Question for all you call makers???????

M

msinc

New member
If I may ask....when you fellas talk about "stabilizing" wood blanks to make into calls, what is it that you do to actually stabilize the wood??? I am guessing that it has to do with the wood being made to not dry out too quickly and crack or check???? I am also going to guess and say that you stabilize the wood before any turning is going to be done????? If this is some kind of black magic secret that cannot be disclosed I understand...thanks in advance for any info!!!!
 
No secret at all. Stabilizing is done to DRY wood. You need stabilizing fluid, vacume pump, sealed pot. and toaster oven. There is a learning curve to it. You can find all kinds of info on youtube. It does make great turning blanks out of junk wood.
 
Wood must be dry. You can add dye to fluid
Force fluid in to wood with vacuum
Wrap wood in foil and bake for an hour or so at 200 degrees
That's it in a nut shell.
 
Thanks for the reply. So, I understand that stabilizing has nothing to do with the initial drying of the wood. When you guys find suitable wood for blanks what if any steps do you guys take to help it not dry out too quick??? I found two big nice burls on trees and I don't make calls, but I hate to waste anything...somebody can surely use them. Do you cut them into blanks and coat them with linseed oil. I have heard paste wax or paint works well too. Thanks again, any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
 
Stabilizing has nothing to do with drying at all. There is a sealer for fresh cut wood blanks that helps them from drying out too fast. They can also be waxed to help the drying and cracking. Do not put oil on the blanks!! You can find info on youtube on how to handle fresh cut wood. Hope this helps.
 
If you cut fresh wood seal the end grains. If you cut burls, seal all cut surfaces. You can use products like Anchorseal, which is basically a wax, or latex paint. You just need to slow down the drying process. If it dries to quick it will check, or split. Burls are especially hard to dry. Still need to wait a while before you cut it into blanks. That's just my opinion. But yes, once they are dry, then you can have them stabilized. Either have them done professionally or spend a lot of money and do them yourself. Either way, it's not cheap. That's why calls from stabilized woods have a higher price tag.
Hope this helps
 
Thanks for the replies...one thing I am not clear about, one guy says not to use oil the other says to use wax????? Why no oil??? Isn't wax a petroleum {oil} product??? I am guessing the "don't use oil" refers to not wanting oil impregnated into the grain when you go to stabilize it??? But, all info I can find regarding slowing down the drying process so it don't crack involves coating it with some type of oil or oil like product.....latex paint, best info I can find, is not regarded as effective.
I was always told to use Johnson's Paste Wax, but again...that's oil.
 
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