cracking wood

[the1lowmax]

I have a piece of redwood that is 36" x 16" x 3". I was going to bookmatch it for a tabletop. It had been drying for 2 years and had a few minor cracks in the end, but nothing too major. It was not sealed. It has been in my basement for several months. Then it was accidentally left against a wall near the furnace room. Ultimately, this caused the wood to crack through out. I have wondered this in the past and may try this experiment. What if I filled my door dipping tub with thinned polyurethane, put the wood in, and let it soak in. I'm thinking that it will absorb the liquid and swell up, causing the cracks to close. I could seal it up and let it soak for months if I had to. I have a guitar with a crack in the back that opens and closes with the seasons, i.e., moisture. That's where I got the notion. Now the questions. Would this work? What about tung oil or linseed oil? What will happen if I let it air dry? Will it just crack again. I'm a novice at this and just wanted try building with a more raw material.

[Don]

Hey, lowmax and welcome to the forum. Of course others are welcome to chime in here but my thoughts are that initial drying conditions cannot be reversed. If your wood was green initially and cracked from the drying conditions there is really nothing that you could do that would "close" the cracks and cause them to adhere to at the same time.

I remember reading years ago about a treatment for green wood that kept wood from drying out and cracking. The people that were using this method were bowl turners, etc. I think it was called MPEG? That was a long time ago and I'm sure they have different methods now.

You mentioned book matching, I assume this means that you are going to re-saw this piece. I would do it sooner than later to relieve the stress and you would have probably been much better off to do this before it had dried too much. Wood cracks while drying for many reasons but a main one is uneven drying throughout a thick piece. If you see a log that's left naturally to dry it will get radial cracks almost to the core as the outside dries faster than the inside. Another reason you see board ends waxed to keep them from cracking after they've been kiln dried or other.

But . . . If you want to experiment, have at it and tell us how it goes, some pictures would be helpful at well.

All the best, Don