1st tiki

Well after waiting for the palm trunks too dry, here it is my first ever tiki. Hope ya'll like it. The tourching was by far the most fun. No one in my apartment complex called the fire department. I don't know weather that is a good thing or not. Let me know what you think.

Mahalo

[ Edited by: schase1399 on 2004-03-12 17:54 ]

[ Edited by: schase1399 on 2004-03-12 17:57 ]

Looks great! Keep it up. I too like playing with the torch

Nothing like starting small. Nice job.

Very well done for the first try.

yeah small just wouldn't do it for me. This one measures around 6'8". I was wondering is there anyway to effectivly seal palm wood. I'd like to put this inside I'm decorating a spare bedroom in my new house with a tiki theme. Any suggestions? I was also thinking of just bringing in a 12x12 cements stepping stone and a large bowl and sitting it in that, what do you think???

Oh yeah that's my dog Kona, named after the city on the big island of hawaii. I am going to try to make a small dog tiki next.

You can sand, seal and varnish Palm wood just as any other. The piece will drain a lot of water so the Bowl or Stone are a good idea. Don't just stand it on the carpet or wood floor.

Great job. That's some big tiki.

Nice job!
why mess around with the small stuff when you can go BIG!
I dig the stylized hands and legs - that looks really cool.

I appreciate the love, and I'm always looking for encouragement. Thanks alot. I'll try the stain and see what happens but I've been told that it will just soak it up like a sponge.

On 2004-03-14 15:30, Benzart wrote:
You can sand, seal and varnish Palm wood just as any other. The piece will drain a lot of water so the Bowl or Stone are a good idea. Don't just stand it on the carpet or wood floor.

Ben

I've seen a lot of carving tips here (I read the monster thread all the way through) but not a great deal about finishing (except for torching the wood). Maybe because you guys take basic wood working skills for granted. I've been playing with carving but have been frustrated with the finishing. Hell, I don't know the difference between stain and varnish or lacquer and shellac. My results with stain have been disappointing, got kind of splotchy results. Do you ever use buffing compound to get a smooth finish? Any basic tips for woodworking know-nothings?

Kono,
My Kahuna of stain says to use a sanding sealer on your wood before you stain. The sealer consists of 9 parts alcohol and 1 part clear shellac. Apply with a brush or rag and let dry. When you apply either water-based or oil-based stain the finish should come out even over the surface of the wood. On Tikis, any areas with exposed end grain surfaces will stain darker. Adding a second application of sealer to these areas might help prevent this effect.
P.S. Don't drink the sanding sealer!
Tikiboy

Tikiboy was Right on, on All accounts Except DO Drink the sealer,,or is it Seal the drinker,,or the drinker is sealed .....I guess I drank the sealer (well it Said mostly alcohol!)
Truly the sealer stops the stain from soaking down into the wood and since you are staining Sealer instead of wood, it comes out nice and eved.(in a perfect world.)For the final finish, if you are going to apply one, use marine varnish for outdoors and Straight Shellack, varnish, Lacquer, or any other clear finish. There are several and Deft makes a good one.. Don't forget to sand with min 220 grit between coats letting it dry according to Instructions. (Instructions you ask?? That fine print that is Unreadable on the back of the can, you know the place)
No teacher like experience but I Hope this helps.

Don't forget the oils for finishing like Danish oil or Tongue oil(spelling?)I always enjoy rubbing my projects with that even though it dries more like a lacquer. Wax is another natural finish. Wax your board and pray for waves.
Tikiboy

Thanks for all the info. Sorry to be a dumb ass but what's the difference between shellac, varnish and lacquer as it relates to tiki carvings? Would it be the "glossiness" of the finish? With shellac being the thickest and glossiest and varnish the least? Do any TC carvers use shellac? What if I want a very old looking carving and don't want to torch it? Just stain?

Anyone ever use a buffing compound on wood carvings? Or does lacquer or varnish give that nice smooth finish?

Sorry for all the questions but I'm just a woodcarving ignorant mofo. I've done some googling but haven't found anything worthwhile. If you've got a good link on these basics I'd be gland to check it out.

Thanks

I use Shellack as a sealer on all my work then finish with Lacquer or Polyeurethane . Shellack is a good sealer because most finishes will adhere to it(and it sticks to almost any surface), although it is agood Interior finish, it is not weather proof so no outdoors.
Much old furniture was finished with Shellack which is Alcohol based.
Lacquer is a Fine glossy Hard finish that is easy to apply and gives good results.
Varnish is more durable and best for outdoors items.
Water based versus Oil based is usually just a prefrence type thing. Water based is very easy to work with and can be very durable and Clear, non yellowing, unlike oil based.
Now that I've confused you totally. get a small can of each type and try them on a scrap piece of wood and see which You prefer, because thats what it boils down to.
Hope this helps