Ipe Offcut Table Tops

[Birdhunter]

When I was researching Ipe for my bench project, I found warnings that the wood and the sawdust can cause serious allergic reactions. I don’t know if the wood would “infect” food coming in contact with it.

 

[tjbnwi]

Just saw this---I would not make a cutting board out of Ipe.

Tom

 

[Naildrivingman]

I see nothing on FTUSA site that specifically states the outdoor oil is food safe.  If one is using this product for one’s own purposes there are no restrictions on materials that can be used (conscience is the guide), BUT if one is catering to the public that is another story. I would not use any material for areas of food contact unless I had on file the proper MSDS to protect me.

 

[ear3]

Thanks for the tip.

I see nothing on FTUSA site that specifically states the outdoor oil is food safe.  If one is using this product for one’s own purposes there are no restrictions on materials that can be used (conscience is the guide), BUT if one is catering to the public that is another story. I would not use any material for areas of food contact unless I had on file the proper MSDS to protect me.

 

[Tinker]

Thank you to all who gave food safe warnings. I had already figured that the oil might no be safe. Y'all reinforced my thoughts. I had not thought of extra wear and tear to cutlery. I think those scraps of Ipe will sit and rest in my barn for a while longer.
Tinker

 

[Cheese]

I see nothing on FTUSA site that specifically states the outdoor oil is food safe.  If one is using this product for one’s own purposes there are no restrictions on materials that can be used (conscience is the guide), BUT if one is catering to the public that is another story. I would not use any material for areas of food contact unless I had on file the proper MSDS to protect me.

As a matter of fact, the Festool Technical Data Sheet #223, points out these lines in bold letters.

Contains cobalt carboxylate - may trigger allergic reactions.

Contains iodine propynyl butyl carbamate - may trigger allergic reactions.

 

[Naildrivingman]

I see nothing on FTUSA site that specifically states the outdoor oil is food safe.  If one is using this product for one’s own purposes there are no restrictions on materials that can be used (conscience is the guide), BUT if one is catering to the public that is another story. I would not use any material for areas of food contact unless I had on file the proper MSDS to protect me.

As a matter of fact, the Festool Technical Data Sheet #223, points out these lines in bold letters.

Contains cobalt carboxylate - may trigger allergic reactions.

Contains iodine propynyl butyl carbamate - may trigger allergic reactions.

Thanks for posting that. I kinda figured SurFix was a no go for restaurant applications.  When dealing with the health department, it really pays to dot i’s and cross t’s.  I did a restaurant project ONCE, never again.  Too many hoops.

 

[Scott in San Diego]

Nice tables, Edward.  It looks a fun puzzle to put together.  You seem to tackle some challenging and cool projects. 

I did not see that anyone posted here about Osmo Polyx Hard Wax Oil 3054 Matte Clear.  It is formulated for floors and furniture.  For my take, it would be ideal for your table tops.  It is stain resistant and safe enough for children's toys. It is a two-coat process that you apply similar to Surfix products.  It dries ready for use in less than 48 hours.  If a repair is ever needed, just clean and apply another coat.

I buy mine online from World Class Supply in Delaware.
https://worldclasssupply.com/store/Polyx-Hard-Wax-Oil-3054-By-Osmo-NA.html?category_id=274

 

[ear3]

Thanks for the suggestion.  My default oil finish up until a year ago was actually Osmo, but I switched over to Surfix because I preferred the relatively greater richness it brought out in the wood.  Given the commercial concerns about Surfix, however, I will look to see if the Osmo might qualify as an appropriate finish.

Nice tables, Edward.  It looks a fun puzzle to put together.  You seem to tackle some challenging and cool projects. 

I did not see that anyone posted here about Osmo Polyx Hard Wax Oil 3054 Matte Clear.  It is formulated for floors and furniture.  For my take, it would be ideal for your table tops.  It is stain resistant and safe enough for children's toys. It is a two-coat process that you apply similar to Surfix products.  It dries ready for use in less than 48 hours.  If a repair is ever needed, just clean and apply another coat.

I buy mine online from World Class Supply in Delaware.
https://worldclasssupply.com/store/Polyx-Hard-Wax-Oil-3054-By-Osmo-NA.html?category_id=274

 

[ear3]

Just delivered the next tranche of 25" tables.  We're still trying to decide on the finish,  but I did a sample of the Rubio Monocoat on one of them.  All oil finishes will bring out the red in the Ipe, so there's not much hope of preserving that great lime green you get on some of the pieces, but in my experience Monocoat generally causes the least amount of darkening.  They are going to double check if Monocoat is even suitable for a restaurant environment, but I just wanted to give them a sense of what the final color range will be.  We have to come up with some sort of solution in the next day or two, as there's a photo shoot of the room scheduled this weekend to start building a media kit for when the restaurant opens. Ultimately, though, they are going to make the final call on the finish, apply it, and then take responsibility for it.

