Not a particularly interesting piece of wood. How about a 1# cut of Seal Coat to pop the grain? Other suggestions are welcome too. All pieces were ROS sanded to 150, 3 coats of Waterlox “Original”, and 2 coats of Bison Clear Wax. The picture legend from left to right is: BW Ash Lyptus Soft Maple Cherry QSRO Thoughts and ideas for finishing?
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I'm not sure I understand
I'm not sure I understand your question. After the waterlox shellac will do nothing to the figure it will just increase the sheen.
If you are talking about trying the Seal Coat before using an oil based varnish such as Waterlox, then it won't add to "popping" the figure, in fact, it might, as a light colored shellac it could reduce the pop. BLO before the varnish might give you slightly, and I emphasize slightly, increased figure on maple. You would likely have to work hard to tell the difference between maple finished with BLO followed by Waterlox and maple finished only with Waterlox.
Steve, sorry for the confusion. This is my first finishing test using soft maple. All of the other wood species listed in the pics were finished as described and I generally like all of them. I did the soft maple for comparison just to see how it looked. I'd say subtle, but not exciting.
The shellac SealCoat in question would be a 1# wash coat before the Waterlox.
I prefer not to stain my wood, but perhaps the maple would be better with some light shade of a gel stain followed by the WLX. Maybe a light colored oil based liquid stain instead? Is soft maple prone to splotching like cherry and pine?
Thanks to all for any suggestions, advice, and tips.
Yes, soft maple is quite prone to blotching. Pigment stains are particular culprets, though less with gel stains, but the pigment stains basically just lodge in surface imperfections--either the most porous parts of the grain where end grain swirls towards the surface (hence blotching) or in the sanding scratches. Stains that mix pigment and oil soluble dye (many consumer grade stains) are particular culprets. A light wash coat of shellac (LESS that 1 lb. cut) might reduce blotching when a stain or dye is applied but won't really pop the grain. Dye does blotch less on maple, but doesnt really eliminate it unless applied by spraying with no wiping.
But basically, not all pieces of wood can be exciting. For exciting maple, get maple with plenty of figure, either curly, birdseye, or quilted.
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