Hello All, I have a table build working and was running some color tests for soak time of ammonia fuming when I had the attached results (pics). The stick is an offcut of the project stock. There was no visible indication before fuming that I had streaks in my future.
Streaky parts were fumed, solid one was not Quick wipe of watco to help contrast. Does anyone have a tip for finding patches like this prior to fuming?
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It’s the nature of the beast, and it’s not just sapwood. It has everything to do with tannin content. The little Japanese style box below was fumed, and has streaks running right through the middle of the boards. I think it looks cool. I call it the Forest Gump Box of Chocolates effect. You never know what you’re gonna get.
Yep.I had the same surprise when I fumed Greg Paolini's Mission bookcase. Was dismayed at first glance, but quickly came to really treasure the piece.
One of the things I enjoy most about woodworking is the infinite variety of unexpected and beautiful surprises in each board as a project unfolds, and the challenge of incorporating them into the work in a way that allows the character of the wood to take center stage.
You could try pre-treating with this stuff. Worth a try if you don't want to just stain.
Jeff Jewitt has an article somewhere on replicating a fumed finish on oak using stains
Recreating a fumed finish isn't really that tough. Homestead Finishing has a few recipes that work great (attached). I've used the multiple times on things that are too big for me to fume. The hall table below as an example.