Woodworking help needed

[rmncwrtr]

I'm in charge of my oldest's class art project for the school's upcoming auction. I took on something I thought would look cool but is so totally above me it's frightening.

 

Tonight, I made a mistake on one of the letters in a word I was woodburning into a huge poplar frame. I'm going to be painting it rather than staining so I'm wondering if I can use some kind of wood filler to hide the mistake and then paint over it so know one would be able to tell the difference. If so, is there something you'd recommend and please be as specific as possible. Thanks!

[MarkMcJizzy]

Spackle, or better yet Bondo. Skim the area, and then sand to 200 grit

[rmncwrtr]

Thanks Mark :kisss: Not sure what skim the area means (I know nothing about this stuff, just learned to woodburn for the project) but I'll ask at Home Depot.

[sexual_chocolate]

it simply means "to apply thinly in sweeping motions" in one direction.

 

I'd use Synco though, an interior/exterior spackling that's really durable and a lot easier to sand than bondo. I think home depot sells it. regular lightweight spackle would prolly be fine too, since it's such a small non-structural spot. dries in 30 minutes, then sand and reapply if necessary. 3 dollars for a little container. you'll have to put on a couple of coats of paint to the whole thing.

[sirwoofalot]

Another option is mix glue and saw dust as filler. Let it set, sand, and fill again. Keep repeating until you have the perfect consistency between your wood and filler. Prim, let the primer set, and check again. You might need to do some more filling with your mixture. Also, all of your saw, and file marks will show up after you prim. So take a close look and sand where needed, prim again, and repeat the process until you are satisfied. Then paint.

 

The other fillers mentioned can work as well, and can be faster, however on close inspection you can see the finish using the spackle will be different from the wood. That is the paint will adhere differently to spackle than to the wood; where as with the glue and sawdust filler you will have similar finish.

 

Keep in mind that many types of filler tend to shrink as they dry. So you might want to go to a local hardware store where the people can tell you definitely which products will shrink and which will not. The glue and saw dust will shrink.

 

 

(A side note on sanding, start with a lower grain sand paper, say 100, and then more up to a 150 and finish with a 200 before you prim. After you prim and are looking for all of the areas that need further work they you can use a lower grit and jump to a the 200 grit)

 

Good luck and have fun. Take your time and enjoy.

 

[Off_White]

I'll second the Bondo: cheap, sets fast so it's easy to do multiple coats (which you'll want to do) and it's worked well on an array of repairs. Don't neglect the ventilation if you go this route though, stinky stuff that probably gives you cancer.

 

SC's Synco sounds interesting though...

[sexual_chocolate]

"prim" means "prime", i assume?

 

spackling won't necessarily give you a different finish. If you don't put more than one coat of paint on (you don't need to use a proprietary "primer" paint; just use your finish paint and put on a couple of coats), the spackle will absorb the paint differently than the wood, causing a textural and sheen difference. a couple of coats of paint will mitigate this. if you sanded the spackle and wood carefully to 150 grit i'd say, no one will ever be able to tell where your patch is.

 

wow, this is getting pretty involved for a little frame project!

[spotly]

Whichever filler you choose, if you're gonna use a stain, check that the filler takes the stain in the same way as the wood. If it doesn't the color in the fixed area will be off.

[ClimbingPanther]

isn't Sherri a total rock star at wood? maybe you should PM her

[rmncwrtr]

Thanks so much all. I went to a local hardware store this morning. When I explained the project and the mistake (I put the tail on the "p" wrong), he said if I used a wood filler I could still use stain if I wanted. I decided to do that since that left more options for finishing. Plus it seemed pretty simple to do and the other seemed more complicated leaving more room for error. Fingers crossed!

 

Here's a picture of it before attempting to fix it.

 

[Off_White]

In that case Spotly's warning is spot on. Test the filler on a different piece of the same kind of wood and then stain it before you commit to using that filler on your project. It's pretty difficult to get filler and real wood to take a transparent stain the same.

 

You might also consult a really good paint store, the one the pros use, regarding which stain to use.

 

Stay away from Home Depot if you need any advice at all.

[MATT_B]

Maybe a dumb idea but can you trun it around and use the other side? How wide is the board? Maybe you could take it to a wood shop the has a large thickness planer or sander.

[rmncwrtr]

SnailEye - I've already got seventeen pictures woodburned and painted by the kids in the class around the sides and bottom of the darn thing. I've spent the entire week in the class having them do it. No way can I go through that again. I have to use this side.

 

I'll test it Spotly and OW to see if staining is possible. Thanks for the warning. If I can't stain it, I'll just paint the banner where the words are.

