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Good morning to all.
Last week, I had the good fortune to be able to acquire 4 solid oak chairs at no charge. I estimate they are somewhere around 60 years old. The old finish appears to be some kind of a varnish. They are in “pristine condition”, save for the finish.
I have stripped/sanded one chair down to bare wood. It is red oak. Here is my finishing challenge, since I have little personal experience with this particular wood:
I do not care about an ultra smooth finish. Feeling the texture of the wood is fine by me, so I don’t want or need to use a grain filler. I am looking for a UNIFORM “golden amber/golden pecan” colour. Here’s the rub:
The chair back, rails, arms, and legs are relatively uniform in colour. Unfortunately, the seat – which is comprised of 4 boards glued together and then shaped – has two boards which are significantly “redder/darker” than the rest. I want the entire piece to be lighter than these two boards – more along the lines of the rest of the wood. I wish to use wipe-on poly for the eventual topcoats, but am seeking advice on how I can (if it is even possible) colour/stain the wood prior to topcoating in a manner where the entire chair has a lighter, more uniform colouration to it…akin to the “golden pecan/light amber” reference.
Any, and all, advice is much appreciated. I do not want to screw the pooch on these beautiful chairs….
Replies
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Mike,
Have you considered bleaching the seat of the chair. Then when it comes to staining & wiping on the top coat I would recommend Bartaly's Gel. The first time I used the Bartely's Semi Gloss was applying it on a screen I made which spends most its time in front of a window taking a beating from the sun. This screen is about five yr old and still looking good. Granted its faded but still looking good.
I hope this helps.
Scott
*If your goal is an even color throughout, and some of the wood is now too dark, then your most practical course of action is to bleach it first (using the 2-part A/B solutions), apply an amber-colored dye stain, then top coat that with the wipe-on poly that you prefer.
*MikeScott & Bill have started you down the right path. Bleaching is the only way (other than paint) to make the darker boards lighter. With oak, you can try regular laundry bleach, right out of the bottle. I'd recommend sanding with a 120 grit, then spraying some water on the boards. Wait 10 minutes and brush/wipe on the bleach. If it's sunny outside, put the chairs in the sun...it will help the bleach work. WEhen it's dry (at least 5 hours later, determine if it's OK, or if you want it lighter. If you do apply another coat (you don't have to sand.As to the staining, gel stains work well on pine & walnut, but are not good on oak...especially red oak which is known for blotching. The easiest way to get uniform color on red oak is also the oldest way. Get a can of shellac (it's available in amber or clear...I happen to love the look of amber on oak) & dilute it 1 part shellac to 4 parts denatured alcohol. This is known as a spit coat. Brush it on, let it dry for 20 minutes, and LIGHTLY sand with a 400 grit paper. Remove the dust and apply the stain of your choice.Don't pay any attention to what it says on the can of stain about not using over shellac...they put that there so they can sell more stain. Shellac is alcohol based, and will mix with oil or water (think of scotch and water) based stains.Good Luck,Bob
*Gentlemen.....I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.Your collective advice is very much appreciated, and that is exactly what I shall do.Regards....Mike.
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