I’ve often used this stuff. What makes it so good is you apply it and it soaks right in and hardens the punky wood then allows you to go in with an epoxy or filler. They don’t soak into the wood as good as the hardener does but strengthen just what’s left.
Value I get out of using this stuff is to stop any dry rot, (eg, scrape off as much Dry Rot as possible first, then apply multiple times to the exposed left over dry rot. It then becomes a viable base to put some BONDO on to recreate what wood has gone, so I can then repaint / cover and it looks reasonable, without dry rot continuing underneath. So the actual hardness is less important than stopping the DR, and creating a based for some filler to replace what rotted away.
I make log drums and wood blocks for percussion sounds, I'm a hobbyist not a pro. I coat the interior of the drums and blocks with shellac and or polyurethane. When the drums are hit, the sounds resonate a lot better than with no coating at all.
I"ve used it effectively on speaker cabinets that had rot from water damage. I used it to stabilize the rotted areas, then used wood filler to smooth. Years later, the cabs are still 100%. I don't think I would use it on anything structural, but for rot repair it's really good.
That's exactly what m thinking, because what he used wouldn't harden much , unless you have the Filler and the Hardener that comes in the tibe to mix with the Filler 😊
I have used this product on several occasions, and it does harden wood very well. However, I prefer to us a bit of Resin mixed with Denatured Alcohol to thin it down and brush it on. The resin soaks into the wood as does the DA, but the DA evaporates, and the Resin hardens it beautifully and it's cheaper.
Hey there. I found an old cypress tree trunk with branches laying in the woods by my house. We want to finish it and make it into a Hall tree for coats & hats. Do you think your resin method wld effectively serve to strengthen what I have?
Balsa is quite soft. The wood hardener probably had no effect on hardening it. But, you showed the product to be a soft, gooey substance upon evaporation of the solvent. I posit that the wood hardener acted as a lubricant, decreasing the friction of the pin upon impact, allowing it to penetrate deeper.
Minwax Wood Hardener is designed to restore structure and hardness to punky, rotted wood that has lost structure and rigidity. If you’re looking for a product to make new balsa wood harder, you’re using the wrong product. Balsa wood is naturally soft. That’s the nature of its species. Balsa is NOT a once-hard wood that has somehow deteriorated, rotted, or degraded. You’re trying to make balsa wood into something it isn’t and never was. If you want to test if Minwax Wood Hardener restores structure and hardness to punky, rotted wood that has lost structure and rigidity, why not test it on rotted wood that has lost structure and rigidity?
When I used this stuff a few month ago the instructions said to keep applying till you achieve a shiny surface. That was you know its soaked all it can from that surface.
Works great I just used it yesterday on my wood deck. I had a few bad peace’s of wood and I’m tired of replacing the wood therefore I tried this stuff and I must say now when you step on the wood it no longer bends and no cracking lol but does it last long this I don’t know but I’ll find out lol
I left a 1/4" of the liquid ay the bottom of my pouring cup and left it for about a month. The surface was hardened but underneath was sealed away from the air and didn't harden. Wood is offers more breathable environment for it to harden faster. Even then it took 3 days to harden all the way
If you are going to test balsa, try amount of weight to snap a plank of a certain length. Bonus points for also measuring deform ability before breaking
Is it possible a longer curing time was needed? Concrete, for example, takes 28 days to hydrate/ cure. I think it would be good to look into changes over time.
Dude! You're missing the whole purpose of what the wood hardener is used for. The wood hardener is for salvaging wood that is old or has dry rot. It is used in conjunction with wood filler for repairing damaged wood. All your silly tests and charts trying to determine how hard the product is in comparison to real wood is not a fair or even relevant assessment of the product. The hardener is merely for restoring or protecting damaged rotted wood from further deterioration, by bonding the wood fibers with an adhesive. That's it!! You really should clarify that in your video.
I completely agree that he did not test the product as it was intended for. I've tried the minwax wood hardener and after the first week it was great but then after about a month I checked on the rotted pieces of wood and they were brittle and flaking off again.
If your trying to harden the wood you need to use like a total boat deep penetrating epoxy and still that's an under coat so yeah this is for rotted wood to be repaired
For real? Why not test it for what it is actually meant to do? To harden compromised wood like hard weathering or dry rot. As the can says... Reinforces soft wood fibers. I would love to see a review on Dry Gas.
Why not test it for what it is actually meant to do? I'll tell you... I'm testing it in this way because I am a non-professional home/hobbyist knifemaker, and much of my channel is dedicated to learning about knifemaking. One of the things that home knifemakers commonly want to do is stabilize the wood they are using for their knife handles. The best and most reliable method to stabilize wood is to use a heat activated compound called Cactus Juice and suck it into the wood via a vacuum pump. However, that is all very expensive and requires a lot of time and extra equipment. So many home knifemakers are searching for alternatives to this method in order to stabilize their wood quickly, effectively, and most importantly cheaply. Remember this is a hobby, not a business. One of the ideas that is often thought of to accomplish this task is to try Minwax Wood Hardener. It sounds like it ought to work. The marketing for this product would lead you to believe that it should work to stabilize wood for knife handles. But I have conducted multiple experiments with Minwax Wood Hardener and have concluded that, while it sort of works, It doesn't work good enough to bother with. I think there are probably better alternatives out there that would be within price and effort reach of the hobbyist knifemaker and that ultimately using Minwax Wood Hardener for this purpose is a waste of time.
