Kelvin Robetx
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What stain?
- Thread starter Kelvin Robetx
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I have never been a big fan of stain, I like to use die instead, some stains can be tough to get even and seem to take forever to cure.
fred hargis
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Like Don, I seldom use stains so I'm not much help. The few times I do use one I tend to go with General Finishes products. But I do want to welcome you to the forum.
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Same here, but I have had decent results with Old Masters® Gel Stains.
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I've had good luck with ZAR gel wood stains on hardwoods. With soft woods, especially pine, a pre-stain sealer is needed, and it should be sprayed on to prevent blotching. Then I apply the stain. I then usually put several coats of poly, lightly sanding after the first coat usually with 220 paper to make it smooth. The following coats then become smoother. Another way is to use dewaxed shellac as the pre-stain sealer. The safest way, though not a guarantee, is to use a large piece of scrap from the project (same exact wood) and prepare and treat it with the entire process that you intend to use on the project. This takes time, but a heat gun on low tends to speed it up. Just don't overheat it. I am not a fan of water based products and use oil/solvent based for everything. Clear the open containers from the area before using the heat gun.
Boiled linseed oil makes a good penetrating sealer as the first coat and makes the grain "pop", but it takes nearly forever to dry (in my opinion). Don't try applying anything else until it is dry (like several weeks). When applying, use a rag, let the oil sit on the surface to soak in, then after about 30 minutes, wipe off the excess with a dry rag until the surface feels dry. NEVER leave these rags in a pile when you stop using them. Put them in a pail of water and soak them for 24 hours before wringing them out and discarding them, or open them up flat and hang them over a metal stand (I used my neighbor's chain link fence) until the next day and then put them in a covered metal trash container outside and away from structures. Linseed oil soaked rags absorb oxygen from the air when drying and the chemical reaction of drying generates heat, enough heat that a bunched up rag soaked in linseed oil can self ignite (combust) in less than an hour. If air can freely circulate around the rag as it dries, the heat given off will be removed by the air around it and it will dry safely. Bunched up will trap the heat and it can reach high temperatures quickly. other drying oil finishes can do this too, but not as readily as boiled linseed oil. Take the time and steps to be safe when working with drying oils.
There are other YouTube videos about this, but watching just this one should be all that is necessary.
I'm retired now, but was a volunteer fireman since high school serving offices as high as Captain, a trained fire investigator, and then the Site Fire Marshal for a 3.7 million sq ft research and manufacturing facility on 1,300 acres for 7 years before retiring.
Charley
Boiled linseed oil makes a good penetrating sealer as the first coat and makes the grain "pop", but it takes nearly forever to dry (in my opinion). Don't try applying anything else until it is dry (like several weeks). When applying, use a rag, let the oil sit on the surface to soak in, then after about 30 minutes, wipe off the excess with a dry rag until the surface feels dry. NEVER leave these rags in a pile when you stop using them. Put them in a pail of water and soak them for 24 hours before wringing them out and discarding them, or open them up flat and hang them over a metal stand (I used my neighbor's chain link fence) until the next day and then put them in a covered metal trash container outside and away from structures. Linseed oil soaked rags absorb oxygen from the air when drying and the chemical reaction of drying generates heat, enough heat that a bunched up rag soaked in linseed oil can self ignite (combust) in less than an hour. If air can freely circulate around the rag as it dries, the heat given off will be removed by the air around it and it will dry safely. Bunched up will trap the heat and it can reach high temperatures quickly. other drying oil finishes can do this too, but not as readily as boiled linseed oil. Take the time and steps to be safe when working with drying oils.
There are other YouTube videos about this, but watching just this one should be all that is necessary.
I'm retired now, but was a volunteer fireman since high school serving offices as high as Captain, a trained fire investigator, and then the Site Fire Marshal for a 3.7 million sq ft research and manufacturing facility on 1,300 acres for 7 years before retiring.
Charley
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Ditto!
Matt Hutchinson
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If I'm using off the shelf products I gravitate towards gel stain. Also, I haven't been particularly happy with water based stains/dyes. I most often use spray only stains.