Maple slab splitting

[Bryan Deel]

Good afternoon everyone, I've got a spalted maple slab that has started grow some significant splits since bringing it to the shop. Atmosphere is the same, but it's gone from being on the bottom of a stack to my bench. I'm guessing the sanding is releasing the tension?

My question is do I head off the splits now, or allow them to run their course and then spline or bow-tie the piece? I am going to finish this and probably hang it in a sitting room. Watching the surface wave and curl since sawing has been fun, and I know I am not going to erase that by taking it down to a smooth surface. It may become a table top someday ( I have the design), but I don't have the right space for it now and I'm not selling it. Thanks for any advice on how to treat this as a display piece. Bryan

[John A. Callaway]

Butterfly keys. Nakashima used them as a function and as an accent in each application. That is a great slab, and nicely installed butterfly's will not hurt it's appeal at all. I would use something dark, like walnut or maybe a rosewood variety.

[Jim Matthews]

+1 on the key to stop the checking.

If you don't do it soon, these will get longer.
There's no guarantee that others' will not develope, once this is done.

I would choose the color cautiously.
If you have the adjacent slab, you could make keys from a similar section.

[Bryan Deel]

This is new territory for me, and so I'm going to ask two more questions regarding the keys. I notice that most of the keys I see only seem to be 2/3s as thick as the slab. Are they effective when put on the underside of the slab? I know the check will continue on the top, but this will be minimal, right? Thanks again.

[Jamie Buxton]

This is new territory for me, and so I'm going to ask two more questions regarding the keys. I notice that most of the keys I see only seem to be 2/3s as thick as the slab. Are they effective when put on the underside of the slab? I know the check will continue on the top, but this will be minimal, right? Thanks again.

Generally, the cracking will be larger on the bark-side face of the slab. So if you're really trying to prevent more cracking, you'd insert the keys from that face. But if you want to insert them from the pith side, they'll still have some effect.

[ron david]

Good afternoon everyone, I've got a spalted maple slab that has started grow some significant splits since bringing it to the shop. Atmosphere is the same, but it's gone from being on the bottom of a stack to my bench. I'm guessing the sanding is releasing the tension?

My question is do I head off the splits now, or allow them to run their course and then spline or bow-tie the piece? I am going to finish this and probably hang it in a sitting room. Watching the surface wave and curl since sawing has been fun, and I know I am not going to erase that by taking it down to a smooth surface. It may become a table top someday ( I have the design), but I don't have the right space for it now and I'm not selling it. Thanks for any advice on how to treat this as a display piece. Bryan

how long since it was cut? how thick is it? how long was it in the pile and was it stickered and was it off the ground?
sounds like environment change is causing the cracking. it is not dry enough yet to come inside. patience is always the key to this problem
ron

[Bryan Deel]

It was cut 2 years ago and is 3" thick. It was stickered for six months, then kiln dried because a customer needed it "immediately," and was then placed on a rack, stickered under eight pieces of the rest of the trunk, 12' in the air. The reason I have this piece is that I have admired it from below for the last year while the folks who needed it immediately never returned.
Would it be best to return it to my buddy's shop for some more curing? I figured the damage was done when it went into the kiln, and it may as well be allowed to go where it wants to, but that is just uneducated guesswork. Now splits are appearing in the burl, but the larger cracks haven't moved in two days. I'm starting a slab journal because there is a lot to be learned here. Thanks for everyone's advise!

[ron david]

was there a crotch coming out of that area(a branch)
ron

[Karl Stowe]

Bryan nice slab. I think you are right about the kiln drying making it crack. I have really wondered about drying too quickly. Some walnut slabs I had seen last week that were 3" thick were covered in a waxy substance that I think was Anchor Seal. The walnut slabs had very little cracking. So maybe next time let them cure longer and cover in Anchor Seal. ??? I am currently sawing some walnut that has been in log form for about 3 years now and I will be able to see if letting the log sit for long will minimize the cracking. The slabs we milled up after letting the logs sit for a year seam to have a fair bit of cracking. But we havent really had cracks as large as yours. I would think that taking it in the house and hanging it on the wall would help finish off the cracking. Once the cracks are done it might look cool if you put a black epoxy in the cracks and give it a lightning bolt look. Buterflies are nice but how would you position them?

Karl