Purple Heart

[mickey cassiba]

Not really sure where to ask, but here goes.
I have some small pieces of purple heart, that I intend to cut down to either 1/8" or 1/16" and use for inlay material.
I've read up on the wood and understand it's pretty tough, just wondering how "bendy"(is that a word?)it is, and whether soaking , steaming or dry heat should be used. I'm leaning away from wetting it, don't want it to shrink as it dries and become loose or gappy in the base material(mesquite). Not planning any sharp turns, more like loose re-curving arcs.
Any of you folks have some spare wisdom to impart?
Mickey

[Brian Brown]

just wondering how "bendy"(is that a word?)Mickey

Using the words "Purpleheart and "bendy" in the same sentence is a misdemeanor in 43 states. :D Actually PH isn't especially bendy. It is really brittle. I have goten it to curve a small amount before I start hearing the crackling sound that indicates it's imminent demise. You may get by with bending 1/16" strips, but do a few tests first, and let it sit for a couple of days to be certain it survives. PH is quite water resistent, so I don't know how well it will soak or steam. Sorry I am not especially helpful. Good luck, and let us know how it turns out. We want to see the results.

[David DeCristoforo]

What Brian said + 10. I recently made some inlays for a 55 Chevy dashboard and I had to laminate them using stacked veneers. 9 "leaves" of veneer at 1/42" (+/=) gave me just under a quarter of an inch in thickness.

[mickey cassiba]

Well alrighty then...purple heart goes to the stash for another day. Any suggestions for an inlay wood that would contrast the mesquite, but not steal the show. I'm building display cases for my wife's jewelry, and I want folks to buy the jewelry, not bid on the cases!
Mick

[Kyle Iwamoto]

I made an ukulele. It bent fine. It's hard to sand though. I think it's easier to bend than koa. Actually, the pucker factor is less. Every time I bend koa, I think, if it cracks, I have to eat this cost.

[Rick Fisher]

Is bloodwood bendy?

[Dan Mitchell]

Mickey - Not sure if this helps with what you have in mind, but I made a base for a lamp out of a ~9" disk of MDF & was able to wrap its circumference with a strip of Padauk veneer I had cut about 1" wide and around 1/16" thick. I used an iron to heat the strip as I curved it around the base, then once it was curved, I glued it down, about 1/4 of the disk's circumference at a time. After the previous section was set, I proceeded to iron/glue the next section. Based on this experience, I'd say it would be possible to bend the Padauk to a somewhat tighter radius using this method, but exactly how much, I'm not sure.

Dan

[Steve Rozmiarek]

Any suggestions for an inlay wood that would contrast the mesquite, but not steal the show. Mick

Ebony goes well with pratically anything, in my opinion, and I'd think it would look good with the mesquite too.

[mickey cassiba]

Mickey - Not sure if this helps with what you have in mind, but I made a base for a lamp out of a ~9" disk of MDF & was able to wrap its circumference with a strip of Padauk veneer I had cut about 1" wide and around 1/16" thick. I used an iron to heat the strip as I curved it around the base, then once it was curved, I glued it down, about 1/4 of the disk's circumference at a time. After the previous section was set, I proceeded to iron/glue the next section. Based on this experience, I'd say it would be possible to bend the Padauk to a somewhat tighter radius using this method, but exactly how much, I'm not sure.

Dan
That's why I was considering dry heat...I helped set up some machinery in a high end furniture factory, and they had a bending section, where pieces were heated in a dry kiln before clamping into forms and bending.
As to the cost of the wood, none...We cut some for a customer, and I got the scrap, 20 pieces of 1/4x 1/2x 24.
My radii will probably be 12-16" re-curved, sort of like a loose bell curve. The bending would be done as the inlay was installed into the base wood, so the laminating process is not practical for this project.
Still I would not want to waste it. it is pretty. I think I read in another post, that the PH would not hold it's color as it aged. Any way to preserve the color? Purple is Charlotte's favorite color.
Mick

[Dan Mitchell]

Any way to preserve the color? Purple is Charlotte's favorite color.
Mick

I had the same concerns with the Padauk, which also tends to darken with age. I finished the lamp base with spar varnish, which has UV blocking properties, and is is said help prevent this color change. Time will tell, it looks the same after about a year. In the case of the Padauk, the wood has antioxidant oils which made the spar varnish take DAYS to cure. Not sure if any of this would be case with Purple Heart.

You might also look into another wood which might be easier to work with, and apply a purple dye to it. Maybe something like Transtint's "Bordeaux": http://www.targetcoatings.com/shop/catalog/Trans_Tint_Dyes-17-1.html