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This is from plansnow.com. It's made completely from oak left over from the bunk bed and some flooring I was given. The only thing I paid for was the 1/4" ply, pulls, poly, and drawer liners. I wanted to try the ebonizing process found on Fine Woodworking's website so I thought this would be a good (fairly inexpensive) test to see how I liked it. Turns out - I do.

The finish is:
1. One coat of ebonizing liquid
2. Shellac
3. Ebony stain (Minwax)
4. High Gloss wipe on poly

It was fun to build so now I'm building the companion tool cart but it's going to cost significantly more as I used up all my scrap!

Thanks for looking.

Gallery

Comments

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niiice chest :)
thank´s for sharing and I look forward to see the cart too

take care
Dennis
 

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Looks great.At first I thought it was for the silverware.
 

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Looks great nice work.
 

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I like that. Looks really good.
 

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Neat-0. I am also wanting to try the ebonizing. This looks great.
 

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very nice tool chest. the finish is awesome. that grain really pops nicely
 

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Sharp looking Tool Chest, fine craftsmanship, Thanks for the heads up on Ebonizing, Yet another useful tip here on the site
 

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Mike - the ebonizing liquid is made with a mason jar full of vinegar with steel wool put in. You leave it for a month or so and then paint it on. (don't tighten the lid - it releases gas)

Now, I wish I could tell you that one month is all you need but this project took much longer than expected and I left my liquid sit for months (over the Canadian winter). I did take the steel wool out much sooner but it was way past one month.

That being said, the video on FWW says one month. With the rolling tool cart, I'm hoping that I can get the same results with less time with the concoction. I guess we'll see. I'm sure you can double up the coats to get deeper change with the oak.

Just an FYI - this solution works with the tannins in the oak so I'm not sure of the results with other species.
 

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I'm curious- what color is the liquid you end up with when you put the iron in the vinegar? I'd venture to say the reaction time was longer due to the cooler temperatures 'way up there in Canada.

Thanks!
 

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That is one nice tool chest.
 

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Man, that is really sweet looking
 

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AtomJack - I think it depends on how long you leave it. I left it so long that the rust and just pure "fermentation" made it a yellowish, greenish, black stuff…it doesn't smell very good either…

MJ
 

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Great job Michael, looks good. I sent you a BBM about the oak ply you were looking for, but no reply.
Ebonizing in this fashion works well with woods high in tannin. Oak, walnut, mahogany, to name a few. I have even ebonized maple! The process actually doesnt take more than a week, two at most. But thats assuming you use 0000 stell wool. \the finer the steel, the quicker it dissolves, pretty basic. It has nothing to do with climate or temp.
The thing to remember about ebonizing with steel wool and vinegar solution is that it acts like water, in that it will raise the grain, so either pre-raise it and sand it back a few times, or sand back the ebonization, and re-apply a few times. You can easily get it black enough that seal coats and follow up staining is unnecessary.
My only critique would be to try to line up the grain in the drawer fronts with the same pieces. Oak has such a prodominant grain that paying attention to it is a must. You can really avoid the plywood look that way.

Cheers!
Ryan
 

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My experience (at least with this project) was a bit different than you were describing. There definitely wasn't as much grain raise as with water or dye, but there was some so good tip on sanding. The ebonizing liquid had a very similar look on it as water-based aniline dye and didn't get into the wood as I would like. The extra step of adding the stain made the grain really pop and gave the finish much more depth.

Maybe you can't see in the picture, but the drawer grain is lined up as they're all from the same piece of wood. My mistake was not having a piece from that same board for the divider strip between the large drawers and small drawers….adds too much separation. I also think the top two drawers are reversed now that I look closer…but I tried. Can't blame a guy for that…
 

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love the Finnish,great job. It looks nice in your shop,thanks for the pictures.
 

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Awesome and thanks for the info on the ebonizing.
 
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