Rx300 Wood Trim; Is It Walnut "burl" ?

[LexKid630]

Is the wood trim in the rx300 (NOT coach ED) walnut burl? I need to buy a piece of veneer to make a piece for the rx300. Not sure if it's just walnut OR burl in the rx300.

I want to make "21" (see pic)

Thanks for your input!

[LexKid630]

Also, when i get the piece cut and stained, what should i use to make it look like the rest of the pieces? I mean the perfetly smooth and even "glass" finish...I don't want to be able to "feel" the grain after it's done...The final clearcoat needs to be perfectly flat across.

I have done a lot of wood working, but have never needed to make it look like "glass" without the grain being raised etc... Should i just add a trillion thin coats of clear acrylic? Then wet-sand and polish afterwards?

anyone else done this before? LOL I think i'm trying to do the impossible?

PLEASE any suggestions.

[bartkat]

Use a sealer, then hit it with a couple coats of clear.

[LexKid630]

Use a sealer, then hit it with a couple coats of clear.

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What should i use as a sealer over the stain? Isn't the clear acrylic sort of a sealer?

[indiasfinest]

why do u need this wood in the first place...srry for going off topic

[LexKid630]

why do u need this wood in the first place...srry for going off topic

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just a little more wood trim. I think it will look REALLY nice. The area i wanna put this is so plain. The wood will brighten it up a bit.

It will look more like the 330 which has "fake" wood on the top of the center console drawer.

I want real wood and don't feel light spending $159 for 29 pieces when i only want one.

[amf1932]

It will look more like the 330 which has "fake"  wood on the top of the center console drawer.

I thought that ALL the wood trim used on either the ES300's or 330's were made of REAL wood.

[LexKid630]

It will look more like the 330 which has "fake"  wood on the top of the center console drawer.

I thought that ALL the wood trim used on either the ES300's or 330's were made of REAL wood.

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That has been a never ending arguement....no1 knows for sure if it's real or not....but it does look fake as far as i can tell.

[amf1932]

It will look more like the 330 which has "fake"  wood on the top of the center console drawer.

I thought that ALL the wood trim used on either the ES300's or 330's were made of REAL wood.

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That has been a never ending arguement....no1 knows for sure if it's real or not....but it does look fake as far as i can tell.

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I still don't understand why it should be an argument since the Lexus Corporation claims that they use real wood in all the trim! I don't think they'd lie about that since they can be brought to court for lying! :chairshot:

[LexKid630]

I guess the only way to tell is if someone rips up one of the veneer sheets and cracks it to see if it's real.

It surely feels and looks fake. You can tell if you lightly tap on it. Any other lexus wood feels and looks different.

[amf1932]

I guess the only way to tell is if someone rips up one of the veneer sheets and cracks it to see if it's real.

It surely feels and looks fake. You can tell if you lightly tap on it. Any other lexus wood feels and looks different.

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Then I guess you don't believe what Lexus claims.

Then the next step is to ask SW03ES. :P :D :P

[LexKid630]

I guess the only way to tell is if someone rips up one of the veneer sheets and cracks it to see if it's real.

It surely feels and looks fake. You can tell if you lightly tap on it. Any other lexus wood feels and looks different.

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Then I guess you don't believe what Lexus claims.

Then the next step is to ask SW03ES. :P :D :P

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http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...c=22253&hl=trim

[lexus411]

its real. Thin but real.

[LexKid630]

its real. Thin but real.

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Ok lets just get away from that old argument and back onto the rx300 LOL

So the wood is or is nOT walnut burl?

[bartkat]

Use a sealer, then hit it with a couple coats of clear.

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What should i use as a sealer over the stain? Isn't the clear acrylic sort of a sealer?

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I use a sanding sealer over the stain on walnut gun stocks. It seals up the pores and grain so the clear coat comes out smooth. Acts as a leveling agent so you don't end up with tiny ridges due to the wood grain.

[LexKid630]

Acts as a leveling agent so you don't end up with tiny ridges due to the wood grain.

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That's EXACTLY what i have to avoid! Thanks i'll deffinetly try that. :D :)

So it is walnut burl?? LOL

[bartkat]

Acts as a leveling agent so you don't end up with tiny ridges due to the wood grain.

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That's EXACTLY what i have to avoid! Thanks i'll deffinetly try that. :D :)

So it is walnut burl?? LOL

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I have no idea what kind of wood it is. My poor little IS300 don't have no wood. :D

[LexKid630]

Acts as a leveling agent so you don't end up with tiny ridges due to the wood grain.

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That's EXACTLY what i have to avoid! Thanks i'll deffinetly try that. :D :)

So it is walnut burl?? LOL

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I have no idea what kind of wood it is. My poor little IS300 don't have no wood. :D

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I'm just asking in general if the rx300 wood is walnut burl. I'm sure it's walnut, but i can't find out if it's "burl" :(

The faster i get the wood the faster i'll get this thing done!! LOL

[SW03ES]

The wood in the RX300 is real, the wood trim on the console and doors in the RX330 is fake, the steering wheel and shift knob on the RX330 are the only portions that are real. All other Lexus' have real wood everywhere.

My advice about this is to try and buy that peice of trim from a wood dash company. The peices they use are so thin and flexible so that they conform to the space and resist the UV dying from the sun, resist peeling up because of heat, and are designed to match the genuine wood. Some wood dash companies will sell individual peices and I doubt you'll be able to replicate that on your own.

But, then again, we've seen pictures of some of the totally amazing things you've done, so who knows lol

[bartkat]

All I know is straight grain is straight and burly is curly. The burly is usually more expensive.

Burl walnut.

Straight grain walnut.

[LexKid630]

The grain in the rx300 deffinetly looks like the burl. Thanks, that must be what it is.

I've tried looking around for only that one piece, but couldn't find a company that just sells that one piece.

Plus i think it'll be fun. i've built many things before and i think it'll be a good adventure.

Thanks for the help guys! I'll tell you how it turns out after i finish!

[LexKid630]

Well it arrived today!!! I stained it, let it dry a few hours under heat, and put on 2 thin coats of clear epoxy. I'll let it dry overnight, and put on a few more every few hours. I'll take it to work and baby-sit it LOL

It looks so nice. It's the burl; matches very well!

[LexKid630]

Forgot to update!

Actually, the walnut burl veneer i got on ebay was crap. There were WAY too many cracks, beyond fixing. I tried to fill the cracks but it was terrible. When i added the acrylic it just sank in the cracks...

Soooo i ended up buying (what i thought was walnut but was actually maple??) a chunk on ebay and cut it thin. It had a good grain so i kept it...

The wood was VERY light (maple) so i gave it a dark stain. Then i let it dry and now it was too brown!! So i looked for some red stains but they were all crap.

Don't laugh but i ended up using a soln' of water and red food coloring!! :whistles:

It dried perfectly and when i added TWENTY coats of clear acrylic it was the perfect match to the interior trim in the rx300.

After a month and a half of drying (actually i totally forgot about it) i sanded it, used rubbing compound, polishing compound, Meguiar's ScratchX and a few coats of wax until it was like glass!

Honestly, it looks like the piece was stock. The rx300 REALLY needed wood trim here!

Overall it was an inexpensive job that gave great results so i'm happy!

[SW03ES]

Cool, looks great!

[ArmyofOne]

Cool, looks great!

way to go! but we need better pix lol.