Decoy sealing; Beyond the basics

A

ABeck

Member
After years of frustration and watching my smooth, sealed, and painted decoys have the grain raise I am asking for advice. Does this happen to everyone or am I doing something wrong. A recent batch carved of Wendel's cedar was particularly bad, is this a function of kiln drying and how little moisture is in the wood, such that as it reaches equilibrium it swells despite being sealed? In the most recent batch even tooling markes long since sanded smooth came out, likely due to swelling of small compressions (dents) from rasps etc.
I have used polyuerethane which seems to work better than shellac, though so many really good carvers have recomended shellac I went back to it and it had no better results. oil paints.

ideas?
 
I will reply with some information rather than specifically answering your question. Some of this you might already know.
Wood from a tree has what I will call sap moisture. For wood working, all kinds, this moisture is removed though kiln drying or air drying. Note this is expressed as a percentage For furniture this might be 5 percent, for a 2X4, 10 to15 percent.
Once this moisture has been removed moisture will once again return to the wood. The amount of moisture that returns to the wood is dependent on where you live. The time of the year.The relative humidity. Example furniture built in New England in winter with low humidity and sold in Louisiana will swell. The joints may even break if this is not allowed for. The opposite will occur for furniture made in Louisiana sent to a dry New England.

Movement occurs in all wood, more in some wood than others. Another factor is the grain of the wood which varies from specie to specie. Also the density of the wood is a factor. I have a friend who is a gun stocker. The care he takes to pick a piece of wood is of most importance. He spends two hundred to four hundred hours on a stock alone. Any defect and he has an expensive piece of fire wood.( I wish I could afford one of his guns)

A factor to consider is the age of the wood after it has been dried. It has to have time to stabilize. This will vary from weeks to months to years. Also where it is kept.

Sealing, nothing will keep moisture out or in forever. Sealing can slow the moisture but not stop it.
Others will be more specific on the cause of the checking. My guess is the type of wood and how fast the wood grew. I have a picnic table that has the same problem. I have sanded it a least two times and have to paint it every year. I tried different sealers different paints and after 15 years. I came to the conclusion it's the wood.
 
I'm no expert, but make sure you are following the directions on the can. If it says do four coats for full sealing, do four coats. I use Diamond Elite water based Varathane, four coats, with latex paint overtop. Not to say I've never had any issues, but its a system that works well if the wood is dry to start with.

There are a million products out there, and all work well I hear, but you just gotta find one you are happy with. SOme seal so well your paint won't stick to them either!

Mike
 
As soon as you put liquid on wood, is swells. Some worse than others. If raised grain bothers you, use a sanding sealer. It seals the wood and penetrates...then you sand again to smooth the raised grain..then seal and sand again. usually it takes two sandings and 3 coats. After the final coat, put on your final seal coat of poly or whatever and paint. Personally, I like raised grain and tool marks on decoys...it shows the makers mark and is proof of the labor.
 
I use two coats of flat black rustoleum for both my wooden and cork birds and have never had a problem. I use white cedar for my wooden gunners...
 
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