Bloodwood Handrails

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  • ladywood
    Handtools only
    • Apr 2022
    • 2
    • NC

    Bloodwood Handrails

    I've got some bloodwood handrails going around a deck that gets a lot of sun. A couple of people have been out here to seal them, but I'm convinced they are using the wrong product because they eventually look like this again. Any ideas on how to refinish and get this handrail looking good again? I have never worked with bloodwood before, and only know that it is an oily wood.
  • leehljp
    Just me
    • Dec 2002
    • 8429
    • Tunica, MS
    • BT3000/3100

    #2
    From personal observation and forum members of another forum (pen turning) I have come to the conclusion that there are two basic varieties of wood called bloodwood. I started pen turning in 2004, and I was living in Japan, and lived near a hobby store chain that had many kinds of hardwoods from around the world (in small pieces used for hobby work). Bloodwood was one. Upon returning to the states for a few months, I found a bloodwood board in the Memphis area that was 6 ft long, 3/4 inch thick and 8 inches wide, and I purchased it.

    That board was / still is - a beautiful almost bright maroon-ish red. I have used about 1/3 of it over the years in pens and the rest is still a beautiful maroon-ish red. It is kept inside a storage area with little light. The pens that I have made with the bloodwood are still bright red. THAT SAID, On the pen forum, in the past 4 to 5 years, different ones have made pens from what they say is "bloodwood", and on half the posts, I would ask if it were bloodwood. The replies were that it was sold to them as bloodwood, but either each one had "not so good" lighting for the photographs or each was a different species of bloodwood from what I purchased 17 years ago. The ones from the past 5 years or so seem to be washed out or slightly orangish bloodwood, unlike what I have and saw in others pens 10 and 15 years ago.

    Our/my bloodwood changes its color very very slowly once finished over a 10 year period, but ours is not outside, nor are they exposed to much light inside. Most offer pens are finished with CA (cyanoacrylate / super glue) because it is so clear and hard. While many use different oils as a finish, Oils tend to make bloodwood have a slight burnt orangish tint, so oil finishes are not used on bloodwood in general.

    I have dabbled in Scrollsaw work a bit, and there is a type of scroll sawing called "intarsia". The intarsia purists will use various wood varieties of different colors to make a "3D" pictures - with the natural color of the different woods. One item that I questioned the experts about on several occasion is "wood color changes" over periods of time, even for "inside" use woods. The answer has alway been that most ALL woods will change color, most of it subtle, but after 5 to 8 years or so, most colored woods will appear washed out. Only sanding off the surface and refinishing will bring back the original color. And, Wood used outside will keep its color for 2 to 3 years at the most.

    An extremely high UV paint finishes and sealers will provide the longest protection, but I doubt most people will use the very best brand. The brands that they use - are used on fences and exterior woods - meaning I doubt that they would go and research the best sealer and finish, which will be very expensive, when you can find it. The next time you have someone come and finish it, do some research before hand and purchase the finest UV clear finish and sealer yourself. This will probably not be sold in Home Depot or Lowes, and It will be expensive.

    Another help would be some kind of canopy that provided lots of shade for the bloodwood.

    Here are some links:
    https://www.google.com/search?q=High...client=gws-wiz

    https://www.finewoodworking.com/foru...-uv-protection

    GreenLight Coatings deals with high-performance UV curable fillers, primers, stains, sealers, paints, topcoats, and waterborne-UV tiecoat, sealers & topcoats.


    Full line of eco-friendly wood sealers and stains, perfect for wood decks, siding, and other surfaces as they prevent mold, rot & decay.


    Another problem with most painters/finishers is that they may not be willing to do what it takes to get it right for the best finish that you want. Under the Finewoodworking link, they are dealing with colored paint, but the suggestion for a front door exposed to the sun is to paint, wait 24 hours paint again, and do this 7 times. How many will come out once a day for a week - if that were the recommendation? Long term protection comes with a cost and dedication that are not available through HD or Lowes type of stores.

    Your best help will be google searches for UV/sunlight protection for outside woods. There will be a long list and sometimes the answer is not on the first page. Beware of the top 3 - 5 that have "Ad" in front.

    Hope this helps.
    Last edited by leehljp; 04-24-2022, 08:49 PM.
    Hank Lee

    Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

    Comment

    • Jim Frye
      Veteran Member
      • Dec 2002
      • 1051
      • Maumee, OH, USA.
      • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

      #3
      This is the first I've heard of using bloodwood for exterior use. Always seen it used for interior trim, intarsia, and the like. I understand it's a very oily wood and very difficult to finish with coatings that form a relatively thick film. Your picture makes me think of a failed spar varnish finish. I probably wouldn't have chosen bloodwood for this application and instead used a wood that could be dyed the same color and then coated with a traditional exterior finish. I think this application will continue to give you issues and require repeated maintenance. There is an old product that used to be recommended for exterior wood finishing that provided long lasting protection, but it was a multistep process. Sikkens Cetol Marine Finish. Other than that, I am out of suggestions.
      Jim Frye
      The Nut in the Cellar.
      ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”

      Comment

      • LCHIEN
        Internet Fact Checker
        • Dec 2002
        • 20920
        • Katy, TX, USA.
        • BT3000 vintage 1999

        #4
        You don't say how long it lasts. One year is not unusual for woods in outdoor exposure to UV and moisture.
        Something like a premium marine spar varnish may hold up a little longer with exposure to the Sun's UV rays.
        Last edited by LCHIEN; 04-24-2022, 11:35 PM.
        Loring in Katy, TX USA
        If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
        BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

        Comment

        • capncarl
          Veteran Member
          • Jan 2007
          • 3564
          • Leesburg Georgia USA
          • SawStop CTS

          #5
          Some woods do not take to coatings well. There is a difference between a coating and a finish. A coating is something that you smear on and hope it stays. On some woods it stays longer, but an oily wood might not last 6 months. As Jim stated, a marine coating would have a better chance than something from the home building supply store. Check West Marine. You may have to have a penetrating primer to defeat the oil in the wood.

          Comment

          • d_meister
            Established Member
            • Feb 2009
            • 184
            • La Conner, WA.
            • BT3000

            #6
            On yachts, the practice is to build up 10 or more coats of varnish with UV resistant product. Various top coats like linear polyurethane can make the finish last longer. The best method of making the brightwork last is to lightly sand it and top-coat it every 6 months. It should not look like it needs it at that time, but if it does, it needs to be sanded down to good material and built up again with several coats. Teak is the common wood on yachts, and it also has high oil content. No body knows where it keeps coming from within the wood after 20 years
            There is no one-and-done product for creating beautiful high gloss exterior coatings. A year from the most exotic chemicals like epoxy or linear polyurethane is about the best around.
            The key is to maintain the finish before it looks like it needs it.

            Comment

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