I'm in the process of staining an old oak coffee table using a "triclad wiping
stain" espresso in color (dark brown). After 3 coats (wiping after each coat),
the oak doesn't seem to be absorbing much more of the stain and therefore the
color isn't getting as dark as I would like. I'm wondering if it's a good idea
to apply another coat and just letting it dry without wiping. This would get it
dark enough (though it wouldn't show much grain), but will the stain dry hard
enough? Perhaps I should follow this up with a polyurethane or varnish top
coat? Thanks in advance for any advice.
Making the stain darker usually won't give you the darkening effect you
want. You will need to use a toner. A toner is nothing more than a stain
in shellac, lacquer, varnish, or polyurethane. They are typically sprayed
over a stained piece to avoid lap marks from brushing which can be darker
than the rest of the brushed coating. That said, I brush toners that I make
from TransTint dyes and shellac. You just can't make the toner too dark to
start with.
Toners are what professional finishers / refinishers use. They are also
used in the new furniture business. They can be used to even out the color
of a piece when used appropriately.
Glazes are stains in a thick medium that are opaque or nearly so. I
don't think this is what you want.
Good Luck.
To reply directly, remove both NGs.
"Sb083459" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I'm in the process of staining an old oak coffee table using a "triclad
wiping
> stain" espresso in color (dark brown). After 3 coats (wiping after each
coat),
> the oak doesn't seem to be absorbing much more of the stain and therefore
the
> color isn't getting as dark as I would like. I'm wondering if it's a good
idea
> to apply another coat and just letting it dry without wiping. This would
get it
> dark enough (though it wouldn't show much grain), but will the stain dry
hard
> enough? Perhaps I should follow this up with a polyurethane or varnish top
> coat? Thanks in advance for any advice.
[email protected] (Sb083459) wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> I'm in the process of staining an old oak coffee table using a "triclad wiping
> stain" espresso in color (dark brown). After 3 coats (wiping after each coat),
> the oak doesn't seem to be absorbing much more of the stain and therefore the
> color isn't getting as dark as I would like. I'm wondering if it's a good idea
> to apply another coat and just letting it dry without wiping. This would get it
> dark enough (though it wouldn't show much grain), but will the stain dry hard
> enough? Perhaps I should follow this up with a polyurethane or varnish top
> coat? Thanks in advance for any advice.
You can apply the stain and not wipe it off or at least not wipe all
of it off to achieve a darker color. It may take a while (several
days) to dry. In future projects using a dye on raw oak will easily
get the oak as dark as you want (you'll usually have to follow with a
gel stain to color the pores). I read another post describing sanding
with a lower grit to get a darker stain. This is true, but the affect
is sometimes not that dramatic. Finally, at this point you can add a
glaze (thick stain) or a toner (pigment or dye in a top coat) A thick
gel stain (bartley's or wood-kote) can be used as a glaze and
polyshades (minwax polyurethane/stain mix) can be used as a brush-on
toner. The glaze method has the advantage of being reversible by
wiping it off with mineral spirits before it dries if you don't like
it.
Charles Lerner
mix a little black rustolium paint in the stain, try on a test piece
Sb083459 wrote:
> I'm in the process of staining an old oak coffee table using a "triclad wiping
> stain" espresso in color (dark brown). After 3 coats (wiping after each coat),
> the oak doesn't seem to be absorbing much more of the stain and therefore the
> color isn't getting as dark as I would like. I'm wondering if it's a good idea
> to apply another coat and just letting it dry without wiping. This would get it
> dark enough (though it wouldn't show much grain), but will the stain dry hard
> enough? Perhaps I should follow this up with a polyurethane or varnish top
> coat? Thanks in advance for any advice.
>
Maybe you could try amonnia fuming which I just read about in another post.
Kevin
"Chris Merrill" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Leon wrote:
> > Apparently you need a darker color stain to begin with..
>
> I'm not sure that will help. As I understand it, a pigment-based stain
> will have problems penetrating the earlywood (or is it the latewood?)
> because the pores are so small. Of course, the other areas have huge
> pores for the pigment to settle in. This is why stained (flatsawn)
> oak has such dramatic patterns when stained.
>
> The way I understand it, a dye would be more effective, as it can
> penetrate into the wood fibers.
>
> disclaimer: this could be a horrible mis-representation of what I
> read...so I recommend checking out Flexner's 'Understanding Wood
> Finishing' for yourself.
>
> --
> ************************************
> Chris Merrill
> [email protected]
> (remove the ZZZ to contact me)
> ************************************
>
maybe you made the mistake I made years ago with a maple desk? I sanded
with 400 grit. It wouldn't take stain. My bad! I was about 22 years old
and that desk was my first refinishing project. I learned from that
little boo boo. I resanded it with 150 and it took the stain
beautifully. 'Course maple sanded to 400 is gonna be a lot harder to
stain than oak...
dave
Sb083459 wrote:
> I'm in the process of staining an old oak coffee table using a "triclad wiping
> stain" espresso in color (dark brown). After 3 coats (wiping after each coat),
> the oak doesn't seem to be absorbing much more of the stain and therefore the
> color isn't getting as dark as I would like. I'm wondering if it's a good idea
> to apply another coat and just letting it dry without wiping. This would get it
> dark enough (though it wouldn't show much grain), but will the stain dry hard
> enough? Perhaps I should follow this up with a polyurethane or varnish top
> coat? Thanks in advance for any advice.
