BVV Cactus Juice Stabilizing Resin for Woodworking - Cures & Hardens Soft Wood for DIY Projects, Carpentry - 1 Gallon Cactus Juice Resin - Activator Included

I build custom knives and therefore, custom knife scales (handles). Some of the prettiest handles I have fabricated have come from old, somewhat rotten logs. Even from totally rotten logs. I have picked logs off the bottom of an old log pile that were rotten. I stabilize them in a vacuum chamber with Cactus Juice and presto, I place old, soft, dry, rotten wood in the pot that you can twist between your thumb and your forefinger and it will disintegrate right there in front of your eyes and all that is left is dust and small pieces of rotted wood. Place this wood in a vacuum chamber and the vacuum chamber goes to work and sucks out all the oxygen in the wood. Meanwhile, it sucks up the Cactus Juice into the wood capillaries and fills up the many tiny, little straws inside the rotted wood with this resin. The resin is heat activated. After this treatment, the Cactus Juice can still be used. So I scrape off as much as I can and pour it back into the bottle. I have used my last gallon on over a dozen pots of old wood to stabilize and what comes out of the vacuum chamber is a piece of wood that is harder and more stable than a piece of brand new wood purchased from a box store. But, you're not through yet. The resin is heat activated. So the wet, slimy old pieces of wood are set out on a tray to drain off the Cactus Juice, which I once again, return to the original bottle. Then I place the slabs in a toaster oven, which hardens the plastic in the resin and voila, good wood, burls, and other exotic woods can be saved from the rot and turned into a work of art. I love this stuff. It sounds complicated, but believe me, it is not. If an old codger like me can do this, anyone can. Beautiful works of art are completed and it is fun, if you like exploring the unknown and building things.

If you are a woodturner who likes to turn beautiful, but unstable wood, this is a big help. I like to turn spalted wood, which sometimes has places that are starting to get soft. Cactus juice does a great job of bringing the wood to uniform hardness, so there is less or no tear out. It is best to use a vacuum chamber to have the Cactus Juice penetrate the wood completely. It is a thermoset material, so you need to find a way to heat it to the proper temperature. I do this in a well ventilated area so the smell doesn't get too strong. Overall a great, reliable product that fills a need for woodturners.

Works perfect for making knife handles.

I like the fact you can keep using product until it eventually used up. And curing at 200 degree makes it a very simple process. I just wish it wasn't so expensive.

great product for stabilizing wood.

Works as expected and you don't have to use it all at once. I pour it over heavily spalted and rotted wood then use a vacuum chamber to make sure it gets pulled all the way into it before baking it to harden. Haven't had wood explode in my face on the lathe. I'm satisfied.

I have not used this yet, but I have in the past and it works great. I build bows and use this to stabilize the exotic wood in the risers. Alway works great if you follow the directions.

Not sure why it is called cactus juice, but I have been using it to stabilize wood for turning and also adding color to the juice to infuse it into the wood. It is a great product for wood turners.