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Burning wood
- Thread starter squirrel
- Start date
I haven’t seen any extensive writing on the topic but I have done some myself. It isn’t had to figure out. Grab whatever heating or burnig devices you have around the shop or house and have at a spare piece of wood. What you’ll quickly discover is that different woods burn differently. Different devices or torches burn at different temperatures and create quite varied results.
I like burning good hard open porous wood. Oak, ash, hickory all work well. Sycamore burns well too. You can apply more heat to these harder woods and get a blacker surface. The softer woods seem to be a little touchier. Wire brushing, sanding, scraping and other surface treatments after burning can result in very interesting textures. Applying shellac or lacquer over these burned surfaces can produce a deeper and richer black than any dye or paint can.
Propane torch works; MAP gas is hotter as is butane. Little butane pencil torches are fun for small items or painting patterns on larger surfaces. Heated items can be pressed against the surface of wood or just dropped into open forms and tumbled around. Mud and paint can be used a resists to the flame and sanded or scraped away after. There are tons of things to play with. Just get some wood and some flames and play. Within a half hour you’ll know more than any book can offer and have a direction to go in
- Scott
I like burning good hard open porous wood. Oak, ash, hickory all work well. Sycamore burns well too. You can apply more heat to these harder woods and get a blacker surface. The softer woods seem to be a little touchier. Wire brushing, sanding, scraping and other surface treatments after burning can result in very interesting textures. Applying shellac or lacquer over these burned surfaces can produce a deeper and richer black than any dye or paint can.
Propane torch works; MAP gas is hotter as is butane. Little butane pencil torches are fun for small items or painting patterns on larger surfaces. Heated items can be pressed against the surface of wood or just dropped into open forms and tumbled around. Mud and paint can be used a resists to the flame and sanded or scraped away after. There are tons of things to play with. Just get some wood and some flames and play. Within a half hour you’ll know more than any book can offer and have a direction to go in
- Scott
Just to be sure, best to do this outdoors. I put my pieces on top of the BBQ and burn away.
Burt
Burt