This summer I bought some oak from a guy with a bandsaw mill. I expected a mixture of red and white oak from here in Tennessee. Well, I’ve started working with it and I think it’s all red oak. In any event, I’ve rough cut and planed enough for an arts and crafts chest. Much of the wood has great figure and rays but I’m not crazy about the color and the pores. I would prefer the wood to be lighter in color and want the rays to be as distinct as possible. I had planned to use the linseed oil and wax finish that is commercially available.
Any advice from any “oak experts?”
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You might consider getting a quart of grain filler. Not wood filler. Grain filler is made especially for filling the pores of 'open pore' woods like Red Oak and Mahogany. Mine is made by Benjamin Moore & Co. and is called Wood Grain Filler.
Grain filler is a clay suspension in something like linseed oil. The clay particles fill the pores.
Flood it on and use a wide spatula to press it in then go back and forth across the grain with a balled up cotton rag. Press hard and work it into the pores.
Scrape off the residue and let it dry a couple of days (at 75 degrees). Scrape with a scraper or sand and inspect the surface to see if another application is needed.
Lastly stain then apply desired finish.
PlaneWood by Mike_in_Katy (maker of fine sawdust!)
PlaneWood
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