Replies

1. 
   Pondfish | Mar 22, 2006 01:41pm | #1

   Watco will be fine, but beware that cherry can look blotchy when finished with a penetrating oil.  Give it a try on a test piece and see what you think (remember, always test a finish on scrap before trying it on your work).  Your grain will look quite good.

   You won't, however, be able to preserve the color of the wood.  Cherry will darken over time, no matter what you do when finishing (well, except if you paint it, I guess).  Some finishes contain UV blockers that will slow the color change for a while, but nothing, no nothing is going to stop that cherry from oxidizing. 

   I finished a curly cherry dresser with Watco three years ago; it's in my youngest's room and the grain looks great.   I also recommend scraping, or sanding to 320 grit before applying the finish; the difference between 220 and 320 in noticeable (though there is little difference between scraping and 320 grit).

   Recommending the use of "Hide Signatures" option under "My Preferences" since 2005
2. 
   user-126535 | Mar 23, 2006 09:04am | #2

   If you like the look of hand rubbed finish, have you tried Montour oils and wax finishes?  We have used an extensive amount of different finishes from clear and pigmented lacquers to different dyes (which by the way is a great choice when it comes to figured woods...'Trans Tints' work well...you might try some on scrap but might find that the cherry is to dark to begin with) as well as shellac and french polishing as well as a lot of different kinds of oils ~ tung, urethanes, walnut, linseed etc. (and all the different brands of these...Tried n True, Arm R Seal, Jasco, Wood Craft etc. etc.) and some chemical finishes like Potassium Dichromate which gives Cherry an aged look and then apply a clear finish top coat.  We've used a lot of different applications depending on the situation and wood.  When it comes to some figured woods and wanting the hand rubbed finish, I've found that the Montour finishes work very well and I've also found that I like them over any other brand of oil & wax finishes that we've used in the past. What we have found is starting off with 2 to 4 coats of their Varnish & Oil combo OR 3 to 4 coats of their Linseed Oil finish  (which either one you choose)follow with 2 to 4 coats of 'Carnoil'.  This is a combonation of Carnuba wax, linseed oil and ? This is the only wax we've used that goes on easy and buffs out even easier.  We have a large collection of American and European made waxes but I've not found anything that I like half as much as this....Then finish with 1 to 3 coats of their paste/finishing wax.  We were surprised and pleased with the results.  All their stuff goes on well,  you don't have the sticky syrupy goo as you do with some oil finishes, they dry quickly and buff out nicely to show the figure.

   1~866~630~8345  We've been dealing with Dan Vukmer the president of Montour. He's been great to deal with. I hope this helps you...Good Luck,

   Steve

    

3. 
   mudman | Mar 23, 2006 05:36pm | #3

   I prefer a weak (thinned) pigmented stain, then shellac sealer, then aniline dye (if more tinting is desired) then more shellac or catalised Lacquer (depending on the use).

   However the MOST IMPORTAINT THING is that you test your finish process on a scrap piece first. It takes a lot of time and it is easy to want to rush the finishing process. But if you really want beauty and perfection you have to try different orders of finishing, sealers and stains first, then decide. Many like the look of applying raw oil first, while starting with oil does add depth to the figure in dark woods it also creates a blotchy look that is not attractive. I like the clean clear look of Shellac, but sometimes after testing a piece I'll choose to not use a seal coat before stain, or to use dyes instead of pigments, or to hand rub the stain instead of spraying it. These all make tremendous differences in the appearance. There really is no "right" way to do it. When I look at some of the old work from the masters I think "what a horrible finish" they used coarse pigmented stains and lots of oil which resulted in very blotchy finishes. However a lot of people practice these same methods because "that is what the greats used for hundreds of years".

   So I hope you will pick two or three of the sugestions you have recieved and try then all. The greatest thing is that if you do this I bet you will end up with your own process that will be different from all the sugestions! This is how you can really get controll of the finishing process.

   Mike