In Which I Fume Oak for the First Time.

I had a little more handwork to do on the Little Journey’s Bookstand. I fiddled with the tusks a bit.

I originally sanded the piece to 400 but decided to sand to 220 this time. The loose tenons/tusks took forever to sand and detail.

Fuming Time

I have always wanted to try this. Two years ago I had a student whose dad owned a blueprint shop. He gave me a large bottle of super strength ammonia. I had bought an ammonia respirator in preparation for the job.

I build a simple tent from pine scraps and then stapled plastic to the outside.

I donned long sleeves, my respirator, chemical gloves, and goggles.

I poured two bowls of ammonia.

and stuck them under the tent.


The color change happened almost immediately.

We kept watch over it and then after about 3.5 hours we removed the tent.

I poured the spent ammonia into a large bucket of water.

I took the piece back to the shop to air out for the night. That stuff is wicked! Even with a respirator.

In the finewoodworking article, author Kevin Rodel indicates that the final finish will darken the piece while warming it up.

We will see. I plan on shellac and dark wax.