Woodworkers, I have a purpleheart question - OT

Whistle
1

I just cut some purpleheart strips to use as inlay in a black walnut whistle case I’m making. The cut edges are a bland brown while the original surfaces are a beautiful deep purple.

Question: will these cut edges turn purple? If so, how long will it take? Is the purple color a result of oxidation or something?

Thanks in advance,
Eric

2

My experience with Purpleheart is limited to about half a dozen knife handles, at most. So, take it for what it is worth.

My best success has come from this proceedure:

  1. Make handle.
  2. Sand to a nice fine finish (0000 steel wool for me)
  3. Place in a sunny window for a day
  4. Turn over so the sun gets on the other side for a day
  5. Repeat 3 and 4 until there is a fairly nice purple color (this usually doesn’t need repeating, but it depends on how direct the sun is)
  6. Apply finishing oil (do not use tinted oil, only the natural color should be there) You can use a plastic finish if you must

For me, the color always seems to be a lot more vivid when it is oiled. I also find that over about a year of regular use, the wood will darken to a purply walnut color if used in the sun. There is a definite line where the edge of the sheath shades the lower part of the handle.

Like I said, not a lot of experience, but take it for what it is worth. Purpleheart seems to oxidize in sunlight to turn purple. Finishing coats before oxidation seem to keep it brown. Go figure.

-Patrick

3

“Finishing coats before oxidation seem to keep it brown. Go figure.”

Many furniture finishes contain UV inhibitors to intentionally keep wood from darkening when exposed to direct sunlight.

4

Thanks guys. Too bad there is a shortage of sunshine around here during the winter :slight_smile:

Thanks again,
Eric

5

I’ve made several Purpleheart whistles. They started out purple, and stayed that way as long as theywere in my possesion ( I had one for several months where it sat in the shop in intermittent flourescent light).

6

On 2003-01-22 06:50, brewerpaul wrote:
I’ve made several Purpleheart whistles. They started out purple, and stayed that way as long as theywere in my possesion ( I had one for several months where it sat in the shop in intermittent flourescent light).

I was hoping that you would chip in Paul (I almost sent you an email about this, but I decided that I have some other questions that I want to ask you, that are more important…hehehe…expect an email soon!)

Anyway, this purpleheart was purchased through ebay…
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=3131&item=3101436084&rd=1
Very nice stuff…very dense and resistant to hack saw blades. I cut it about 13 hours ago and the cut edges have started shifing towards purple during that time. When first cut, it was almost exactly the same color as the black walnut that the rest of the whistle case is made from, except that there was no grain to it…just brown.

If a piece were left to cure long enough, as would be the case with anything that you would make a whistle out of, do you suppose the purple color would eventually run all the way through? The stock that I purchased was dry, but I have no idea how long the tree had been felled.

So, Paul, tell me about cocobolo. I am currently gathering mass quantities of it for a ‘special’ project. The stuff will sit for a year, or so, until I save the money for a Grizzly mill/lathe combo. Can you recommend a wood to practice turning on if the final project will be in fully combed cocobolo with holly mountings and projection rings (a hint about the project)??

Cheers,
Eric

7

So, Paul, how warm do the whistles get when turning? I know that if I overheat the wood with a power tool, it turns purple. This is really bad with a dull drill bit, as it then has a really dark ring around the pins, making them look rather sloppy instead of being bright little dots on the handle. I’m wondering if just a little heat is enough to cause the oxidation or maybe my experiences are just different from other folks’…

-Patrick

8

Vaporlock-- I’d practice on cheap, readily available wood. I made my first two whistles out of maple and cherry. They were no great shakes ( although they do play fairly well), but I learned a LOT about my lathe using the inexpensive wood and saved myself a lot of grief later.
Patrick-- The wood does not really get very hot on my lathe. This is a metalworking lathe, not a wood lathe. I use carbide tools which stay very sharp, and most of the heat generated dissapates very quickly. I drill my bores with a gundrill which has a hole down the center of it connected to an air compressor. This blows the chips out as I drill and keeps everything inside nice and cool.