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repair a crack in a dark bowl

Joined
Feb 3, 2009
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I'm halfway through a 5" bowl using some commercially dried lumber that a friend gave me and found a 1/2" long hairline crack in the piece right on the outer surface of the bowl. Don't know how deep it is, and I have a nicely formed curve to the bowl, so I don't want to keep cutting any further on the outside before I hollow out the core. Is there a technique that I can use to fill or repair this hairline crack?
 
Joined
May 26, 2004
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Location
Fleetwood ,PA
fill a crack

Rick,
You are limited only by your imagination
I've filled with , coffee grounds, sanding dust , epoxy, ca , white glue, inlay, stone, brass ect... Just a reminder if you put a glue on / in crack put your finish around the crack frist unless your going to cut again. this way the finish will go into the wood
 
Joined
Mar 4, 2007
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Location
Lakewood, Colorado
crack

Hi,

This has been a much discussed issue. Paul's response is right on. The other thing is this - sometimes a cracked bowl that gets repaired looks like
"Hey there is a bowl with a crack that got patched."

herb
 
Joined
Dec 15, 2006
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Sierra Foothills
I often use coffee grounds to fill cracks in dark wood but I first run the coffee grounds through my spice grinder until it's a very fine dust. The finer I can grind it the better it works in conjunction with CA or (if you prefer) epoxy.
 
Joined
Mar 7, 2007
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Another food powder that can be used without having to grind further is cocoa. First, put finish on the wood surrounding the crack to prevent glue or epoxy from preventing finishing. Follow up by filling the crack with cocoa as deep as you possibly can and over the top of the crack. Use thin ca glue to penetrate the cocoa. It doe's a fairly nice job of disguising the crack and fairly easy to do. Just another option. Good luck.;)
 
Joined
Oct 2, 2006
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Tallahassee FL
Disguising a crack, to let it try to hide, is all but hopeless, IMO. Better to make it a design feature, even if it yells, "HEY! LOOK AT ME, I'M A PATCH." In lighter woods, I like raw coffee grounds and epoxy, filled proud of the final surface. When cut and sanded, the different colors in the grounds produce a terrazzo appearance, very handsome in itself. For dark woods, key cuttings, or copper powder, or even powdered turquoise, would be my favorite "aggregates." Ground Corian offers a multitude of colors, too.
 
Joined
Aug 21, 2007
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Filling Cracks

I take a somewhat different tack and try to emphasize the crack that's been filled. I use all of the previously mentioned fillers but also use lapis, malachite, coral, onyx and marble. All of these are readily available at bead shows or on eBay and a little goes a long way. It's best to get all of your cutting finished before you fill the crack. The stone will dull your tools very quickly. If the crack goes all the way through the wall, use a piece of tape on one side, fill the crack with stone and glue it in place. When the CA dries, take the tape off of the other side and fill that side as needed and glue it. Using a respirator or good mask when you're sanding the stone is a must.
Tim Carter
 
Joined
Sep 8, 2006
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SoCal
I've had good success with ground-up charcoal and either CA or epoxy. Good if you want black, anyway. It can be ground into a very fine powder and worked into the thinner cracks easily, then followed with a shot or two of CA.

Similar to what others have mentioned, I don't bother trying to hide cracks. I turn them into features when I can.
 
Joined
Feb 3, 2009
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A final report

Thanks to all for the advice, the crack was so fine that a small bit of warm/wet coffee grounds seemed to darken the wood just enough that after I finish sanded it with 600 paper, put some mineral oil on it, added some parafin wax, and buffed it up, it's hardly noticeable. It's the first piece that I completed that I'm happy with. Nothing beats creating something that you're proud of.
 
Joined
Jan 31, 2009
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I bought a foredom wood carving type tool at a garage sale and i use it when i have something nice that develops a crack.....creating lines, patterns and so forth so it will not look like just a bowl with a crack filled.
Like the others have said learn to enhance the crack then you can fill it with alot of different materials - sawdust - coffee grounds - Coca - powder stone - powder metals - colored epoxy ...the list goes on....find what works for you but enhancing it helps especially when i sell them.
I use thin Ca glue.....put some in the enhanced crack...then fill it with whatever you want or a combination of materials....drip some more Ca to make it harden up and Sand it down.....you will be suprised on how much it can add to your work.........Note: seal the surrounding area if you can so any CA that runs off won't stain into your work....if not you may do quiet a bit of additional sanding........
 
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