Thanks to all who replied. What I should have done is used a dye on the wood
instead of or prior to staining. What I ended up doing (since I had already
stained the table) was applying a final coat of stain fairly thick and letting
it dry for a couple of days without wiping, which resulted in a dark finish,
but it covered up more of the grain than I would like. Covered it with a poly
clearcoat and it looks okay. I'll see how it wears and if necessary, I'll strip
off the finish and start again. Should have done my research beforehand!
I have learned a LOT about finishing visiting
www.homesteadfinishing.com, www.targetcoatings.com, and
www.woodfinishing.com and reading their forums and Jeff at Homestead
has articles as well.
On Sat, 11 Oct 2003 02:39:35 GMT, Chris Merrill
<[email protected]> wrote:
>Sb083459 wrote:
>> Should have done my research beforehand!
>
>The only reason I knew the answer is that I've made the same mistake.
>IIRC, it was shortly before I decided that I should put as much effort
>into learning about finishing as I put into other parts of the project.
Sb083459 wrote:
> Should have done my research beforehand!
The only reason I knew the answer is that I've made the same mistake.
IIRC, it was shortly before I decided that I should put as much effort
into learning about finishing as I put into other parts of the project.
I got the Flexner book and never looked back!
--
************************************
Chris Merrill
[email protected]
(remove the ZZZ to contact me)
************************************
TransTint dyes can be mixed with several finishes and sprayed on which
doesn't obscure grain like pigment stains do.
On 10 Oct 2003 04:46:45 GMT, [email protected] (Sb083459) wrote:
>What I ended up doing (since I had already stained the table) was applying a final coat of stain fairly thick and letting
>it dry for a couple of days without wiping, which resulted in a dark finish, but it covered up more of the grain than I would like.
Leon wrote:
> Apparently you need a darker color stain to begin with..
I'm not sure that will help. As I understand it, a pigment-based stain
will have problems penetrating the earlywood (or is it the latewood?)
because the pores are so small. Of course, the other areas have huge
pores for the pigment to settle in. This is why stained (flatsawn)
oak has such dramatic patterns when stained.
The way I understand it, a dye would be more effective, as it can
penetrate into the wood fibers.
disclaimer: this could be a horrible mis-representation of what I
read...so I recommend checking out Flexner's 'Understanding Wood
Finishing' for yourself.
--
************************************
Chris Merrill
[email protected]
(remove the ZZZ to contact me)
************************************
www.woodfinishingsupplies.com forum is discussing this topic.
On Wed, 08 Oct 2003 00:09:22 GMT, Chris Merrill
<[email protected]> wrote:
>The way I understand it, a dye would be more effective, as it can
>penetrate into the wood fibers.
>
>disclaimer: this could be a horrible mis-representation of what I
>read...so I recommend checking out Flexner's 'Understanding Wood
>Finishing' for yourself.
Apparently you need a darker color stain to begin with..
"Sb083459" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I'm in the process of staining an old oak coffee table using a "triclad
wiping
> stain" espresso in color (dark brown). After 3 coats (wiping after each
coat),
> the oak doesn't seem to be absorbing much more of the stain and therefore
the
> color isn't getting as dark as I would like. I'm wondering if it's a good
idea
> to apply another coat and just letting it dry without wiping. This would
get it
> dark enough (though it wouldn't show much grain), but will the stain dry
hard
> enough? Perhaps I should follow this up with a polyurethane or varnish top
> coat? Thanks in advance for any advice.
I got a nice dark color out of a piece of ply that I used for an artsy
fartsy decoupage sort of thingy I did back in the 70's. Remember the
pictures that were mounted on wood that had beveled, chunked up edges?
I used my torch to get that dark wood look, before putting the poster on
it and coating it with resin.
dave
Leon wrote:
> Apparently you need a darker color stain to begin with..
>
>
>
> "Sb083459" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>
>>I'm in the process of staining an old oak coffee table using a "triclad
>
> wiping
>
>>stain" espresso in color (dark brown). After 3 coats (wiping after each
>
> coat),
>
>>the oak doesn't seem to be absorbing much more of the stain and therefore
>
> the
>
>>color isn't getting as dark as I would like. I'm wondering if it's a good
>
> idea
>
>>to apply another coat and just letting it dry without wiping. This would
>
> get it
>
>>dark enough (though it wouldn't show much grain), but will the stain dry
>
> hard
>
>>enough? Perhaps I should follow this up with a polyurethane or varnish top
>>coat? Thanks in advance for any advice.
>
>
>