Any experienced grain-fillers out there? I am finishing a bunch of mahogany pieces and want a glass smooth surface. I’m trying grain fillers for the first time, but am not sure about how to deal with color. I am going for a very dark brown with the final color and would like to fill before staining, assuming that will allow me to scrape/sand to a dead level surface. My main question is can/should I use a neutral uncolored grain filler and let the staining process color the filler and the wood at the same time, or should I color the filler first?
My stain sequence is a light coat of shellac, an alcohol dye toner for darkness and then a walnut gel stain to add back some depth, finished off with pre-catalyzed lacquer topcoat. Everything is sprayed except for the gel stain. I tried a dark filler after all the stains, but wasn’t getting a truly smooth surface without sanding, which runs the risk of cutting through the stain finish.
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I'm going to tell you to do it different than you are planning. Here's the basics. You want everything you can to be dead flat before you fill. You can use an oil base or water base filler, but after working with them I prefer the water base for two reasons, cure time and you can stain it with an oil base product if it hasn't fully cured. I've used Behlens for several years now. Its about the only time I ever mix oil + water and have success. Sand your stock to 220, by hand preferrably. Vaccuum the dust off and go at it with the filler. As to coloring, you want a color that is close to what the end result will be. It doesn't have to be dark brown, but dont use a real light color with a dark stain. The downside of the water base also is in its cure time - it sets real fast. You put it on in small sections (maybe 2' by 2' for starters) squeegee off the excess against the grain, and then burlap it against the grain. I'll tell you the burlap fills quick, you'll work a good sweat on a large piece, and if you cover too much at once your filler will be set before you know it. I've alleviated this a little by keeping the burlap moist, not wet, just a little damp. When the filler is fully dry (couple of hours) look at it in a low angle light. Anything hazy will look horrible under a finish. Scuff sand it all until it's even and there's no haze left. You'll have better luck with a stain thats both pigment and dye, like Sherwin. Stain it the color you want, or if you're going to fine tune later, almost the color you want. The stain, if applied the same day as the filler, makes the filler all but disappear to the eye, and the filler matches the color because it absorbs some of it. Can't explain it more than that, but it works. When the stain sets, you can shellac it as you wish, and then hit it with the precat. If you want to tone it, mix alcohol soluable dye with a light cut of dewaxed shellac and spray it before the lacquer. The gel isn't necessary. If you want it dead level, get there before you start. Since you're going to this effort, I assume you're going to rub it out. Since you're shooting lacquer, nitro rubs out easier than precat.
"There is always inequity in life. Some men are killed in war and some men are wounded, and some men never leave the country. Life is unfair" J.F.Kennedy
Many thanks for the thorough recipe. I will try it.
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