India and Pakistan finish

[Lancer Gooding]

Does anyone know where the lak sticks that are different colors that india woodturners apply to there turned work and then smooth out and get a high gloss finish can be purchased. I believe they call the lak sticks battis and the palm stick is called rangatha and then they use ground nut oil to complete the piece. I have looked every where for those color sticks and cant seem to find any. Any help to locate or get me on right path will be much appreciated listed.

 

[Brian Gustin]

Lac sticks? I'd wonder if it is not simply Shellac, in which case, might be as simple as getting yourself some shellac flakes , mix em in alcohol just enough to dampen them and mold them into your sticks, problem solved? Shellac can come in various colors naturally, as well as I believe you can mix in colored dyes to give them a particular tint...

 

[Chris Hoehle]

They do sell shellac sticks, might be what you are looking for.

 

[Gerald Lawrence]

I think that lacquer sticks are what they use to repair furniture finishes.
Lacquer Sticks

 

[Lancer Gooding]

thanks for input but I'm talking about this colored lac sticks they make in this video.

 

[Tim Connell]

Shellac.net sells button lac, get yourself some bulk turmeric on Amazon and you are good to go. Doubt what you see them making in the video, for their own use, is available for purchase.

Lots of different colored spices for different colors, (flavors).

 

[Bill Boehme]

You can use Chestnut dyes. I apply the dye to bare wood for best chatoyance and topcoat with spray lacquer.

 

[Tom Lesser]

Does anyone know where the lak sticks that are different colors that india woodturners apply to there turned work and then smooth out and get a high gloss finish can be purchased. I believe they call the lak sticks battis and the palm stick is called rangatha and then they use ground nut oil to complete the piece. I have looked every where for those color sticks and cant seem to find any. Any help to locate or get me on right path will be much appreciated listed.

I have been interested, too. Here is some good info: https://blog.indicinspirations.com/channapatna-wooden-toys-for-kids/

 

[Gerald Lawrence]

Found this online a pretty easy Google search
Lacquer Sticks

 

[Steve Tiedman]

I have been interested, too. Here is some good info: https://blog.indicinspirations.com/channapatna-wooden-toys-for-kids/

Interesting. Because of the last statement's indication of a short product usability life (quoted below), I doubt we'd ever see lac sticks (a shellac product, not lacquer) available to purchase on the international market. But Lancer's video above shows the manufacturing process. Looks simple enough.

"Preparation of lac-sticks -Lac sticks are created by mixing lac (Shellac) -a non-toxic 100% natural resin and natural dyes/ colours. Shelac is the secretion of a tiny insect which is found on certain trees. It has been used in India since ancient time. Lac is heated directly on charcoal fire. Once it melts dye (extracted from naturally available sources like plants, trees or minerals) is added. It is then thoroughly mixed. kneaded and made into long rods and made into small lac sticks. Red colour sticks are made mixing kumkum powder with lac. Yellow colour sticks are made mixing turmeric with lac. Green colour sticks are made indigo and tumeric.

These sticks cannot be preserved long and must be used within a month. Thereafter the lac becomes hard and is rendered unfit."

 

[John K Jordan]

These sticks cannot be preserved long and must be used within a month. Thereafter the lac becomes hard and is rendered unfit."

Speculation:

Since the lac sticks appear to be colored shellac, and ethanol alcohol is the preferred solvent, perhaps the lifetime limit is due to the stick becoming hard as the alcohol slowly evaporates. The video shows a metal bowl with a clear liquid the person adds to the mixture; perhaps that’s the alcohol. Perhaps the life of the sticks could be extended by storing them in a tight glass container with a bit of alcohol in the bottom.

Since rubbing the lac sticks on the wood appears to be a method of applying friction polish. This was documented in an article by an English explorer in India in the 1600’s who watched a craftsman turn “household items” then apply lac bug secretions to the spinning wood with friction. I suspect color in some form (dye? pigment?) could be added to today’s off-the-shelf friction polish such as the shellac-based Mylands. However, that stuff goes on pretty thin and requires multiple coats to get the “high build” advertised on the can’s label.

I’ve applied Mylands friction polish over color on the wood but I don’t remember what I eventually did to prevent color bleeding from the heat and the alcohol - I might have used pigment-based colored india ink, wonderful stuff.

JKJ

 

[Steve Tiedman]

Speculation:

Since the lac sticks appear to be colored shellac, and ethanol alcohol is the preferred solvent, perhaps the lifetime limit is due to the stick becoming hard as the alcohol slowly evaporates. The video shows a metal bowl with a clear liquid the person adds to the mixture; perhaps that’s the alcohol. Perhaps the life of the sticks could be extended by storing them in a tight glass container with a bit of alcohol in the bottom.

Since rubbing the lac sticks on the wood appears to be a method of applying friction polish. This was documented in an article by an English explorer in India in the 1600’s who watched a craftsman turn “household items” then apply lac bug secretions to the spinning wood with friction. I suspect color in some form (dye? pigment?) could be added to today’s off-the-shelf friction polish such as the shellac-based Mylands. However, that stuff goes on pretty thin and requires multiple coats to get the “high build” advertised on the can’s label.

I’ve applied Mylands friction polish over color on the wood but I don’t remember what I eventually did to prevent color bleeding from the heat and the alcohol - I might have used pigment-based colored india ink, wonderful stuff.

JKJ

I think I need to clarify- it's their claim, not mine. I just added the bold font as part of the quote.

 

[Lancer Gooding]

Interesting. Because of the last statement's indication of a short product usability life (quoted below), I doubt we'd ever see lac sticks (a shellac product, not lacquer) available to purchase on the international market. But Lancer's video above shows the manufacturing process. Looks simple enough.

"Preparation of lac-sticks -Lac sticks are created by mixing lac (Shellac) -a non-toxic 100% natural resin and natural dyes/ colours. Shelac is the secretion of a tiny insect which is found on certain trees. It has been used in India since ancient time. Lac is heated directly on charcoal fire. Once it melts dye (extracted from naturally available sources like plants, trees or minerals) is added. It is then thoroughly mixed. kneaded and made into long rods and made into small lac sticks. Red colour sticks are made mixing kumkum powder with lac. Yellow colour sticks are made mixing turmeric with lac. Green colour sticks are made indigo and tumeric.

These sticks cannot be preserved long and must be used within a month. Thereafter the lac becomes hard and is rendered unfit."

I have tried this and I must not be doing something right cause it never comes out right. But I'll keep trying and if and when I get it solved I will let everyone know. And if someone else figures it out before I do please post on how you did it. Thanks.

 

[Rick Moreton]

I have seen a_woodworkers_son_ on Instagram mixing mica powders with shellac and making colored sticks to finish a few turnings. He seems to be trying to figure this out as well.