Thread: Warped scales

So I did my first set of scales out of Amboyna Burl, finished them up with some tung oil only to discover a week later when I mated them with a blade that they were warped!

Any ideas what could have caused them to warp so quickly? They haven't been exposed to any excessive humidity or moisture...maybe the wood wasn't dried completely when I was working on them?

-Robert

Originally Posted by rshaw

So I did my first set of scales out of Amboyna Burl, finished them up with some tung oil only to discover a week later when I mated them with a blade that they were warped!

Any ideas what could have caused them to warp so quickly? They haven't been exposed to any excessive humidity or moisture...maybe the wood wasn't dried completely when I was working on them?

-Robert

They are too thin for that type of wood, did you start at 1/8 inch then sand them farther???
The Burls are sometimes a little tricky, and they will twist on you if they are just a tiny bit too thin... Sometimes you didn't do a thing wrong and the wood just decides to take a left turn.... Stabilized woods will not do this but some people don't like that look..

Take them off, put them on a flat surface that can take heat (a cutting board) place a hand towel over them, use a steam iron and hit them with heat and steam don't worry the tung oil will be fine, once they are straight put something heavy and flat on top of them and let them cool ... Repeat if necessary..
Rub in more tung oil and buff out... they should be fine after that...

Yeah, they started off at 1/8" and are now about 100 mils thick. I'll have to try thicker scales next time.

I'll try the iron tonight...thanks for the advice!

-Robert

When I use wood like Abonya Burl. I line the scales with brass and finish in CA. Makes them very rigid.