I am constructing a bathroom cabinet out of 3/4 baltic birch plywood. It needs to be black to match the existing tiling. I have tried painting it and staining it with limited success, but ideally the grain would show through the finish. In various articles I have read about ebonizing the wood, but all the finish recipies recomend using wood with a high tannin content. Baltic birch however, has a very low tannin content. So my questions are:
1. Would it be possible to stain the birch through ebonizing?
2. Would the process interfere with the bonding of the plies or otherwise potentially harm the piece?
3. Are there any recipes or techniques that would work best for a wood with a low tannin content?
Replies
If you still want to see the grain I would recommend non grain raising alcohol stain.
Nasty stuff but two coats will make it black :)
Cheers, Don
Ebonizing just means making the wood black, but doesn't really specifiy the process, Certainly the iron/vinagar approach isn't a good one for birch, if it is for any wood. Dye's water soluble powdered dye, or other dyes if you have the means to apply them, are likely to be your best approach. Remember that "black" is a highly variable color with some black dyes giving a warmer color and many giving a cool, almust blue/purple hue. Use a concentrated mix, and expect to use two coats.
You may have a problem with dye on baltic birch, which isn't meant as a stain grade material. If there are any patches, or the like, you could find glue blocking any dye. You could get a good hint if that would be a problem on your particular wood by wetting the surface with naphtha to see if any glue still stands out, before you start applying dye.
Another approach that might well work would be India ink, which is a pigment based product but with very fine pigment that could still let some grain show through. I think you would want solvent based. Your source would be art supply stores in big cities or on-line.
Oops, I missed the "baltic"
Oops, I missed the "baltic" in your description :)
The top ply of baltic birch is not a furniture grade veneer.
You might have better results using a black gesso followed by a clear top coat.
Cheers, Don
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