Replies

1. 
   jeanlou | Jan 06, 2007 11:52pm | #1

   Cheerycherry

   I don't see any reason to treat the woods differently. Both will accept the finish you propose without any problems and neither wood has the type of pigment that will bleed into the other. Enjoy your project.   JL 

1. 
   jeanlou | Jan 06, 2007 11:58pm | #2

   Marc,

   I also wanted to mention that maple and walnut are the two classic woods used by people making chess or checker boards. I have done many, and there have never been any problems, no matter what the finish was.   JL

1. 
   cheerycherry | Jan 07, 2007 06:02am | #3

   Thanks for the feedback. I have done this before without problems that i could see, but wanted to check if there was something i was overlooking or any better ways to do this. Thanks again, i will proceed.. Marc

1. 
   jeanlou | Jan 07, 2007 05:34pm | #4

   Enjoy.   JL

2. 
   arkriver | Jan 07, 2007 05:46pm | #5

   Be very careful when sanding to no embed walnut particles in the maple and before finishing be sure to wipe ALL the walnut dust away or you can "stain" the maple. In my view maple looks good when fresh but darkens to an ugly orange/yellow color over time. You can help avoid this by using a water based finish. Oil based finishes darken maple instantly in my experience.

1. 
   jeanlou | Jan 07, 2007 06:02pm | #6

   Arkriver

   You are right. Oil in the finish will darken all woods instantly. To keep it as light as possible, applying a white shellac sealer first, or any other clear sealer, will insure that the wood is not coloured by the final finish. Over time the light will have an affect, so it is important to choose a finishing product that will react to light as we want it to. Some have better UV protection properties than others. 

   If you really want the light look, wash the wood with a mild wood bleach first, and then continue the finishing process. Experiment on scrapes first.  JL

1. 
   cheerycherry | Jan 08, 2007 12:05am | #7

   Thanks , if i apply a clear shellac or other sealer first, can apply the wipe on tung oil urethane finish over this. I would like to keep the maple as light as possible..  Marc

1. 
   jeanlou | Jan 08, 2007 12:19am | #8

   Yes Marc.

   Just make sure that you scuff sand to remove the nibs( caused by dust and things that settle before the sealer is dry)  on the dry sealer coat before you apply the final finish and you will have exactly what you are looking for.  JL

2. 
   SteveSchoene | Jan 08, 2007 05:39am | #9

   But this amber maple is just the look I really like. 

1. 
   arkriver | Jan 08, 2007 05:43pm | #10

   We all like differnt things and so it is. It would be boring if we all like the same things.