I think balsa is not at all a substitute for rotten wood. Balsa isn't light because it lacks lignan. It' really specifically for replacing lignant attacked by mold (dry rot).
@@drcornelius8275 in my country is can't find wood heardener. Do you have any idea how to do a similar product? Does it have anything to do with shellac?
@@clarissauhlendorff4716 concrete (acrylic) sealer is acetone and acrylic so should work the same..... just make sure to get the acrylic one and not silane or siloxane or water based types
Kind of a dumb video. He claims to not know what it is. He then "tests" it by using it outside of it's practicality. Wood hardener is a good product for certain uses. There was some trim on my house that was rotting out in places. I wasn't about to replace it. So i used wood hardener, primer, and a good coat of paint. It has withstood the test of time.
@@copperspartan1643 yes, I dug out the worst of the rot with just a wire brush on a drill, two coats of wood hardener followed by filler. It's a dirty fix, but ended up as a win. I probably wouldn't have done it if this was my "forever home", but I'm satisfied with the results.
@@ericbetterman9220 Thanks. This is likely my "forever home" but I'm repairing an outbuilding not too close to the main house, so I'm not going to be too fussy if it lasts.
I’ve often used this stuff. What makes it so good is you apply it and it soaks right in and hardens the punky wood then allows you to go in with an epoxy or filler. They don’t soak into the wood as good as the hardener does but strengthen just what’s left.
Value I get out of using this stuff is to stop any dry rot, (eg, scrape off as much Dry Rot as possible first, then apply multiple times to the exposed left over dry rot. It then becomes a viable base to put some BONDO on to recreate what wood has gone, so I can then repaint / cover and it looks reasonable, without dry rot continuing underneath. So the actual hardness is less important than stopping the DR, and creating a based for some filler to replace what rotted away.
Exactly. Read and understand.🙄
I make log drums and wood blocks for percussion sounds, I'm a hobbyist not a pro. I coat the interior of the drums and blocks with shellac and or polyurethane. When the drums are hit, the sounds resonate a lot better than with no coating at all.
I"ve used it effectively on speaker cabinets that had rot from water damage. I used it to stabilize the rotted areas, then used wood filler to smooth. Years later, the cabs are still 100%. I don't think I would use it on anything structural, but for rot repair it's really good.
That's exactly what m thinking, because what he used wouldn't harden much , unless you have the Filler and the Hardener that comes in the tibe to mix with the Filler 😊
It is possible that a chemical reaction happens with the wood and just pouring it in an aluminum tray won't do anything.
Thanks for doing this. I'd love to see this redone with 2 part epoxy hardener which I suspect would add much more strength.
When in a hurry, I like to use it as a pre finish before clear coating, takes a coat or two out of the picture
I have used this product on several occasions, and it does harden wood very well. However, I prefer to us a bit of Resin mixed with Denatured Alcohol to thin it down and brush it on. The resin soaks into the wood as does the DA, but the DA evaporates, and the Resin hardens it beautifully and it's cheaper.
I'm interested in what rain you used? Thanks JW
Hey there. I found an old cypress tree trunk with branches laying in the woods by my house. We want to finish it and make it into a Hall tree for coats & hats. Do you think your resin method wld effectively serve to strengthen what I have?
Balsa is quite soft. The wood hardener probably had no effect on hardening it. But, you showed the product to be a soft, gooey substance upon evaporation of the solvent. I posit that the wood hardener acted as a lubricant, decreasing the friction of the pin upon impact, allowing it to penetrate deeper.
I love the way you set up this experiment! You got some pretty good meaningful data even with the bare bones set up you had.
Minwax Wood Hardener is designed to restore structure and hardness to punky, rotted wood that has lost structure and rigidity. If you’re looking for a product to make new balsa wood harder, you’re using the wrong product. Balsa wood is naturally soft. That’s the nature of its species. Balsa is NOT a once-hard wood that has somehow deteriorated, rotted, or degraded. You’re trying to make balsa wood into something it isn’t and never was.
If you want to test if Minwax Wood Hardener restores structure and hardness to punky, rotted wood that has lost structure and rigidity, why not test it on rotted wood that has lost structure and rigidity?
Be interesting to compare it to the other products .
When I used this stuff a few month ago the instructions said to keep applying till you achieve a shiny surface. That was you know its soaked all it can from that surface.
Works great I just used it yesterday on my wood deck. I had a few bad peace’s of wood and I’m tired of replacing the wood therefore I tried this stuff and I must say now when you step on the wood it no longer bends and no cracking lol but does it last long this I don’t know but I’ll find out lol
I used some around some window trim that was going soft, and it did make a huge difference.
is it still working?
I left a 1/4" of the liquid ay the bottom of my pouring cup and left it for about a month. The surface was hardened but underneath was sealed away from the air and didn't harden. Wood is offers more breathable environment for it to harden faster. Even then it took 3 days to harden all the way
If you are going to test balsa, try amount of weight to snap a plank of a certain length.
