How do I get maple to stain darker???

[pat martone]

I am having trouble getting stain to penetrate and darken a maple
table top that I've made. Most of the stain comes off of the surface
when I wipe it down - it doesn't seem to penetrate. This is obviously
a characteristic of the wood. Can I spray it with some kind of tinted
polurethane for the final top coat to darken the color?

Thanx in advance for the help.

Regards,
Pat Martone

[Cloudyw]

>I am having trouble getting stain to penetrate and darken a maple
>table top that I've made. Most of

Had same problem. Initial stain coat sealed the wood. Finally sanded it all
off, applied water based aniline dye. Got deep warm color I wanted. Bill,
Atlanta

[Mike G.]

At a guess I'd say you are probably using a pigment stain and have sanded
the table top to 220 or over.

Pigment stains, thin paint really, depend on the pores of the wood and, to
some degree, sanding scratches as a place for the pigment to catch into to
provide the color. Since maple has very little for in the way of pores for
the pigment to stick too it's up to you to provide the catching places by
not sanding over 180 grit, 150 grit may even be better but you would have to
experiment to see which you like better. You are, in fact, doing just what
you say you are, wiping the stain (the pigments) right back off the surface.

In my opinion a better solution, and for a far nicer look is to use aniline
dyes. Aniline dyes, the same types that are used to stain clothes, soak into
the wood coloring the cells themselves. Not only a nicer look that brings
out the grain better, but, since there is no pigments sitting on the wood
surface, a far less muddy look they what a pigment stain will give you.

Hope it helps
--
Mike G.
Heirloom Woods
Weymouth Ma.
http://heirloom-woods.net
Contact
mi...@heirloom-woods.net
mj...@mediaone.net

"pat martone" <mar...@volpe.dot.gov> wrote in message
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[Preston Andreas]

You can final sand it with a rougher grit of paper, counting on the finish
to fill in. Or, use a water based dye. This IMHO is the better way to go.

This is what I use - http://www.homesteadfinishingprod.com/TransTints.htm

Also available at Woodcraft.

Preston

--
pand...@texas.net

"pat martone" <mar...@volpe.dot.gov> wrote in message
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[Tom Clapp]

Similar experience, Pat. I found that the grain lines on maple (soft maple)
are so tight that vurtually no pigment stain will cover them. Dye is the
answer.

1. Minwax penetrating stain finish does not work well at all. They have
enough oil in them to make them slooth out well, but prevents soaking well
into the hard grain.

2. Pure penetrating pigment stain like Old Masters or Behlen 15 Minute
works better, but still leaves the hard grain showing white.

3. Dye will be absorbed throughout, but is difficult to control. I find
that maple blotches almost as bad as cherry.

4. Have had best luck with dye, then follow with a sealer coat that has a
bit of stain added to it to even out the blotchiness.

If you find the perfect solution. let me know...I have 2 more maple projects
in the shop, and still debating about how to get the "cherry" colored
finish.

[mitch]

Spray on a tinted finish. It's the only way I've found to duplicate the
"Ethan Allen" look on maple, cherry, etc. Not even close to my first choice,
but when you need to do it - well, it helps when the check clears.

Mitch

Tom Clapp <tcl...@houston.rr.com> wrote in message
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[Steve Wilson]

What kind of stain are you using? You should be using an analine dye and
not your run of the mill pigmented (i.e. minwax) stain. The more
concentrated the dye solution, the more intense the color.. As for adding
tint to your top coats, yes you can but it depends on the specifics of the
finish as the coloring agent that you add has to be compatible with the
solvent and finish used in the finish. For example, you can add transtint
dyes to shellac or lacquer top coats because the transtint dye medium is
compatible with the solvents for shellac and lacquer (shellac, laquer
thiner). Once you tint your top coat it's called "shader coats".

pat martone <mar...@volpe.dot.gov> wrote in message
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[Richard Gray]

> If you find the perfect solution. let me know...I have 2 more maple
projects
> in the shop, and still debating about how to get the "cherry" colored
> finish.

If you have spray equipment, spray your dye stains. Adjust your color for
2 - 4 coats with drying time in between. To reduce the blotchiness, do not
wipe off the stain.

Richard

[Joe Schmow]

After a lot of experimenting and suggesting from the pros, I was able to
match the Ethan Allen cherry color on maple ("Country Crossings" furniture
line). Along the way, I got questioned why anyone would want to match Ethan
Allen's finish which obscures the grain and is aimed at reducing the
problems of randomly selected wood. In my case, I already owned several
pieces.

Here's what I did:

1. Sand with RO sander 80, 120, 150. Sand by hand with 180 garnet.
2. Apply TransTint Medium Brown & Honey Amber in 50:50 mix to provide base
color, applying grey 3M pad .
3. Let dry and sand lightly with 180 garnet to get rid of raised grain.
4. Apply 1 lb cut of shellac to partially seal
5 Wipe on Bartley's Country Maple gel stain
6. Distress with screwdriver
7. Wipe on Bartley's Brown Mahogany gel stain leaving in distress marks and
crevaces for aged look
8. Spray on laquer

I didn't try tinted laquer only because I don't own a sprayer. The general
consenus is that this would give you better final color control.

-- Mark

"mitch" <mi...@mitchellandrus.com> wrote in message
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