bm3324 Posted February 27, 2015 Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 So I've built this dresser and in the staining process I am not particularly pleased with how the solid maple trip turned out (see picture). I'm a rookie wood worker (ESPECIALLY IN THE FINISHING AREA) so I need some advice on whether it would be wise to try to restain just the solid maple trim to make it look better or not to bother. As you can see, the maple plywood box turned out pretty even, but the solid trim on the face isn't as consistent as I would like. BTW I did use pre stain conditioner on all surfaces. And the method of staining was spraying (however half way into spraying, the gun started acting up and it was a disaster of a mess). Thank you in advance for any helpful advice! Also, the solid trim runs around the outside and then one horizontal strip underneath the top too drawer openings. The rest of the inner frame work will be hidden by drawer faces. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bm3324 Posted February 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 So I take it no responses means don't do anything different. Should be putting poly on this weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firehawk Posted February 28, 2015 Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 It doesn't look like there is anything else you can do. I have learned the hard way to make sure I do test pieces before staining or dying the project I am working on! I love woodworking and struggle with the finishing process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bm3324 Posted February 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 It doesn't look like there is anything else you can do. I have learned the hard way to make sure I do test pieces before staining or dying the project I am working on! I love woodworking and struggle with the finishing process. OK. In the future, is there anything to do different with solid maple to get better results? I'm sure this topic has been discussed thousands of time so I will try to search through the forum...feel free to tell me where it's already been discussed. don't wanna waste your time if the answers are already here. thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trip Posted February 28, 2015 Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 ==>I did use pre stain conditioner on all surfaces PSC/BC/etc reduce blotching, not eliminate it (as you now know)... Maple is quite blotch prone, so coloring the wood itself is an iffy process (as you have learned)… A more reliable process is tinting and/of glazing approach... Of course, the best approach is to not color the wood at all... ==>It doesn't look like there is anything else you can do... There are some things you can do depending on a few factors… A little more info would help for any (if) remediation steps… What blotch control product, how applied, how many coats, etc What stains/dye/etc. You mention spraying -- how... What did you do after your spraying issue? Did you spray and wipe back? Spray and let soak? Etc... Please post a few photos of the blotchy areas you are most concerned about... Please use appropriate lighting to bring-out the blotching... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bm3324 Posted February 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 ==>I did use pre stain conditioner on all surfaces PSC/BC/etc reduce blotching, not eliminate it (as you now know)... Maple is quite blotch prone, so coloring the wood itself is an iffy process (as you have learned)… A more reliable process is tinting and/of glazing approach... Of course, the best approach is to not color the wood at all... ==>It doesn't look like there is anything else you can do... There are some things you can do depending on a few factors… A little more info would help for any (if) remediation steps… What blotch control product, how applied, how many coats, etc What stains/dye/etc. You mention spraying -- how... What did you do after your spraying issue? Did you spray and wipe back? Spray and let soak? Etc... Please post a few photos of the blotchy areas you are most concerned about... Please use appropriate lighting to bring-out the blotching... Yeah the more I've read on this forum, the more rookie mistakes I've realized I have made. ugh.... To answer your questions: i'm not where the can of pre stain is now so I don't know brand name but I wiped on one coat. directions on the can didn't say anything about more than one coat.... I used minwax oil based stain. The issue was the spray gun (which now that i've read is not recommended for small compressors which is what I used :/) stopped spraying consistently half way through and started basically shooting out the stain. At that point I wiped the rest of the stain on to spread it evenly and to take up any heavily stained areas. I can send you some pictures later as I am at work now so I don't have a way to take better shots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trip Posted February 28, 2015 Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 ==>I used minwax oil based stain Many (most? all?) oil-based stains have dryers to crosslink the oil carrier and ‘lock-in’ the dye, pigment stain, and/or dye+pigment particles… The upside to these products is that the wood is colored and sealed in one operation… The downside is that the wood is now sealed, so hard to reverse if something goes wrong… Unfortunately, I don’t have any experience with Minwax products and little experience with oil-based stains outside of DIY efforts… Charles Neil has a video, ‘finishing fixes’ (or something close) that deals with a variety of finishing issues and I believe he addresses colorant reversal and blotch mitigation… I believe it’s on his free site and/or YouTube channel… If not, you can eMail him – he’s usually very good about responding… I suspect the oil-based product will limit your options, but you never know… Obviously, before you try any reversal operations, you should make-up some test panels with the same stain and not experiment on the finished piece… The real lesson learned: test panels, test panels, test panels... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bm3324 Posted March 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2015 ==>I used minwax oil based stain Many (most? all?) oil-based stains have dryers to crosslink the oil carrier and ‘lock-in’ the dye, pigment stain, and/or dye+pigment particles… The upside to these products is that the wood is colored and sealed in one operation… The downside is that the wood is now sealed, so hard to reverse if something goes wrong… Unfortunately, I don’t have any experience with Minwax products and little experience with oil-based stains outside of DIY efforts… Charles Neil has a video, ‘finishing fixes’ (or something close) that deals with a variety of finishing issues and I believe he addresses colorant reversal and blotch mitigation… I believe it’s on his free site and/or YouTube channel… If not, you can eMail him – he’s usually very good about responding… I suspect the oil-based product will limit your options, but you never know… Obviously, before you try any reversal operations, you should make-up some test panels with the same stain and not experiment on the finished piece… The real lesson learned: test panels, test panels, test panels... Thanks for the info. I've learned a lot about finishing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bm3324 Posted March 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 Well I finished just in time for my son to be born! Here it is. With the white drawers, the blotchy stain doesn't stick out as much. Credit to my wife for the rest of the decor in the nursery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaneymack Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 Well I finished just in time for my son to be born! Here it is. With the white drawers, the blotchy stain doesn't stick out as much. Credit to my wife for the rest of the decor in the nursery. IMG_1920 (1).JPG It looks fantastic! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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