Shopsmith Forums

I'm looking for a stain or way to color maple.
I want the finish color to be like a light walnut.
Here is my problem, practically every stain I have tried carries a black or near black darkener. I want more of a brown darkener.

In addition I would like the finished color to have not red hightlights so cherry and mahogony stains won't work.

Any Idea's
Ed

I have read a few articles lately about using dyes to color your wood instead of stains. I've never tried them, but want to sometime. Look for an article on coloring wood with dyes.

batg4 wrote:I have read a few articles lately about using dyes to color your wood instead of stains. I've never tried them, but want to sometime. Look for an article on coloring wood with dyes.

Batg4
I have wanted to try dyes but the initial startup cost is pretty steep.

My problem is almost every stain, gel stain, oil finish, etc that carries a darker color uses black or red pigment instead of a pure brown. When this dark pigment get in the grain of maple it colors it black which I don't want. The red just won't work with the other colors in the room.

Perhaps I will have to spring for dye costs, but again they don't seem to have a brown as such you have to mix it and I don't know if I can get the darkness without adding some black which runs me full circle.

Somebody suggested walnut shell stain. I guess the outer hull of walnuts when soaked in water/alcohol products a stain that ends up a brown. Someone else suggestted vapor dyeing using chemicals but I think this would be hit or miss and I since this is a face frame of an 8 foot cabinet I don't think that would be practical.

I'm thinking I need to shellac the surface then apply a stain so the grain doesn't collect all the dark pigment and end up black. Does anyone have any experience doing this????
Ed

Ed in Tampa wrote:I'm looking for a stain or way to color maple.
I want the finish color to be like a light walnut.
Here is my problem, practically every stain I have tried carries a black or near black darkener. I want more of a brown darkener.

In addition I would like the finished color to have not red hightlights so cherry and mahogony stains won't work.

Any Idea's
Ed

I've had good results using an initial coat of amber shellac (diluted with denatured alcohol). This is followed with a coat of red mahogany gel stain with excess wiped off after two-three minutes of sit time. I follow this with a coat of dark walnut stain with a two-three minute sit time. I top coat with five coats of tung oil and a final coat of paste wax. All coats are rubbed out with ultra fine synthetic steel wool in between coats. The whole thing usually takes about a week to complete.

Why not just use garnet shellac?

rcartmetal wrote:Why not just use garnet shellac?

I have heard of clear and amber shellac but what is garnet shellac?

Also I wondering if the mahoganey stain will carry too much red highlights.

In the room I putting this red highlights or undertones jump out and look terrible.

I'm putting it near a marble tile that is brown tones and for some reason anything red looks simply awful.

Ed

ericolson wrote:I've had good results using an initial coat of amber shellac (diluted with denatured alcohol). This is followed with a coat of red mahogany gel stain with excess wiped off after two-three minutes of sit time. I follow this with a coat of dark walnut stain with a two-three minute sit time. I top coat with five coats of tung oil and a final coat of paste wax. All coats are rubbed out with ultra fine synthetic steel wool in between coats. The whole thing usually takes about a week to complete.

Eric
I bought amber shellac, Mahogany gel stain and two shades of walnut gel stain.
I will give your method a test.

I love using tung oil and except for this almost exact color I need to match I usually use tung oil tinted to the color I want and I rub the first two or three coats in with wet/dry 400 sand paper.
Produces a super finish.
Ed

This is a very timely thread for me. I have built a display cabinet out of soft maple for a local church. I would also like to color it more of a light walnut.

My concern is blotching. I've had trouble in the past staining soft maple. Conditioner followed by gel stain helps, but I bought some garnett shellac with the thought that I would use it to seal the wood some and give it some tint before using the gel stain. What do you think?

As far as your question about color, I've had good luck with mission brown dye from TransTint (I think that's the brand name). I wonder if we could put some dye in a second coat of shellac?

Greenvilleguy wrote:This is a very timely thread for me. I have built a display cabinet out of soft maple for a local church. I would also like to color it more of a light walnut.

My concern is blotching. I've had trouble in the past staining soft maple. Conditioner followed by gel stain helps, but I bought some garnett shellac with the thought that I would use it to seal the wood some and give it some tint before using the gel stain. What do you think?

As far as your question about color, I've had good luck with mission brown dye from TransTint (I think that's the brand name). I wonder if we could put some dye in a second coat of shellac?

Again what is garnet shellac?

I know shellac will solve blotching, I have used it for that in the pass. I wondering if it will keep the dark (black) pigments from piling up and making the wood look black instead of brown. I have all the suggestted material and I will start experimenting. If I get to Woodcraft in the near future I may even buy some of the Transtint Mission brown dye.

My wife saw some cabinets in HD which supposedly are cherry with a Mocca finish and then a black glaze that she likes. I don't know what the wood really is but there is no red highlights in it that would naturally be there with cherry. To me in looks like a medium light walnut. I would love to know how the cabinet maker does his finish.
Ed

Ed, Shellac flakes usally are sold in three "colors": Blonde, Orange and Garnett. Since this is the natural color, variation does occur.