars a pound right now but he’s limited to what he has mostly Buckeye Burl
I stabilized a maple burl with a red color. Turned out very pink. Is there a way I can reverse this, or add another coat? I’m concerned I won’t be able to penetrate the resin. Any tips?
What do you use for the oven when stabilizing?
I have a gravity lab oven that I use. Highly recommend it if you can find one on Craigslist. Pretty expensive new though. Other ways to go are toaster ovens or meat smokers. The lab ovens are the most stable temperature and safest though
HI Zac, Just found this video from Casey's channel. Great tips and easy to understand. See you at MC. Cheers, Huw
So you don’t vacuum for the first colors you just soak and bake? And then vacuum for ur final/main color? What psi is good for the vacuum process
LOL What is a Twitch, in my world that is something used to control an unruly horse. LOL gotta catch up on this stabilizing stuff ya know !
Thaks for the tips. This will certainly come in handy!
Sweet!! Glad it was helpful :-)
Good info. I'll be using some of the tips you mentioned. I like the oven you have in the shop. What kind is that? Seems like a perfect size for this stuff.
Glad it is helpful! I honestly have no clue what brand that oven is, I'll have to look at it. It was something my Dad picked up used, and I just commandeered it from him LOL I'll try to check and see if I can find a name or model number on it
Zac, can you recomend what combin!ton of colors will make translucent pink stain?
Why are the blanks wrapped in aluminum when baking during wood stabilization?
Have you tried spraying masks on areas of your blanks to control absorption? Some sort of mold release, maybe acrylic paints. Also, you could greatly decrease soaking times with vibrating in vacuum, though it's a bad idea to vibrate entire airtight chamber. You can use vibrating tables with beakers inside larger chambers though.
I don't think masks would work really since it would only be applied to the top surface, the stabilizing resin soaks into the structure of the blank rather than topically, and capillary action would negate the mask. Or it may not soak in on one area of the surface, but for turning blanks it really wouldn't matter what the surface looks like. I'm pretty sure vibration would have no effect on the soaking process either, it requires time with atmospheric pressure wiggling it won't really accomplish anything
I don't think masks would work really since it would only be applied to the top surface, the stabilizing resin soaks into the structure of the blank rather than topically, and capillary action would negate the mask. Or it may not soak in on one area of the surface, but for turning blanks it really wouldn't matter what the surface looks like. I'm pretty sure vibration would have no effect on the soaking process either, it requires time with atmospheric pressure wiggling it won't really accomplish anything
Vibration is mostly useful for vacuuming, it definitely helps me degas epoxy by making bubbles stick less to surfaces, I've never tried stabilizing wood though.
I know people using wax to seal end grain of wood logs to prevent moisturising or overdrying, thought it would have some effect on soaking as well. Maybe I'll try it some day.
Great tips Zac, thanks for sharing!
Thanks Carl!
Do you have any recommendations on a good kit to get or what I would need to get started? Where do you score your wood?
Hey Joe, I have links to stabilizing tools and equipment I use on the accompanying post on my website: nvwoodwerks.com/my-double-dye-stabilizing-process/
I got this batch of Buckeye Burl from Cook Woods, there's also North West Figured Woods, eBay, Facebook turning supplies groups, and local hardwood dealers too. Usually you'll get the best prices buying it from individuals on eBay/Facebook or locally
Cool tips. and cool blanks ..
Thanks Robert!! I'm excited to cast some of those chunks, haven't really made any double dye hybrid blanks yet
Hi Zac. How much pigment do you use to paint over 1 kg of juice?
Interesting Zac. Nice looking blanks.
When you do the first stage and soak the blank, how far up the blank beyond the level of the dye in the container does the dye go? I'm guessng it depends on the wood species. JimE
Yeah it depends, some pieces of wood will suck it up pretty high into the piece. I had to swish the dye around a bit to get more area covered on the pieces I was using in the video
So did I get this correct? Dry..... Soak, bake.... vacuum, bake? Also what is full vacuum? Do you recommend as much vacuum as pump will pull or should you always be bleeding off some air? (DONT WANT TO RUIN MY PUMP!!) Thanks! Great product, and great video!!!!
Ely Knives and Silver
Yep, you got the steps down. You want to have the pump fully closed down whenever you're running it. I shouldn't have said "full vacuum", just meant you want to skip vacuum on that first round, then do vacuum after you've baked in the first soaking
@@ZacHiggins Thanks so much!
