Spalted Hickory

This is another piece of the Spalted Hickory that I have mentioned before. It is from a tree that blew down in our yard during a storm several years ago. Stacking it outside the workshop has exposed it to the elements over the years and the spalting fungus has set in creating all kinds of neat colorations and patterns. It is my favorite type of wood though it is difficult to deal with at times.

I have turned it to it's rough shape and applied a stout coat of MinWax Wood Hardener.
A wood hardener must be used because the spalting process weakens the wood so that it is structurally unsound and can fly apart at any second. This is why I apply the hardener BEFORE I cut the inside out of the bowl which would necessarily cause the bowl walls to become unstable.

The Minwax adds a certain amount of yellowing to the color of the wood so I am going to search for another material to use that may not do that. I like the coloration of the natural spalting process and would like to try to maintain that look.

In the above picture you can see that the heartwood, the center of the log, has not been affected by the spalting process and it is very hard, where as the outer spalted layer is very soft.

After the interior has been carved away I will apply another coat of the Minwax Hardener to the inside to further stabilize the whole thing. Now, because spalted wood is very unstable it is possible the whole thing will explode unexpectedly at some point and you will never see it again. But supposing that doesn't happen (think positive) I will post some more info and pictures on this bowl in the next day or two. It too will be available for purchase at the Brown County Shops website.