# My Purple Heart!



## Ghidrah (Oct 21, 2008)

I know the pics are big, but I wanted improved the resolution.

It finally showed up this morning and man is it ever purple!
It's a 2"X10"X10" blank, too bad it cost almost as much to mail as it did to buy.

Wifey is going to like its purple ... ly purpleness. Looks more like Garnet, was hoping more like Amethyst but what are you going to do? They should look like nice little gems on the box ... I hope. 

I'll be making a few cuts on it today, start figuring out how to make gems and to see what the oils and poly will do to it.


----------



## dutchman 46 (May 23, 2007)

Stands out on the table cloth pretty well, It will look a lot different when you get to working on it. Have fun, and show us the finished product.


----------



## Bob N (Oct 12, 2004)

Ron,

That is one beautiful chunk of wood you got there!

Please do not be disappointed and be aware that it will lose most of the purple and take on a more brownish hue over time. 

Can't wait to see your project.... please keep us posted.


----------



## kp91 (Sep 10, 2004)

Watch the dust, some people can be very sensitive to it.


----------



## Trimax (Apr 9, 2009)

very nice how did you get it?
and what are you going to make with it


----------



## drasbell (Feb 6, 2009)

It looks great is their a way to preserve the color? I have never worked with it..


----------



## Ghidrah (Oct 21, 2008)

Dutchman,
As I began working the material I began to think it had been dyed or hit with milk paint. It looks like a dye stain. 

Bob N,
Thanks for the comment, I freaked out big time 30 mins ago when I began working the stock. It pretty much lost all color when I sanded the mill marks off with some 60 grit, so I ripped a 1/4" section with the grain, same thing. I applied some tung oil, mineral spirits, poly and water on different spots looks too much like Mahogany.

I went back to the site and read up on it, not much info but it says fresh cut go brown and then the color comes back when expose to sunlight.

KP91,
I hear you, I use a mask and vac when mechanical sanding.

Trimax,
I got it at
Craft Supplies
They have lots of nice looking stuff there. I'm in the process of making wifeys upper jewelry box. The lower section was an Xmas present.

Drasbell,
I don't know, considering my surprise earlier this aft. I've got a section sitting in the pic wind to see if the color comes back, (how long and to what degree) and another piece with only electric light. 

If the color bleeds back, (for lack of a better term) I'll see what happens with the different covers and go from there. I'll post the result regardless unless someone else here with info or the answer offers it 1st.


----------



## Bob N (Oct 12, 2004)

Hi Ron,

here is a little additional info that may give you some extra insight. It really is a nice wood, you just need to be aware of it's unusual character 

Exotic Wood Online - Purpleheart Lumber


----------



## okanagan (Dec 18, 2009)

*Roy Banner, a wood turner from Torrance, California who almost lost his life in 1989*



kp91 said:


> Watch the dust, some people can be very sensitive to it.


purple heart wood toxicity - Google Search


----------



## Duane867 (Oct 25, 2008)

If, when, it browns out on you just stick in in direct sunlight for a couple hours and the color will come right back. I like using shellac on it my self. It really puts a shine on it and turns the purple a deeper purple.


----------



## Ghidrah (Oct 21, 2008)

Duane867,

Thanks for that bit, I haven't used shellac for many years, I remember the cabinets my father made for their kitchen a million yrs ago, he used shellac on the Pine which has given them an orangy tint over the yrs. Which is why I tried the Tung oil, it has the ability to give off that sort of tint in oak.

The strip in the pic wind does seem to be purpling up. 
So the rule is to work it 1st 
Then let it sit in the window for a couple 3 days to a week then finish coat it with shellac?
Or work it, finish it and then let it sit in the window?

Do you buy the shellac in flakes and mix it yourself or can you get premixed colors from the store?


----------



## jmg1017 (Apr 9, 2009)

Ronald,

Shellac comes in a number of different shades from a darker Garnet to much lighter Blond, which is what I use. I highly recommend you buy the flakes and mix your own. I use a proprietary solvent call Behhol. You can get the flakes and solvent at a number of places like Woodcraft. Once mixed shellac has a limited shelf life. Mix it yourself and it's always fresh. The flakes come with instructions for mixing and is mixed in proportions called "cuts", 1lb cut, 1 1/2lb cut etc.(refers to the amount of flakes per gallon of ethanol).

Jeff Jewett is an expert at finishing. Here's a link to his article on Shellac

SHELLAC


----------



## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

I don't get it,,,why would any one want to use it,it's like playing with a loaded gun 
After all it's just nasty wood..

=======


----------



## jmg1017 (Apr 9, 2009)

What don't you get?


----------



## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Why anyone would want to play Russian Roulette with Toxic Woods 

=======


----------



## Ghidrah (Oct 21, 2008)

OK I'll bite, russian roulette?


----------



## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Ron

a potentially lethal game of chance ..

Russian roulette - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

========


----------



## Ghidrah (Oct 21, 2008)

Well now Bobj3 that doesn't answer the question put to you does it. 

If you're done with the cheeky maybe you'll explain your previous statement regarding Russian roulette and wood you considered toxic. 

As far as toxic woods are concerned, you never work with Oak, Fir, Cedar, Cocobolo, locust, Mahogany, Maple, Teak? Some people react poorly to these, most don't, I don't do well with Fir Cedar and Yellow Pine splinters, an immediate swelling reaction.

I'd imagine everyone does poorly to fine dust in their lungs, I know I do, hence the mask and dust collection


----------



## jmg1017 (Apr 9, 2009)

bobj3 said:


> Why anyone would want to play Russian Roulette with Toxic Woods


This is a ridiculous statement. Many woods produce alergic reactions or irritate eyes, skin etc. No one ever dropped dead from cutting a piece of Purpleheart or Cocobolo. Just use common sense and dust collection/filtration like you should be doing anyway and you'll be fine.


----------



## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Maybe but why take the chance. it's just wood 

ORGANIC: Natural Body Jewelry : Wood Hazards : A Guide to Potentially Dangerous Hardwoods for the Piercing Community

======


jmg1017 said:


> This is a ridiculous statement. Many woods produce alergic reactions or irritate eyes, skin etc. No one ever dropped dead from cutting a piece of Purpleheart or Cocobolo. Just use common sense and dust collection/filtration like you should be doing anyway and you'll be fine.


----------