My heart dreams of a countertop made in this style
where is a good source to buy dry wood from?
Good coverage. Maybe not the right forum to ask this, but does stabilizing do anything to change the nature of end grain for turning? Looking at small boxes, not big pieces.
That's a good question. What were you trying to change about it? Stabilizing will stiffen the fibers up and fill tight grain a bit. I turn mostly resin though, so I might be missing some other benefits that it might offer
Seems like if the resin is being pulled into the fibers, it would essentially make turning into end grain more like turning cast resin ... but maybe the fibers don't get as saturated as I'm picturing. Overthinking - it's what I do.
great tutorial, I will use for my next project
I'm glad it was helpful, can't wait to see what you make!!
I am wanting to start dying blanks with different colors. You said you just soak and bake the first color. Right? How long do you bake?
Right, I just dip them for a while like I did in the video, bake, then do the second color with the full vac treatment. It depends on how big they are kind of, all the resin has to cure inside. I usually leave it in for the afternoon just to make sure it's all cured
Wonder if you can get away with only one bake at the end of the full vacuum?
You have to bake it after the first to lock in the first color if you're doing multiple colors like that. If you didn't bake those colors in first, it would all bleed together when you submerge and do the full vacuum stage. Might turn out interesting, but probably not going to get the desired results
what kind of wood do you upright when stabilizing them so you
what make and model oven are you using?
I have a maple log with lots of holes from ants. Should I: cut into pieces suitable for pen blanks; oven bake to remove all moisture; follow process in this video? Initially, Some of your pieces weren't whole blanks. Catus Juice will make them complete turning blanks?
Yep that's the steps I'd take. Cactus juice won't fill large gaps, that's better suited for casting resins. Small pinholes should get filled with Cactus juice though.
Hey Zac nice video, wish I would have watched it sooner though. So here is my question, can you dye wood that has already been stabilized? I have some that I am sure are not dyed all the way through but have gone through the full stabilizing process. Some of them have been through it multiple times (combination of trying to do too much with one blank and/or rushing the process).
Also, I have some that have turned into dull blend of all the colors used, is there any saving them? Basically like my question above but for the dyed areas.
That's a bummer!! Well, at least you've seen it now =D It's possible to get more color in after they've been stabilized, but you never know how much of the dye you'll get in there, and you have to leave it under vacuum for days, then soak for a week or more. I'm not sure how you'd get the color out once it's in there though, definitely not once it's baked in though
hi, does aniline powder dye work with stabilized resin?
Ever try to stabilize maple dowel?
I need to stop watching these, I have a "I want to try this" syndrome
LOL I hear ya! This is fun stuff though, and pretty simple to do since you already have the equipment. Give it a whirl man!! =D
I ordered a vacuum chamber and cactus juice just yesterday, because I have an itch to make some 1911 pistol grips out of some oak logs that have been sitting and rotting/spalting in my back yard for about 3 years... then I told my uncle who makes knives about my new endeavor, and he wants to buy blanks from me, too... yay for COVID lockdown projects that turn into actual money makers!
thanks @Zac Higgins for these videos!
Hey there :) I am looking to do this to my wooden front door, I was wondering if you had any tips on how to do this on a larger scale? Thank you!
Hmm, I'm not sure Gabriella. You could apply dyed Cactus Juice similar to the way I did it on the first stage in this vide, then maybe set it outside on a hot day or use a heat gun to cure the CJ and bake the color in. Probably easier to just use regular wood dyes though
can you re use the cactus juice after its been dyed?
Would it hurt to dye the first stage then stabilize in clear for the full vaccum
do u need to run your pump if u are holding a vacuum
Thanks for the intel
Dove compri i tuoi stampi a nido d'ape? puoi mettere il link? grazie
Hey Zac. Where did you get that cool oven to cook your blanks?
I'm not sure, my Dad picked it up used. It's called a gravity oven, and they're usually pretty expensive. Another decent option is a smoker. They're only a couple hundred bucks and give you lots of capacity. If you can find one used, even better!
Great video, lots of info,thanks
Thanks Mike!
