# purple heart



## zlatanv (Jul 18, 2009)

I have some purple heart that I planed and sanded, but it looks dark, is there a way to make it more purple? I know it will turn darker over time, but would like to get it brighter purple before I finish it.


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## j_olsen (Sep 19, 2009)

when i use purpleheart i set it in the sun or a bright light for a while and it brightens up


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## Stormin (Oct 6, 2010)

I also have been using purple heart, my first projects the wood was real dark purple when I cut it or sanded the board it turned brownish but after a day or so it was purple again .I got some more purple heart and it is not dark at all so I was told to expose it to UV light I live on the 49 th parallel so we do not have much sun light. How ever my wife is going to a tanning salon so I asked her to take the wood in with her, I will keep you posted on the outcome .

Norm


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## KayBee (Jul 6, 2009)

Stormin, ROFLMAO at the picture of your wife walking into the tanning salon and asking for 2 beds. One for her and one for the wood. Please let us know about the outcome of this trip. Could be great on many levels.


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## SCR0LL3R (May 28, 2010)

A couple weeks ago I was making some ornaments with purpleheart overlay and I noticed that heat from the blade was making the wood a deeper purple

Sheila wrote about it a few days later in her blog here:
http://lumberjocks.com/scrollgirl/blog/19743

Long story short, since it was small pieces, I experimented with them in the toaster at 300-400 deg. Fahrenheit and they came out a really deep purple color after a minute or two

Here's the difference… Half of the cooked piece was sprayed with shellac to see how it would look. This picture was taken in sunlight









my overlay pieces before applying a finish









If you put wood in your oven please be careful and do so at your own risk


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## zlatanv (Jul 18, 2009)

Thanks all, I did notice heat from my drum sander turned spots richer purple. will try sun light, afraid to put it in the oven for warping the pieces, 1/4 in panels. It had a nice color on the outside, once I cut into it, it did look different. Tanning the wood, thats funny.


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## scrappy (Jan 3, 2009)

My first PurpleHeart bowl turned out VERY purple! I have found from other blogs and forum topics that the heat of sanding and buffing it while still on the lathe helped the color to come out. I noticed that when first cut it was not as vibrant as after I sanded and buffed it.

Scrappy


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## twokidsnosleep (Apr 5, 2010)

I read of putting purple heart in the oven at 300 degrees for 30 min. It is supposed to stink like crazy but will deepen the resin color in the wood

Here is is the site, just scroll down to the second title:
http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/purpleheart.htm


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## zlatanv (Jul 18, 2009)

Left some scrap in the sun today turned a nice purple. Thanks


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