# Bleached Wenge



## carlmorrell (Jan 23, 2014)

After seeing the cool pics of bleached Wenge, I could not resist.  So thank you to whoever did this first.  

I had some Wenge laying around, already diagonally cut.  I also had some wood bleach from a project many years ago, probably as long as I had the wenge.  After turning the blank and sanding to size, I bathed the blank for about an hour in part A.  The bleach turned oily brown.  Then I removed the blank from the part A, and wiped down with part B.  At that point the blank still looked dark, but after it dried, the effect was evident.  After a day, I repeated the bleaching.  After another day, I started piling on the thin CA, 5 coats.


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## OZturner (Jan 23, 2014)

Carl, what an incredible effect.
I am not familiar with Wood Bleach, with a part A & B,
Could you please give me the name of the active ingredients, that would be listed on the container or the MDS for A & B? 
I would imagine that B is a neutraliser for the active ingredient of part A.
Love the result and your work.
Great Fit and Finish.
Congratulations,
Brian.


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## Jim Burr (Jan 23, 2014)

+1^. Have lots of Wenge and this looks like fun!!


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## carlmorrell (Jan 23, 2014)

Brian & Jim,

The product I used was made by a company called "Parks".  On the box is says "Parks Wood Bleach".  I was pretty sure I got it at either Lowes or Home Depot, but neither site shows that item. 

If I had realized what I had was a rare commodity, I would not have been so liberal with it.


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## Jim Burr (Jan 23, 2014)

Thanks Carl...on the hunt!!


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## OZturner (Jan 23, 2014)

Carl, I looked up Prof Google, and the MDS for that product Parks Wood Bleach is H2O2 Hydrogen Peroxide, the Data sheet gave <30% while the description mentioned over 30%. I am not certain what is in Solution "B" as the result of Hydrogen Peroxide is water and oxygen.
Brian.


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## carlmorrell (Jan 23, 2014)

I just looked at the box, and the bottles, the best I could come up with was

Part A:  Sodium Hydroxide CAS#1310-73-2
Part B: Hydrogen Peroxide CAS#7722-84-1


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## Jim Burr (Jan 23, 2014)

carlmorrell said:


> I just looked at the box, and the bottles, the best I could come up with was
> 
> Part A:  Sodium Hydroxide CAS#1310-73-2
> Part B: Hydrogen Peroxide CAS#7722-84-1


 
Several options out there....let's all do our due diligence and see what works for each individual.


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## toddlajoie (Jan 23, 2014)

Sodium Hydroxide is otherwise known as Lye or Caustic Soda. Was used in bleaching wood pulp for paper. Nasty dangerous stuff, can cause sever burns and permanent scarring (watch Fight Club...)

Hydrogen Peroxide would neutralize it. 

High concentrations of both can be VERY dangerous, and I'm no chemist, but I have to assume that if this was a consumer product, the concentrations can't be considered high, but I would still suggest handling with caution and protective gear...

For me, regular laundry bleach works just as well without the stress...

By the way, the pen looks FANTASTIC!!!! If you want to keep playing, hit it with some dye after the bleach is neutralized...


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## carlmorrell (Jan 23, 2014)

Believe it or not, I was able to date the package back to 1996. maybe there's a reason one can not buy this at HomeDepot any longer. 

I thought I read somewhere that household bleach (clorox) would not lighten wood, only help remove any dye coloring.


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## toddlajoie (Jan 23, 2014)

carlmorrell said:


> I thought I read somewhere that household bleach (clorox) would not lighten wood, only help remove any dye coloring.



I just use straight (as in not diluted) generic laundry bleach, I forget what the actual % chlorine these bleaches are, but it is worth noting that this is not 100% chlorine, but just strait out of the bottle the little woman keeps next the the washing machine...







Here's one I dyed red afterwards...


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## Cmiles1985 (Jan 23, 2014)

That is a very beautiful pen!

Also, household bleach, with prolonged exposure, will cause delignification of the wood. This may not matter much for pen turning, and household bleach may not be strong enough to do that as sodium hypochlorite rapidly degrades to become a very dilute solution.


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## mark james (Jan 23, 2014)

The pen blanks look really great - Nice job!!!  I'll look-up this thread after everyone nails down the references!!!  Nice work!


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## mark james (Jan 23, 2014)

toddlajoie said:


> carlmorrell said:
> 
> 
> > I thought I read somewhere that household bleach (clorox) would not lighten wood, only help remove any dye coloring.
> ...



I like the pens AND THE PICS!!!  Thanks for the detail!!!!


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## Fishinbo (Jan 27, 2014)

Totally cool pens! Like the cool effects, the process really makes the pretty grains stand out. Like as well the red dyed one, looks attractive. Great job!


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