Can anyone tell me if the HF vac pump is sufficient and or good for 10 quart pot for stabilizing, I under stand it has a vacuum pull of 22 microns ????
just watched your video, very good information. Can i ask - Inside of liquid dyes can i use the pigment powders with he cactus juice?
thanks
Hey Daryl, no the powders are too large to penetrate the interior of the wood. Plus, they require light transmission to produce the coloration so it wouldn't really help much. TurnTex just came out with some new dyes though that you might be interested in, totally vibrant colors and some new colors that you couldn't create in stabilized wood with the Alumilite dyes. I'm anxious to try them out myself, been impressed with the ones I've seen others do so far. www.turntex.com/product/cactus-juice-resin-and-dyes/2-oz-dye-detail
Great advice, i just tried my first dying job, and i think i might have overcooked, is that possible?
If you mean after the cactus juice/vacuum step, you don't want to go over 200 degrees or the cactus juice can seep out of the inside of the blank more. Leaving them in the oven won't harm them in any way though, same goes for drying it. Often times they don't turn out as good if the wood isn't fully dry though
Hej Zac Watched many of you video's , good stuff. learnt a lot. My question is
Can wood be bleached deeply the same process as stabilizing or dyeing
Thanks from
Sydney Australia
Hey Mervyn, I'm sure it can be done but I'm not sure what the best and safest method would be. Some chemicals can be dangerous when you put them under vacuum, so it would just be a matter of finding the right bleaching agent I think.
Thanks Zac i' ll Investigate a bit more before trials
what kind a of oven is do you have?
Muito obrigado pelas dica! Quais madeiras são boas para estabilização de madeira?
Ive seen lots of fluro died blanks they're my favorite, maybe a different type of die?
Possibly, I'm not sure
Hey Zac, do you think it would be possible to stabilize pine?
Definitely! You can stabilize just about any material you like. I've even stabilized dog food, mushrooms, acorn caps, and lots more. Pine would definitely benefit from stabilizing since it's so thin, it would stiffen it up a good amount and make it a little easier to turn overall I would think
@Zac Higgins - Can you help with some advice? I dried my blanks for 24 hours, then did the 1st color soak in cactus juice with the alumilite dyes, cured these at 210-215 or so for 3 hours. When I unwrapped them from the foil the dyed juice was hardened around the blocks and I thought it had worked well. I did a quick light sanding to clean the up the outsides like you recommended... only to find after light removal all the wood underneath looks like it did originally, I guess all the dyed juice did not absorb and impregnate into the wood... Where did I go wrong here? Any tips on what my issue was? I did not pull vacuum on this first round just soaked for hours, wrapped up and went to oven to cure. Any helpful advice is much appreciated.... Also one last question, how much Alumilite dye do you use on these? I had 4 oz of cactus juice in each cup and did 4 drops of dye for each one... is this not enough? Is this my problem or an unrelated issue?
Wondering if I cured at too much heat. Cactus juice directions said 200 and realize I did go a bit higher on accident, wondering if that is why it all bled out
I'm guessing that the temperature was too high and too little dye. When the temp gets above 200, more of the CJ seeps out. If possible, it's best to set the temp between 190 and 200. For dye, a good starting point is 1 oz of dye per gallon of CJ. Could be a little more, could be a little less depending on the wood species and characteristics of the specific pieces you are stabilizing
First off, thank you for taking the time to answer me, that is awesome of you to do so and I know you could just as easily have ignored me. Obviously # of drops can range, but google had 591 drops in an ounce. After doing some math, that means if I have 4 ounces of CJ then about 18-19 drops are needed, does that sounds about right to you? And I'll be a lot mindful on the temp range next time
I'm not sure how many drops it would be, but the way dye stabilizing works you basically just have to keep testing things out until you find the right amount. Keep notes of how much CJ and dye you use on each batch, and you'll find the combination that works
Thanks Zac
Nice vids! Will a dyed and stabilised and heated wood kill a routerbit?
Thanks! Stabilized wood is usually a bit harder on bits, but it shouldn't kill it. I cut blanks on the table saw, and it definitely will dull the blade faster than wood or even solid resin, but I think you should be able to rout it ok. I've never tried it myself, but in theory it should be no problem
Thank you. I am looking into this for guitar tops and a certain company charges $600 to $800 for a resin infused multi color dyed 5mm thin guitar top. I need the recipe because I can`t afford the puddin!
I hear that!
I wish I could figure out why, I can’t get the dropper on my Allumilite dyes to work. Have you ever had any issues with the dyes?
