How a burner works
A burner heats a point and you draw with it; where the point touches, the wood scorches brown. Two kinds are sold. A wire-point machine has a separate control unit and a light pen whose tip is a short loop of resistance wire, heated by current from the unit and adjustable with a dial; this page describes one of Robert Sorby's, from its manual. Solid-point burners, often sold as a wood burning tool kit with a set of interchangeable tips, heat a solid tip fitted to the pen itself. Every burner's heat range, tips and tip changes are set by its own manual.
Setting the heat
Sorby's instructions are short: before switching on, make sure the point is touching nothing and turn the dial to minimum; then switch on and raise the heat slowly until the point glows a dull red. Too high a setting quickly burns out a fine point, makes it bend easily and gives fuzzy outlines. If the point glows bright orange or yellow, turn it down.
The numbers on the dial are only a rough guide to remember a setting by — Sorby says they are not calibrated and vary from machine to machine, and older models may give a different temperature at the same number. A thicker point needs a higher setting to reach the same heat. Most users leave the dial at one setting and vary the burn by the speed of the stroke.
Tone comes from contact time
How dark and how wide a line burns depends on how long the point is in contact, not on pressure. A slow stroke gives a thick, dark line; a quick one with very little pressure gives a fine one. A pause leaves a blob, so strokes are started and finished in the air with the pen already moving. Pressing hard does not burn darker; it bends the wire point.
Points
| Point | Used for |
|---|---|
| Standard loop | General work and detail |
| Spoon | Shading; its edge for fine lines, fur, feathers and grass |
| Coil | Heavy burning on large work such as nameplate lettering; held just above the surface, a soft-edged mark |
From the Robert Sorby manual. Sorby also describes points made by the user from its Nichrome wire.
To change a point, switch off and let the pen cool, loosen the terminal screws without bending the struts, and clamp the new wire between the strut and the nut, not under the screw head. Sorby says to use only Nichrome wire, and its warranty terms say substitute wire will burn out the transformer.
Wood and other surfaces
| Surface | Sorby's assessment |
|---|---|
| Hard white woods: sycamore, maple, holly, hornbeam, boxwood | The best; the harder the surface, the better the result |
| Dark woods | Usable, with less contrast |
| Softwood such as pine | Difficult: too soft, and the resin gums up the point |
| Fruitwoods such as apple and cherry | Lose contrast as the wood darkens with age |
| Birch plywood | Economical for practice; rather soft for fine detail |
| Sycamore veneer on a rigid backing | An excellent surface |
Sorby's list. Its wood names are British: sycamore here is the European maple, not American sycamore.
Safety— Never burn
Wood that is pressure-treated or otherwise preservative-treated — the EPA says not to burn it in a home because of the toxic chemicals in the smoke and ash — and plastics, synthetic materials, or wood coated with a synthetic polish or varnish, which Sorby says not to burn. If you do not know what a piece of wood has been treated or finished with, do not burn it.
Fumes and fire
- Smoke. Sorby treats a small desk fan drawing the smoke away as the minimum, with ventilation for the room; fans with carbon filters are available. Anyone with a respiratory condition should take specialist advice first.
- The hot point. It can start a fire: keep the machine away from flammable materials, liquids and polishes that give off flammable vapour, and keep the point off the cable, skin and clothing.
- Never lay the pen down. Store it in the clip on the control unit between strokes.
- Never leave it on unattended, and supervise children whenever the machine is on.
General shop rules are in woodworking safety rules; carving tools, which are often used alongside a burner, are covered in wood carving tools.
Getting a design onto the wood
Drawing skill is not needed. Sorby suggests tracing a design onto the wood with graphite paper (better than carbon paper), or placing a laser-printed or photocopied sheet face down and ironing it with a domestic iron, which melts the toner onto the wood. Transfer only as much as you need for a guide: excess toner cannot be removed. Sand the surface smooth first; sanding wood covers grits.
First practice strokes
Set up
Clamp a smooth offcut of a hard, pale wood to the bench, with a fan drawing smoke away and nothing flammable near.
Heat the point
With the point touching nothing, set the dial to minimum, switch on and raise it slowly until the point glows dull red.
Burn lines
Draw lines at different speeds with light, even pressure, starting and finishing each stroke in the air. Note the speed that gives the tone you want.
Try shading
Fit the spoon point (switched off and cooled first) and shade a patch with overlapping strokes, building tone with repeated passes rather than slowing down.
Switch off
Return the pen to its clip and switch off. Never leave the machine on unattended.
Burned work is usually finished like any other wood; wood finishes explains the choices. Carving and burning are often combined, with a burned line outlining a carved shape — see wood carving projects for designs to carve.
Before burning
- Wood known to be untreated and unfinished
- A fan drawing smoke away and the room ventilated
- Nothing flammable on or near the bench; cable clear of the work
- Dial at minimum before switching on
- Pen kept in its clip between strokes, and the machine never left on
Sources
Machine settings, points and safety rules are Robert Sorby's for its own wire-point machine, from its manual on its own site; they are not general figures, and other burners — including solid-point burners sold in kits — follow their own manuals, which this page did not review. The wood list is Sorby's. The treated-wood warning is the EPA's. No temperature is given because Sorby's dial is not calibrated and the manual gives none.
- 1.
Artist's Pyrography Machine Manual. Robert Sorby.
Used for: The Artist's Pyrography Machine: points hot enough to start a fire; not used near flammable materials, liquids or polishes; the pen kept in its clip, never laid down, and the hot point away from the cable, skin and clothing; a small desk fan as the minimum, room ventilation, carbon-filter fans, specialist advice for respiratory complaints, and no burning of plastics, synthetics or wood coated with synthetic polish or varnish; not left switched on unattended; children supervised; the dial at minimum before switching on and raised until the point glows dull red, turned down if bright orange or yellow; dial numbers not calibrated and varying between machines; thicker points needing higher settings; line depth and width set by contact time, with light, even pressure and strokes started and finished in the air; standard loop, spoon and coil points; switching off and cooling before changing a point, with the wire clamped between strut and nut; only Nichrome wire; hard white woods such as sycamore, maple, holly, hornbeam and boxwood best, softwood difficult because resin gums the point, fruitwoods losing contrast as they darken, birch plywood for practice; designs traced with graphite paper or transferred from a laser print with a domestic iron.
- 2.
Pyrography Terms & Conditions. Robert Sorby.
Used for: Only the nickel chrome wire or points supplied for the machine to be used; substitutes burning out the transformer and invalidating the warranty.
- 3.
Chromated Arsenicals (CCA). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2025.
Used for: CCA or other preservative-treated wood not to be burned in a residential setting, to avoid inhaling toxic chemicals in the smoke and ash; chromated arsenicals discontinued for most residential uses at the end of 2003.
About this reference
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