Bonus points for also measuring deform ability before breaking
I’ve seen on forums that some people have done Elmer’s glue and white vinegar, or acetone and paint, as wood hardener, could diluted wood glue work??
Is it possible a longer curing time was needed? Concrete, for example, takes 28 days to hydrate/ cure. I think it would be good to look into changes over time.
Dude! You're missing the whole purpose of what the wood hardener is used for. The wood hardener is for salvaging wood that is old or has dry rot. It is used in conjunction with wood filler for repairing damaged wood. All your silly tests and charts trying to determine how hard the product is in comparison to real wood is not a fair or even relevant assessment of the product. The hardener is merely for restoring or protecting damaged rotted wood from further deterioration, by bonding the wood fibers with an adhesive. That's it!! You really should clarify that in your video.
I completely agree that he did not test the product as it was intended for.
I've tried the minwax wood hardener and after the first week it was great but then after about a month I checked on the rotted pieces of wood and they were brittle and flaking off again.
I’m thinking the same. I’m more curious if it will help with splitting from drilling.
@@John-xb9dnDepends if the surface is horizontal or vertical.
Geezzz. Fast forwarded through must of it... not a good video at all.
yea he really didn’t understand it’s use, the key is the acetone which has very low surface tension and allows it to soak in deep
Exactly the kind of evaluation I was looking for. Thanks!
If your trying to harden the wood you need to use like a total boat deep penetrating epoxy and still that's an under coat so yeah this is for rotted wood to be repaired
This is a smart well made video !!! Great job and thank you !!!!
For real? Why not test it for what it is actually meant to do? To harden compromised wood like hard weathering or dry rot. As the can says... Reinforces soft wood fibers. I would love to see a review on Dry Gas.
Why not test it for what it is actually meant to do? I'll tell you...
I'm testing it in this way because I am a non-professional home/hobbyist knifemaker, and much of my channel is dedicated to learning about knifemaking. One of the things that home knifemakers commonly want to do is stabilize the wood they are using for their knife handles. The best and most reliable method to stabilize wood is to use a heat activated compound called Cactus Juice and suck it into the wood via a vacuum pump.
However, that is all very expensive and requires a lot of time and extra equipment. So many home knifemakers are searching for alternatives to this method in order to stabilize their wood quickly, effectively, and most importantly cheaply. Remember this is a hobby, not a business.
One of the ideas that is often thought of to accomplish this task is to try Minwax Wood Hardener. It sounds like it ought to work. The marketing for this product would lead you to believe that it should work to stabilize wood for knife handles. But I have conducted multiple experiments with Minwax Wood Hardener and have concluded that, while it sort of works, It doesn't work good enough to bother with. I think there are probably better alternatives out there that would be within price and effort reach of the hobbyist knifemaker and that ultimately using Minwax Wood Hardener for this purpose is a waste of time.
I thought wood hardener was only for rotted wood -- where the lignan was eaten away by fungus
teach me to say something before the video is over!
I think balsa is not at all a substitute for rotten wood. Balsa isn't light because it lacks lignan. It' really specifically for replacing lignant attacked by mold (dry rot).
next you need make same test, epoxy, wood glues, CA glue, need soak lot test chemical to in wood.
Has anyone tried this to give a little extra strength to small wooden parts?
Appears to be a wax.
What if you saturate the wood with CA glue then use accelerator?
I thought it was for to stop wood decay so wood filler could be used, not for new wood............
I'm vacuum it in the wood see how it works
The SDS says it's Acetone and Methanol
a little more research has shown it to contain about 20-25% acrylic also......
@@drcornelius8275 in my country is can't find wood heardener. Do you have any idea how to do a similar product? Does it have anything to do with shellac?
@@clarissauhlendorff4716 concrete (acrylic) sealer is acetone and acrylic so should work the same..... just make sure to get the acrylic one and not silane or siloxane or water based types
@@drcornelius8275 thank you very much!!!
the reason why the balsa wood, Is because the dentation did not happen to the wood itslelf, but the wood hardener goo.
Do you have suppliers in Kenya?
My niece swears Kleenex is made from balsa LOL obviously we know it’s not
GOOD VID
Is this a chemistry class or a stick to the point commentary
Kind of a dumb video. He claims to not know what it is. He then "tests" it by using it outside of it's practicality.
Wood hardener is a good product for certain uses. There was some trim on my house that was rotting out in places. I wasn't about to replace it. So i used wood hardener, primer, and a good coat of paint. It has withstood the test of time.
I need it for a similar sort of scenario. Did you use any filler as well?
@@copperspartan1643 yes, I dug out the worst of the rot with just a wire brush on a drill, two coats of wood hardener followed by filler.
It's a dirty fix, but ended up as a win. I probably wouldn't have done it if this was my "forever home", but I'm satisfied with the results.
@@ericbetterman9220 Thanks. This is likely my "forever home" but I'm repairing an outbuilding not too close to the main house, so I'm not going to be too fussy if it lasts.
@@copperspartan1643 Awesome. Good luck man.