Woodburning Tool Tips
Wood-burning can stand alone as a craft or can accompany basic wood carving to establish a depth of color and contrast in the carving. Wood burning has more variety than just burning the wood a dark brown. The heated tip conducts high and low levels of heat that allow you to burn a variety of light brown shades to dark brown shades. Practice makes perfect, but a few tips guide the beginner woodburner in the right direction.
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The Issue of Carbon Residue
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The woodburner's tip heats to temperatures between 600 and 900 degrees. Flammable objects set near the woodburner may cause damage or a fire. Rest your woodburner on a heavy glazed tile or plate when you are not using it. Affix a strip of low grit sandpaper to the tile or plate to remove carbon residue from the tip of the woodburner as you burn. Run the tip of the woodburner against the sandpaper when you notice a black carbon residue on the tip. If you do not remove the carbon residue this may lead to problems during your craft time. Clean the shaft of the tip of the woodburner with low grit sandpaper after you shut the woodburner off, because the shaft too collects carbon residue.
Recommended Wood Varieties
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Basswood is the variety of wood that most woodburners use. Basswood's colorization is a pale creamy color that burns very clearly and distinctively, which provides a wonderful end product. Butternut and Sugarpine wood varieties hold themselves in esteem with Basswood as well. Eastern White Pine provides another alternative to Basswood. Be warned, it is difficult to burn in consistent lines throughout the wood and particularly against the grain.
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Preparation Tips and Tricks
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Store your extra woodburner tips and extra strips of sandpaper in a film canister that is kept close to your hobby station. Sand down the wood you are burning so the surface is flat and free of divots or holes. Any incongruity in the wood's surface can drag your woodburner's tip away and possibly ruin your craft. Avoid using an extension cord because the power supply pulled through the cord is significant. If you need to use one however, use a heavy duty extension cord.
Post- Hobby Tips and Tricks
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Let the tip of your woodburner cool down before you remove the tip. This safety measure isn't only for your own protection, as it also protects the locking mechanism that holds the removable tip. The woodburner tip is made of brass which becomes soft when the tip is heated. Prematurely removing the tip can cause damage to the soft brass metal.
What the Woodburner Tip Can Do
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The sharp tip of the woodburner creates dot forms and textures like the fur of a buffalo or hair on a dog. The tip commonly produces fine, intricate work. The blade, which is the sharp chisel edge to the tip, is the most commonly used part of the woodburner. The chisel edge forms lines from extremely fine and light colored details to extremely thick, wide and dark strokes. The side of the chisel is used to shade areas of the design. These shaded areas can vary in intensity and create gradual change in contrast.
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References
- Photo Credit soldering woodburning kit image by Steve Johnson from Fotolia.com
