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wood for peppermills

M

Max Taylor

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Fort Worth, TX
what about spalted woods for peppermills since the spalting is starting to rot? Also cocobolo since it is toxic to some people? Am starting to turn some and didnt want to use the wrong wood. Thanky, Max
 
The pepper ought to hold the mold at bay pretty well. It's not exactly easy on the human organism either, you know, but, like everything short of allergy, it's dose-dependant.

Y'know, if they had to list the ingredients in as simple a thing as an orange (commercial about that) you'd be scared to death reading about the stuff in it.
 
Peppermills

Dustpan,
One sure way to not worry about the spalted wood is to seal the inside of the mill with sanding sealer, or lacquer. That way there is almost no unsealed area in contact with the pepper (or salt). That's what I have done with my mills, and because I was also worried that the spalting might impart a musty smell to the pepper. I also recommend the sealing if the woods are green.
KurtB:D
 
MichaelMouse said:
Y'know, if they had to list the ingredients in as simple a thing as an orange (commercial about that) you'd be scared to death reading about the stuff in it.
Click to expand...

Many years ago, I saw a chemical analysis of a ripe strawberry. I've wondered why strawberries don't carry several dozen California Proposition 65 warning labels.
 
I've always thought that it would be nice if there was a plastic insert available to keep the pepper (or salt) from being "seasoned" by the wood -- I would like to turn some peppermills out of cedar, but I would not want to season my food with something that imparted more of a cedar seasoning aroma than it did the pepper seasoning. The oils in some woods like cedar can soften finishes in a closed environment like the inside of a chest which implies that it would do the same thing to the inside of a peppermill. That might create quite a mess.
 
With something like spalting, your real concerns should be with inhaling the dust. I'd imagine you could eat a fair amount of spalted wood and it wouldn't have any worse effect on you than eating regular wood (which would technically qualify as non-digestable fiber and will get you quite spectacular results along that line). Our stomachs are designed to take quite the beating as opposed to our lungs, which are very sensative (just try inhaling powdered tang sometime). Also, any wood that gets into the pepper will be such a tiny amount that it would count as insignificant.

Now flavoring the pepper is another story. I'd imagine a cedar mill would give you some pretty distinctly flavored pepper.

As for the exotics, I really can't say but would suspect the whole "insignificant amounts" and "minimal exposure" thing would come into play.

dk
 
Sealer

Hey folks, you can seal the interior of those mills with a food safe product like Shellac. That's right, after a few days the alcohol dispisates and the shellac is food safe. I've done this for years. I use "Shine juice" and put a few coats on the interior before I assemble. I let it stand for a few days and it's just like a plastic liner.
 
My thanks to one and all for your contributions. I can sleep better at nite now. sure helps to tap into this resource for expert advice, Thanky, Max
 
sumac?

Is this poison sumac, or the tree type that I have growing (and dies after a few years) along my tree line. Don't know the scientific name. I just turned 2 "baby" bowls yesterday from it. It this what you mean? Gretch
 
The one you're talking about is probably our old friend R. typhina, or "staghorn" sumac. Seems I remember a sort of milky bitter sap from kid play long ago, but it didn't adversely affect me or my playmates. There are, however, some nasty ones out there in the Rhus genus. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumac
 
What about cocobolo?

This christmas I have turned a few pepper mill and salt shakers out of cherry and bird's eye maple. I have also turned two out of cocobolo and was looking into the type of finish to use on these. There have been previous posts on finishing cocobolo most of which recommended buffing it without a finish as the wood has a fair amount of oil naturally. There are some small craks in the cocobolo and the grain in certain areas is quite open. I am concerned that these small defects will fill with dirt over time. Should I try to put on a finish such as wipe on poly, salad bowl finish, or let them be? They are for family members so I can give them unfinished for Christmas and still apply a finish later.

Thanks for any suggestions and have a very wonderful Holiday season all of you who read this.

Marc at Teal Lake
 
Varnish over cocobolo will be problematic in drying properly on the interior, but not the exterior. I suspect that shellac would do better, but I haven't tried it to confirm that suspicion. I suspect that an epoxy based clear finish also would work, but would need time to outgas -- something that it does for quite a while. Otherwise, the smell might be objectionable.
 
Peppermills

Hi Marc,
I have turned a couple of peppermills in cocobolo, and a tool handle, and some Raffan type boxes, all finished with Hut Crystal Coat, and they all looked bright and shiny. After they sit, they buff up nicely with the carnauba wax on the Beall buff. You can leave the inside of the peppermill raw if you want.
KurtB:)
 
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