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I’m looking to fill the grain pores of bleached red oak before spraying a clear waterbased poly topcoat. I’ve tried several brands in their “natural” formulation, but even with a seal coat, the paste wood fillers darken the bleached oak too much, and if I sand the surface it removes the bleached fibers.
I tried tinting the natural fillers, but it thins the filler too much, leaving pores still open. If the tint were whiter, the pores would appear too white.
I’ve tried spraying 5 heavy coats of WB poly but the pores are DEEP, and I don’t want to build the finish too much!
I have heard there is a clear wood grain filler, but have not had luck finding a source. Any help will be greatly appreciated!
Mike
Replies
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Mike,
Are you using a water based filler or a oil based filler? I've only used the oil base which tends to be very thick. I have tinted it with Minwax Red Mahogany and mineral spirits to the consistency I liked. You could try the oil base product with your tint. However I'm not sure if there would be adheason problems with your top coat
*Try contacting this supplier. I have never used the product, but I understand the owner of the outlet is pretty helpful with technical advice, etc., should you require it. Slainte, RJ.
*Thank you for your help. I ordered Fuhr Aqualok Clear Grain Filler from Jeff Jewitt at Homestead Finishing. It just arrived, and I will try it out tomorrow!Mike
*Can we expand this disussion slightly? I have used wood filler to fill the grain on occasion in walnut. In cherry, there are often what I think are pitch pockets. While not big holes, they are a bit too big on a table top. i have experimented w/ the black wood filler I have, and when you put it on thick, it never really hardens. After a day, it has the consistency of shoe polish. Is there a specific expoxy type product i am not aware of, or just try another wood filler? thanks for your thoughts.
*I've just built an Arts and Crafts style coffee table with solid red oak and plan on staining it with a MinWax oil based stain and using polyurethane for the top coats.My questions are how to and if I need to use a filler for the oak before or after I stain, if yes what kind of filler and how to apply or can I make my own and how to and can I mix the stain with the filler?Any blotching problems with red oak like there is with cherry and pine?I've never built with oak before,so any help is much appreciated.Thanks,B.B.
*Chris, you can fill deep holes with any wood stopping or filler as it's often known. Sometimes you need to build it up a bit at a time until you get the surface level. This should allow the stuff to harden properly, but yes, there can be failures. I tend to prefer the water based fillers. What you do with it once you've filled the hole is another story. You may want to fake the surrounding grain, which is in essence a 'painting' job with small brushes powder colours and some varnish or french polish. Other times a good approach is to highlight the hole-- perhaps fill it with black or green, or red, etc.. Slainte, RJ.
*Butchyboy, there are no absolute hard and fast rules. I've finished oaks natural with no no pigment stain, nor a dye. I've dyed, and partially filled the grain with a grain filler, or I've fully choked the grain too prior to polishing. I've used proprietary glazes to sink into the pores and to highlight them, and I've stained oaks with pigment stain followed by polishing. I think you need to decide exactly what look you are after before anyone can give you specific advice, but as a pointer, a lot of modern Arts and Crafts style furniture is dyed, followed by a bit of polish to seal the grain, followed by applying a glaze to highlight the open grain pattern, followed by final polishing, and even that may be tinted for effect. The link I provided earlier takes you to a site where many finishing options are outlined. It might be worth a trip.Ragged grain is the most likely cause of any blotchiness in oaks in my experience. It's really down to careful preparation prior to applying the stain or dye. Slainte, RJ.
*Thanks RJ. I think I will try a different filler. I checked the sample, and it never hardened. Even where I applied it thin, it is still like shoe polish.PS> Any new articles on the horizon? I enjoy your article.
*One or two Chris. My verbal diaerrheoa(sp) is just a wee paying sideline for me. It also serves as a means of extracting every ounce of profit from commissions and speculative pieces. One thing about writing is that there are very few additional expenses, apart from photography; the timber and other materials are purchased for a job, and I have a computer already, so instead of it sitting idle, I hammer the keys. I could watch TV instead, but I don't watch much TV nowadays. It's sometimes quite hard to put a cohesive article together, what with all the photography, sketches, etc., but I rather enjoy the exercise usually. Which publication(s) have you spotted my drivellings in? Slainte, RJ.
*Woodwork.Where else have you published?I only subsribe to FWW and FHB. We try to spend at least one Friday night a month at the bookstore (sets a good example for the kiddies, and gets me new reading material). I review all the woodwork mags, and buy the ones that interest me. You are one of the authors I look for. As a still learning woodworker of 10 years, while I no longer need instructions to build a piece of furniture, I do need inspiration, and help w/ techniques.I really liked "The graceful chest of Drawers" article. As much for your approach to building the carcass, as anything else.Ironically, the dark filler I complained never dried, is the same brand you use in the picture on pg. 47. I pulled the scrap out of the scrap bin. It did eventually dry. Took a week. In the sample, the area was MUCH larger and deeper than the actual top. So I am giving it a try on the real top. I am putting it on in lifts, to aid in the drying.
*Chris, I've had my rubbish published in Furniture & Cabinetmaking, and The Woodworker, both British mags, and in the US Woodshop News, Woodwork and Woodworkers' Journal. I think that's about them all.The Bartleys filler photographed and described in use isb specifically a grain filler. It's not designed to fill large holes. Is that what you were trying to do? This forum in its current form is on its last legs, so if need be, either post a new question in the new incarnation of Knots tomorrow, or contact me off forum to clarify your problem. Perhaps I can help. My email address is somewhat disguised, but you'll puzzle it out.All the same I'm pleased to get positive feedback regarding my written stuff.Slainte, RJ.
*Woodwork.Where else have you published?I only subsribe to FWW and FHB. We try to spend at least one Friday night a month at the bookstore (sets a good example for the kiddies, and gets me new reading material). I review all the woodwork mags, and buy the ones that interest me. You are one of the authors I look for. As a still learning woodworker of 10 years, while I no longer need instructions to build a piece of furniture, I do need inspiration, and help w/ techniques.I really liked "The graceful chest of Drawers" article. As much for your approach to building the carcass, as anything else.Ironically, the dark filler I complained never dried, is the same brand you use in the picture on pg. 47. I pulled the scrap out of the scrap bin. It did eventually dry. Took a week. In the sample, the area was MUCH larger and deeper than the actual top. So I am giving it a try on the real top. I am putting it on in lifts, to aid in the drying.
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