 

The mirror that fits inside is 28 x 29. I decided to have that professionally installed. The less I have to worry about screwing up that better.

 

[rmncwrtr]

Thanks again all. I got the spot filled. It wasn't hard to put on. Really appreciate all the advice. I'm exhausted from working on it all this week and can barely keep my eyes open let alone think straight.

 

The last two years, the class project has sold for $5K so I'm feeling a bit of pressure to get something that will start a bidding war. The kids want to be homeschooled next year and I'm thinking that might not be such a bad idea. At least I get to ski the next two days.

 

 

 

[sirwoofalot]

Stay away from Home Depot if you need any advice at all.

 

Amend, genuflect, and sprinkle with holy water. Ain’t that the truth!

[sirwoofalot]

Thanks again all. I got the spot filled. It wasn't hard to put on. Really appreciate all the advice. I'm exhausted from working on it all this week and can barely keep my eyes open let alone think straight.

 

The last two years, the class project has sold for $5K so I'm feeling a bit of pressure to get something that will start a bidding war. The kids want to be homeschooled next year and I'm thinking that might not be such a bad idea. At least I get to ski the next two days.

 

 

 

 

Can we please see a photo of the finished product?

 

Oh, and home school is the way to go! We do it.

 

[rmncwrtr]

Can we please see a photo of the finished product?

 

Oh, and home school is the way to go! We do it.

 

Sure. I'll post a pic when it's all done. It'll probably be another week or so with all the painting that still needs to be done.

 

If you don't mind, I'd like to talk to you about homeschooling once I'm not so tired and overwhelmed

[ClimbingPanther]

Homeschooling is great if your kids have another way to get the social interaction and if you're able to devote enough time to ensure they are receiving a proper education, but it can be done very wrong with unfortunate consequences. Just remember it's like taking a new job as a teacher, and give it the level of attention you would if you had a principal breathing down your neck. I know a 5th grader who can hardly read because of poor homeschooling, and that's a tragedy in this day in age.

[KaskadskyjKozak]

I know a 5th grader who can hardly read because of poor homeschooling

 

I know adults who can hardly read because of poor public schooling.

[ClimbingPanther]

I know a 5th grader who can hardly read because of poor homeschooling

 

I know adults who can hardly read because of poor public schooling.

nah, that's because of public daycare, not public schooling

[Dechristo]

We homeschooled our four kids (as well as tutored neighboring kids that had difficulty learning in public school).

 

They all became academic rock stars.

[Sherri]

Thanks so much all. I went to a local hardware store this morning. When I explained the project and the mistake (I put the tail on the "p" wrong), he said if I used a wood filler I could still use stain if I wanted. I decided to do that since that left more options for finishing. Plus it seemed pretty simple to do and the other seemed more complicated leaving more room for error. Fingers crossed!

 

Here's a picture of it before attempting to fix it.

 

 

So cool to see your projecting coming together, M! Awesome job you did there.

 

I didn't see the post early enough to chime with any advice to your query, but I think the first thing I would have considered doing would be to get my Dremel and sand off just the part of the offending loop, leaving the the straight bit under the "p" as it was. Depending how deeply the woodburner cut the inscription, this might have been a good way to discreetly fix it.

 

Looking foward to the finished pics!

[rmncwrtr]

Thanks Sherri. I don't have a Dremel and sanding never even occurred to me. Oh, well.

 

I pick up the frame this afternoon. Another mom painted the top for me while I was skiing.

 

So can anyone provide any staining advice? Any do's/don'ts/tips?

 

I bought a water-based stain since it looked easier and more forgiving than than the oil. I thought it might be a smart idea to stain the back first to get some practice.

[sexual_chocolate]

yeah practice on the back, and let it dry so you see the results. if you're staining a repair (the patch you did), i'd duplicate a patch on the back and see how the stain is taken up by it. adn don't stain if it's raining on your workpiece, cuz the rain will just wash the stain off, and maybe leave a mottled appearance.

[Sherri]

The water-based products are generally less toxic than the oil-based, so I use them wherever I can, but they have a tendency to raise the grain(once dry, the wood may feel a little shaggy if you lightly graze your fingertips across it.)

 

If you want a smooth finish, you may want to "pre-raise" the grain by swabbing the entire piece with a damp cloth and lightly sanding it after it dries. Remove all sanding dust with dry cloth, then proceed to stain as per product instructions.

 

A finish is as much a tactile experience as a visual one--people are going to want to touch it--so it's worth thinking about that aspect, as well.