wood grain

[Dmitriy Kumets]

Hi,
Just rastered some really nice old growth (recycled) redwood and while definition and depth were great, the grain was still standing in the grooves! It was charred but not exactly easy to clear out.

Any suggestions (besides using a softer wood)?

-Dima

[Martin Boekers]

Was this a solid piece, or pieces glued together?

If it was glued the glue doesn't burn at the same rate as the wood an can cause "grooving".

Marty

[Dmitriy Kumets]

This was a solid piece of wood. I'll try to take a picture tonight and post.

[Bruce Volden]

I have engraved lotsa redwood and the grain thing you describe is inherent to this species! Why, I don't know, but I have never been able to "flatten" it out. It is kind of funny though when you think about it, hard old oak engraves fine (except the grain loses the fine details), while soft redwood leaves high points on the grain :confused: beats me when I'm up.

Bruce

[Lee DeRaud]

It is kind of funny though when you think about it, hard old oak engraves fine (except the grain loses the fine details), while soft redwood leaves high points on the grain :confused: beats me when I'm up.It's the difference in density between the winter/summer grain: in oak, it's all hard.

[Dmitriy Kumets]

Ah the seasonal changes actually make a lot of sense - especially as the wood dries over time.

Since posting my camera's charger disappeared on me - will try to use a friend's over the weekend to get a good shot.

But!

I went to lowes and bought their common redwood. While the old growth, beautifully figured, tight grain stuff was a hassle and had the problems, this cheap stuff is AWESOME!

It took me half an hour and some sore arms to rummage through the pile of lumber but I found a nice, clear, relatively knot free piece of 2"x12" (actual 1.5x11.25) kiln dried redwood (their 'top choice' brand). It was a 12 ft board, that I had cut into two 4' and two 2' very clear pieces. $32 later, I have two potential plaques and two potential outdoor bench tops.

Also, they had the absolute black granite tiles on sale for $3.50 each (instead of $5) so picked up a few of those 'just in case'.