If you mean the tips of the 1 oz. bottles, I know exactly what you're talking about! Did a video about it even: ruclips.net/video/gAqlqDAS3EM/видео.html You have to cut or gouge them out with an ice pick
Zac Higgins yes exactly lol. Thanks for the link, truly appreciate it. Wishing the best to you and yours. Happy New Year!
PS - I finally have everything to cast and stabilize, thanks to your awesome tutorials and inspiration to get started.
-Steven
I've tried this process step by step multiple times even over soaking the wood just to make sure it was penetrating. But after baking at exactly 200 degrees my wood is still not getting penetrated more than 2 cm. I'm using chitlin Burrell and I can't figure out what's going on. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated
Hey Cody, I'm guessing it might be the wood. Some wood species soak up the Cactus Juice and dye more than others. I've never worked with Chitlin, but if it's a super dense wood it won't soak much up. I usually use buckeye or maple burl for mine, and both really soak up the CJ well
very late reply but here goes, Zac what size is the vacuum chamber in this video? 4' or 6" by how tall?
Hey Brad, that one is a 4" by about 14" tall. TurnTex has a 6" and an 8" as well, I have to say the 6" is probably the most versatile size. It provides a good deal of room and isn't as cumbersome to fill and empty as the 8". The 4" works great too, but it definitely has limits depending on what size wood chunks you plan to stabilize
@@ZacHiggins Tks for the response, I was thinking of 4"x16" as it fits my budget & seeing yours in this video now, I'm sure that's what I'm going to get. The 6"x14" would be perfect, but again a bigger jump in cost and I'm not sure I want to spend that much coin.
Do you release the vacuum before you soak the pieces?
Yeah, you want to reintroduce atmosphere/release the vacuum when soaking. What happens is the air pressure will force the Cactus Juice into the interior of the wood
Very informative. Thanks for sharing.
Glad you enjoyed it, hope it helps you make some fun colorful burls =D
No one ever talks about air compressors. I am assuming you don't need a very big one, seeing you only have to get 60 psi into you pot. Like a 3 gal. 1/3 HP 100 PSI. Would this work ok?
You would want to use a vacuum pump & chamber for stabilizing wood, not pressure. Check out my stabilizing videos to see the process: ruclips.net/p/PLoeB-EPC_91vC03jk5hS8SH_7Ow4nqyZL
If you're talking about for resin casting, then yeah that would likely work. I'm not entirely sure though, I have only used an 80 gallon 5HP one myself, but I know that people get by with the portable pancake compressors and similar. Not sure what the specs are on those small pancake compressors, but I definitely wouldn't use something less powerful or smaller than that.
No, for a harbor freight prosser pot.
Vacuum pump is for stabilizing wood. It pulls all the air out, allowing the resin to fill all pores. Stabilized wood can then be used with resin in a pressure pot. I bought the harbor freight pressure pot for that reason.
Do you have to vacuum between colors? Can't you soak 1 and, and then flip it and vacuum the other end, and then bake?
You could do that, but it generally won't produce as vibrant colors. When you use vacuum, the blanks get fully saturated with dyed resin at the cellular level rather than just soaking a bit. There is air inside the wood, which blocks areas from soaking up the dyed resin unless under vacuum
Hey Zac, where can I get one of those vacumn chambers like you showed in the video. Thanks
They are made by Curtis Seebeck at TurnTex Woodworks, he also makes and sells Cactus Juice stabilizing resin. Here's a link to the chambers: www.turntex.com/product/cactus-juice-stabilizing-chambers
Anyone ever try vacuuming blanks after dying wood to get the extra resin out to better help the next stage of dying. In my head it should help doing multiple dyes. So in theory I think it should help but I'll try and find out for myself. It was an idea I just thought of
instead of soaking im gunna try a droper and slowly drop where i want it
Say i wanted to do a heavy, single color all the way through, let's say a bright vibrant purple, but I wanted to just dye it cause it doesn't need stabilizing, what would you recommend, I'm thinking about doing this to some wood handles for knives and swords
Also, do you know what the difference is between a vacuum chamber for infusing and one for degassing is? I can't seem to find an answer on google or here on RUclips
You would want to go with vacuum for the best saturation of one color. There's no difference between a degassing or stabilizing chamber, they both are vacuum chambers just called something different for different purposes
Awesome thanks. Are there any dyes that you would recommend since I wouldn't be using a stabilizer?
