Furry Issues

I've been making a few camphor laurel cutting boards for a few friends. No issues with the first batch, but the second batch, made from different slab, look great.... until they get wet!

Within seconds of getting wet, they get all furry on the surface They go from smooth as silk to rough as guts in no time flat!

I'm not doing anything different from the first batch. I run the timber through a planer to the desired thickness, cut out a shape on the band saw, then sand it with a 60 grit to remove all the machine marks and finish with a 120 grit, then I oil them. I made myself a couple about a year ago, and nothing like that has ever happened to them, they are still quite smooth, save for the knife marks, of course.

I've made about 15 of them so far, 10 from the first batch of wood and 5 from this second batch of wood.

If I sand them again, then they get wet, same thing occurs. The timber is kiln dried. Maybe it's still too wet? I spoke to the fella who dries it. He said he dries the timber to anywhere between 14 and 20 percent moisture content. I assume that's OK.. I don't know anything about drying wood.

Also, a couple of boards I made, cracked for no apparent reason, soon after I finished them... again, from this 2nd batch of timber.

One last thing. I was experimenting with oil and bees wax. I found a recipe on-line: 100mls grapeseed oil to 3 grams wax. I waxed one of the new boards with that solution and when it got wet, the wax came to the surface in tiny globules as well as the surface of the timber going all furry.

Anyone got any ideas why all that is happening?

Cheers.

It's the camphor Laruel itself that is furry not the finish. I'd guess that board or slab came from a young tree, based on the furry camphor I've dealt with my self and based on the fact that two boards cracked, that lot of timber was young when cut and is still too green or wet (we have had a lot of rain recently). Without knowing the tree that board came from, or testing the moisture content, I can't give you a 100% guaranteed answer though.

As for the wax on the chopping board - Don't!!!!!

All you need to finish a chopping board with is mineral oil or parrafin oil. NO WAX! :yuk:would you like to eat wax on food from a chopping board?


here's some links to other threads where this topic about a finish on a chopping board has been discussed. I hope you find them informative as well as interesting :)

https://www.woodworkforums.com/f9/parrafin-oil-89774/
https://www.woodworkforums.com/f9/fin...g-board-71588/
https://www.woodworkforums.com/f9/nut...es-oils-66408/
https://www.woodworkforums.com/f9/woo...sh-food-38228/
https://www.woodworkforums.com/f19/fi...estion-118516/


cheers
Wendy