

Sand the cut surfaces until they are smooth and even. Yes, we cut the bowl in half along the split. We begin by first making the split complete. Let’s put that split spalted wood bowl back together again. The fungus grows primarily in hardwoods like maple, birch, and beech and creates the dark lines where territories of opposing fungi meet. It is often seen in black and brown staining and forms dark lines through the wood.

The term spalted refers to dark lines and discoloration in wood caused by fungal growth in the wood as it decays. Spalting refers to wood coloration caused by fungi. These woods have beautiful grains and colors and elegant features, especially the “bird’s eyes” of maple.īut, spalt wood is likely available where you are and makes a beautiful bowl with great character. Let’s say Grandma’s bowl is of an exotic wood or even spalt wood. Let’s add a little aesthetic to the fix, too. The serious woodworker whose home shop includes a lathe can easily piece it back together with a bit of ingenuity and imagination. No, the turned salad bowl is not doomed, and in fact, can be repaired. Can You Glue a Wood Bowl Back Together?īut what if Grandma’s salad bowl not only cracks but splits? Or worse, splits in two? Is it doomed? It will hold the sides of the crack in place and prevent the wood from cracking further. It will fill the gap created by the crack or split and can be sanded to leave a smooth and level surface to match that of the wood bowl. It provides a self-leveling clear coat finish and is non-toxic. Epoxy penetrates deeply and has good adhesion with a low shrink factor. They are mixed in a 1 to 1 ratio and applied into the crack or split. Can epoxy repair a crack in your wooden salad bowl, too?Įpoxy resin comes in two products: the resin and a hardener. Different colors of epoxies fit into splits of live edge planks make a beautiful surface for dining room tables and wood kitchen countertops. There are many videos on YouTube that show the use of epoxy resin to fill gaps in wood for table surfaces. If the crack is too large, something more aggressive will be needed, or perhaps another filler. Finally, sand over the crack to remove excess glue and sawdust from the surface. Rub a little more sawdust over the damage, and spray it with a CA accelerator. If it is a larger hairline crack, try spraying around the crack with lacquer and after a moment of drying, fill the crack with very fine sawdust before applying a CA glue. A light sanding over the area will remove any excess glue from the wood bowl surface. If you’ve caught the crack in time, it should provide a lasting solution and keep the gap from growing. CA refers to Cyanoacrylate adhesives, instant glues that bond through reaction to moisture from the surfaces they are bonding, and humidity in the air.ĬA glues, white glues like Gorilla Super Glue, are much stronger than wood glues, and because they are white or clear, they do not leave color behind like yellow wood glue.Ī simple application of a CA glue directly into the hairline crack will fill it, and as it draws moisture from the wood and the air, it will bond instantly. You’ll likely see movement as the sides of the crack come together.ĬA glues are often used to fill and secure cracks from growing or interfering with the use of a wooden bowl. You can try soaking the bowl in water and examine the damage. How Do You Glue Hairline Cracks in Wood?įor a small hairline crack, re-introducing moisture to the bowl will help to close the gap. We know that moisture loss contributes to the shrinkage that leads to cracks. Perhaps a crack has appeared in the bowl wall or along the bowl’s rim or base. Moisture, as we noted, along with temperature variations, contributes to hairline cracks in wood.

Let’s chat about a couple of quick solutions to small cracks. The short answer is yes, and in several different ways. Examples of exotic wood species include:.Can You Glue a Wood Bowl Back Together?.How Do You Glue Hairline Cracks in Wood?.Penetrating abilities of up to 0.006" in size. Viscosity: 150 cPs (meaning the thickness of the liquid is similar to that of motor oil). Starbond BR-150 Brown Medium CA glue is used for inlays, repairing cracks in wood, and as a high gloss finish. Therefore, pairing with light-colored wood is recommended. It is a general purpose adhesive that dries light amber in color, eliminating the need to use sawdust with CA glue for filling voids. This brown CA adhesive is an excellent all-around adhesive that carries the ability to penetrate narrow slots, bond closely-fitted parts, and fill small gaps. Starbond BR-150 Brown Medium CA glue is an ethyl cyanoacrylate brown tinted super glue.
