I am making a chessbox for my grandkids. Material at hand for the board was red oak, basswood, qtr white oak and, drat it, rosewood. The rosewood has been in shop for at least 20 years – can’t remember why I got it. Ok, beautiful color.
And the color is the problem I am having.
I have made two chess boards: one with red oak and basswood alternating squares and one with rosewood and qtr white oak alternating squares. All squares are 2 x 2.
Both have been machine sanded 80, 120, 150 and hand finished with 220. I have brushed and vacuumed between each grit.
I mixed up some new superblonde 1 lb B&T shellac using Everclear 190.
First try spraying the rosewood/oak panel on an angle, the rosewood red color sagged down onto the white oak. This was a very light coat since I had seen red dust from the rosewood when working it.
I would try spraying horizontally for the first couple of coats, but I don’t think the Preval (all I have) will work there.
Other than re-sand and 1) use Varathane clear polyurethane ( I have tested that to not run the color) or 2) wipe-on the shellac horizontally ( I have done that on test pieces without runs), does anyone have a better suggestion. The shellac really helps show the red oak grain which the poly doesn’t.
Replies
Looks like Padauk to me, and yes shellac pops the rays of white oak. I suspect the alcohol is carrying the red, try rubbing alcool wet cloth on a leftover piece of padauk or rosewood and see if the red transfers to the cloth.
The alcohol carrier in shellac will smear the sometimes oily colors of some exotics. I imagine the basswood is even more impacted.
My cure for bleeding colors starts a little before I am done with my surface prep. You can probably still do this. With the surface prepared at about 220 grit I flood a wash of 1lb de-waxed shellac.
The flooding combined with the thin cut lets the alcohol carry the shellac deeper into the material. I use the same method to accent curl in light colored, figured woods. Now sand to 220grit again theoretically leaving a clean sharp line between the padauk and the lighter colored woods.
You should now be able to apply your final top coat of choice without the bleed. As always test on some off cuts first. I can only say that his works for me and is a method I use in these cases. ;-)
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