What is a stabilized wood blank?

Stabilizing is a process that impregnates the wood pen blank or burl blank with stabilizing resins and renders it into an ideal plastic like turning blank. During this process, a piece of wood that might not have been able to be turned into a pen has been transformed.

What is stabilized wood used for?

Examples of wood items which are commonly stabilized include knife handles, pistol grips, straight razors, game calls and jewelry. One of the most commonly used stabilizing methods utilizes a heat cured polymer known as methyl methacrylate (MMA).

What woods should be stabilized?

Be warned that not all woods stabilize well. Your best bet is to choose low-density, large-pored woods like birch, popular, or beech. Woods like those below are generally unsuitable due to their oily and resinous nature, high density, and smaller pores.

What woods can be stabilized?

Most any wood or other porous material can be stabilized. You will have to decided if really hard or dense woods will give you any benefit by being stabilized. If you are knife maker or call maker, stabilizing dense woods may make sense because the stabilizing will help reduce wood movement due to moisture changes.

Do pen blanks need to be stabilized?

While not all wood needs to be stabilized, certainly some would benefit from it. Normally to stabilize pen blanks wood, one uses a vacuum chamber and specialized resin. The chamber pulls the liquid resin into the air pockets of the wood as it sucks the air out.

Can you stabilize wood without a vacuum?

The way to do this is to cook the wood at 220° F for a minimum of 24 hours. Then take the wood out of the oven and immediately place it in air tight containers or ziplock bag until it is cool enough to stabilize. Second, make sure your oven temperature is 190-200° F when curing your blanks.

What is Cactus Juice wood stabilizer?

Cactus Juice Stabilizing Resin is a premium, professional grade, heat cured resin for impregnating wood and other porous materials to make them harder, more resistant to moisture, and to add integral color with dyes. Cactus Juice is easy to use and does not significantly change the color of most woods.

How stabilized wood is made?

Wood is stabilized when resin or wood hardener is injected into a piece of soft or rotted wood, causing the wood to harden. Other substances can also be used to stabilize the wood such as resin epoxy, thermosetting resin, and a vacuum chamber.

What Woods can be stabilized?

Do you need to stabilize wood?

Wood is the most commonly-used material for knife handles, but it needs to be stabilized first. Being a natural material, it is sensitive to changes in temperature and humidity and can expand or contract, which causes a problem when tight tolerances (like making knife handles) are required.

Why choose stabilized wood blocks?

Our mission is to source the highest-quality wood materials and produce the most stunning stabilized wood blocks for your needs. Stabilized wood will not shrink or crack, yet it can easily be shaped with conventional wood-working tools or CNC machines.

How much does it cost to have a block stabilized?

This block is professionally stabilized by K and G Finishing Supplies, tops in the field. BKS20 $30.00 + $5.00 to ship = $35.00 total. Buckeye burl stabilized knife scales. Measurements in the pics.

What is the difference between single-and Double-Dyed stabilized wood blocks?

We offer single-dyed and double-dyed stabilized wood blocks, depending on the visual effect you are seeking for your finished product. Double-dyed wood blends two different colors in the dying process, yielding striking color transitions and our most “vivid” appearance.

How much do stabilized knife scales cost?

Bigleaf maple burl stabilized knife scales. Measurements in the pics. Misted pic shows one side. These scales are professionally stabilized by K and G Finishing Supplies, tops in the field. MPS11, $25.00 + $5.00 to ship = $30.00 total. Bigleaf maple burl stabilized knife block or gun grips.