To be honest, I always use Cactus Juice. I prefer using it even if the wood doesn't need to be stabilized because you can bake in the color. I use Alumilite dyes or Cactus Juice dyes when I stabilize. Not sure what the best thing to use would be if you aren't using Cactus Juice, I don't think you want to use those without baking it in
Ok, thank you, you have been a great source of knowledge for me
Hi there, how high is the pressure and for how long?
You use vacuum for this process, you want to suck all the air out of the wood and replace it with the stabilizing resin. Check out my playlist about wood stabilizing to see how it works: ruclips.net/video/qo89fYKqcjU/видео.html
As I understand:
1. Soak a piece of wood in cactus juice (how much time?)
2. Bake the canteen (for how long?)
3. Sand it
4. Put the bar in the cactus juice with a different color
5. Vacuum it (24 hours?)
6. Bake again at 200 degrees (how long?)
7. To polish
Thanks for the answer!
Time depends on the look you want. The longer you soak in step 1, the deeper the dye will go. You will bake it for your normal amount of time. For small pieces I do about 1-2 hours but what you are trying to achieve is an internal temperature of 200 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes or longer to cure the stabilizer. For step 5, vacuum until ther is no more air bubbles coming out of the wood. Then you can take it out of the vacuum and let it sit for 24 hours. After that is when you will bake it again and like I mentioned before, time differs for each piece but the goal you are trying to reach is an internal temp of 200 for 15+ minutes. Then sand and polish
I tried this on a piece of Spalted Tamarind. I didn't bake it before I stabilized the blank. It looks good on the outside but I haven't turned it yet.
Turn it up, let's see how it worked out :-)
Estimado señor dado lo difícil de conseguir el cactus para la estabilización, que otro producto se puede usar. Gracias.
Amigo voce tem algum video ensinando a trabalhar com alumilite, sou leigo? abraços de um brasileiro fã do seu canal
where do you even get die wood? like wood planks without the color?
Lots of lumber yards carry some burls and figured woods, there are also Facebook groups where people sell good wood for dying, and also on eBay. I've gotten some great pieces from Cook Woods and Northwoods Figured Woods, they are a bit pricey but have some awesome wood for sale. In fact that Buckeye Burl in the video was from Cook Woods I believe.
+Zac Higgins thanks for the info buddy, I will let you know how my first burl goes (:
No problem! Can't wait to hear how it goes :-)
Great tips, thank you 👍
Thanks for checking it out :-)
what a bout plywood how do you dye it
How long do you bake the color in for?
I usually leave them in for a few hours on the first round, overnight on the second step to make sure it's fully cured
It seems like you left out some steps. For example, don't you need to dry the wood before you stick it in the dyed resin? Then wouldn't you need to bake the wood to harden that resin, then dry them again before going to the next step?
You're correct, you do want to do those steps. I cover the general stabilizing process in another video, this one was primarily intended to show how I create the multi color dye stabilized look
bake between stages??? Thanks
Dove compri i tuoi stampi a nido d'ape?
Thanks for the wealth of information on coloring.
My pleasure!! Thanks for checking it out :-)
Will Transluscent Dyes Work?
I've never tried them, but from what I hear they don't work as well as Alumilite dyes. I think they are more concentrated
Great tips! If u are making a new batch a step for step video would be nice ;)
Thanks! I might do that on my live stream sometime down the road. I try to keep my RUclips videos pretty short though. Step by step videos tend to end up really long, but it works great doing it live
+Zac Higgins i dont mind a longer video if that means i make no mistakes with it ;) this because importing cactus juice to Europe is a bit expensive ;)
That's why I prefer to do in-depth stuff on my live stream. Even if you do a step by step video on RUclips, you can't include every minor detail in it. Live streams are much better because you see the entire process and can ask questions real time
how long do u cook after first soak
It usually only takes a short while to bake it, maybe an hour or so. As long as the cactus juice has cured full (not liquid anymore) it's done.
Thank you
Think I see a pressure pot in your workshop so why not use it to force cactus juice in your wood after vacuum to cut down on the soak times you were talking about. Nice video though man. Thanks.
I've never tried pressure during soaking. I'm not sure if it's high enough pressure to make that go quicker or not. I'll have to look into that, thanks for the idea =D