Replies

1. 
   Paul_Snyder | Apr 24, 2005 05:34pm | #1

   Jim,

   Are you thinking of the semi-transparent varnishes of the 30's & 40's? Very dark brown or black with the wood grain still visible? Or do you want a black, opaque finish?

   Paul S
   Website

1. 
   jmgalvin | Apr 25, 2005 02:28am | #2

   PaulSemi transparent is what I'm looking forJim

1. 
   Paul_Snyder | Apr 26, 2005 01:20am | #4

   Those finishes were made with varnish and pigments Jim. Basically an oil-base paint that didn't have enough pigments to completely hide the wood. You could do an ebony finish like Will George recommends or you could have some oil-base paint mixed so that it's semi-transparent. Or you could add some black japan pigments to an oil-base varnish.The problem you'll have with applying the paint/varnish with pigments in it is keeping the coloring even. If you're spraying, it'll be easier.Is the wood black or just the finish (do the light highlights of the wood show through the finish)? Are you spraying or applying the finish by hand?
   Paul S
   Website

2. 
   WillGeorge | Apr 25, 2005 10:09pm | #3

   Just me.. Take some scrap of the wood you have.. Stain with India Ink and varnish it..

   See if it is what you want..  Just me...

3. 
   cowtown | Apr 26, 2005 10:25am | #5

   You might be able to get that really black look by smashing up some old 78 records and tossing them into a bottle with some alcohol, making, as it were yer own "black shellac" which wipes on and dries in an instant.

   I dunno if the new-fangled finishes include an "ebony" tinted polyurethanes available at the Home Despot-like stores, , but I would be looking to that for durability and also to provide "depth" to the finish.

   Try a sample first and get SWMBO's approval. No sense generating the situation where you would have to strip down the whole shebang if it didn't pass muster.

   Eric
   in Calgary