 

[junk731]

I went to a seminar with reps from Rubio presenting, the main things they wanted to impress was that Rubio was indeed a single coat product and subsequent coats do not bond to each other, do not over sand and follow their application  instructions for applying the oil and , the only cleaner that should be used is their own, reason the detergents in other cleaners breakdown the Rubio oils and destroy the finish. Interested to know how you make out.

 

[NL-mikkla]

Super cool tables, looking forward to the finished product.
Good luck on the finish choice

 

[HarveyWildes]

Very nice use of the grain and color variation in creating the patterns.  I'd like to see pics of the final pictures and the tables in situ.

 

[ear3]

[member=61231]HarveyWildes[/member]  Here's a couple of pictures I took this evening after delivering 4 more tables.  I'm going to get better quality photos in a few weeks, as their having a professional photo shoot done.

Very nice use of the grain and color variation in creating the patterns.  I'd like to see pics of the final pictures and the tables in situ.

 

[nclemmons]

Those look great, Ed -

Did you end up having to replace the filler?  It does a nice job of framing each piece.  But I'm curious how you kept that consistent gap.  I thought you cut everything and just started assembling and did not notice in your pics that you were including a consistent gap with every piece.

Thanks for sharing - I'm sure the restaurant owners will be delighted with what you have created!

neil

 

[ear3]

Thanks [member=167]neilc[/member] I did redo the filler on the large tables (and fortified them with extra ply on the underside), but no extra measures taken to maintain a consistent gap.  It just kind of worked out that way when I set the pieces in the adhesive.  I think accurate cutting was probably the key, which left a hairline gap between most of the pieces.  If you look at the smaller triangles, you can see some slight variations in the gap (either larger or smaller).

The owners are pretty happy with it, fortunately.  Supposedly Vogue magazine is going to do a piece on the space, so I'll add a post on that if and when it comes out.

Those look great, Ed -

Did you end up having to replace the filler?  It does a nice job of framing each piece.  But I'm curious how you kept that consistent gap.  I thought you cut everything and just started assembling and did not notice in your pics that you were including a consistent gap with every piece.

Thanks for sharing - I'm sure the restaurant owners will be delighted with what you have created!

neil

 

[Cheese]

Nice stuff Edward...thanks for posting...they are as grand as I had anticipated.

Love the 3 dimensionality of the tables. You’ve ratcheted it up another notch. I still remember the first light project...that was the beginning. You keep bumping up the bar a peg at a time. Kudos to you

 

[HarveyWildes]

Thanks for the pics.  If Vogue does a spot, hope you get mentioned by name.  There's is a lot of interesting décor in that restaurant, and the tables look right at home.  I love it when someone (you in this case) redeems another person's castoffs in such a way that you can't tell.

 

[Tinker]

A really fine piece of work. It fits in with the architecture of the rest of the room. It will be great advertisement for you, I am sure.

I do have a question.  I recently did a couple of lazy susans with pie shaped pieces to look like a pizza. I glued all to a ply wood backer. The solid wood pie pieces were about 3/8 inch thick and the plywood backer was 1/4 inch.  After the whole structure sat around in the shop for less than a week, it started to cup, or dish. The pie pieces were scraps that had been piled in a waste container for a long time.
The dishing was probably caused by uneven moisture content between the solid wood pieces and the plywood backer. Eventually, they settled somewhat but a slight dishing remained. I have not added the spinner to the bottom of one.  That proved interesting as it will spin on its own without the spinner.

The question: Did you find any cupping on your tables with using so many pieces in your design against plywood backer? It appears, in the pics, that all tops were stable and remained very flat.
Tinker

 

[ear3]

[member=550]Tinker[/member] Thanks!  The tables have remained flat so far.  I anticipated this and used the flooring adhesive, which allows for some flex, rather than regular wood glue.  This way the natural expansion and contraction of the wood won't pull or stretch the plywood.  But I should have used a thicker plywood on the larger tables, as they don't have quite the rigidity they should have for this application.  We ended up adding an additional 3/4 backing on them before attaching them to the bases, and so they are nice and solid now.

A really fine piece of work. It fits in with the architecture of the rest of the room. It will be great advertisement for you, I am sure.

I do have a question.  I recently did a couple of lazy susans with pie shaped pieces to look like a pizza. I glued all to a ply wood backer. The solid wood pie pieces were about 3/8 inch thick and the plywood backer was 1/4 inch.  After the whole structure sat around in the shop for less than a week, it started to cup, or dish. The pie pieces were scraps that had been piled in a waste container for a long time.
The dishing was probably caused by uneven moisture content between the solid wood pieces and the plywood backer. Eventually, they settled somewhat but a slight dishing remained. I have not added the spinner to the bottom of one.  That proved interesting as it will spin on its own without the spinner.

The question: Did you find any cupping on your tables with using so many pieces in your design against plywood backer? It appears, in the pics, that all tops were stable and remained very flat.
Tinker