I’ve got a gorgeous chunk of figured maple that I’ve just glued up to make a bandsaw box for my mother-in-law. I’ve finished previous such boxes with tung oil (or tung oil/varnish blends), and while they look fine, that finish darkens the wood a bit more than I’d like for this box. Does anybody have suggestions for a finish that will “pop” the grain without darkening the wood at the same time? I’m too new to the game to know all the tricks.
Thanks,
-M.
Replies
Well... anything that you put on the wood will darken it slightly, even water. As for water clear finishes... CAB lacquer is perhaps the most widely used, popular water clear finish for wood. It is perfectly water clear. Great stuff and easy to work with.
Regards,
Kevin
try the clear flat poly from enduro ( http://www.compliantspraysystems.com ) that will give you a natural finish with any darkening or shine.
Darkworks: No Guns No Butter squilla and the bling bling.
I agree with both posts, water white lacquer (I use Lilly) or the Enduro. You did however mention a great piece of figured maple. I've been disappointed where I've gone without first oiling quilted maple. I use BLO and friend of mine uses Minwax's clear or natural stain. Waterborne poly doesn't stick to oil for you know what, so I'd use lacquer in this case. Superblond shellac may be worth working up a sample for too.
John O'Connell - JKO Handcrafted Woodworking
Life is tough. It's tougher if you're stupid - John Wayne
Edited 7/29/2003 3:49:45 PM ET by ELCOHOLIC
I use minwax wipe on poly for most of my finishes. I rarely use any kind of tint preferring a natural finish. The wipe on poly is pretty clear, but not perfectly water white. When I want to amber up the color (as I usually do), I start with a coat or two of natural watco, then put on 3 - 6 coats of wipe on poly sanding with 320 between coats.
The wipe on poly alone may be clear enough. I always use the watco first with walnut because it is too light with just the poly. Sand or scrape some offcuts and try the poly.
I use blonde shellac on drawers and such. It's clear, fairly durable and has utterly no smell.
It's not as durable as Poly, etc, but it's served me well, it's easy to use and is fairly cheap.
Good luck
Larry
This forum post is now archived. Commenting has been disabled