Finishing Pine Fingerjoints

[scstill]

Back to working on the Repro Supro 1696 TN
I plan to leave the home built pine cabinet natural wood.
Early on I tried to stain some pine scraps but that was too blotchy even with pre-stain conditioner
I decided to use several coats of boiled linseed.
I tried on scrap and knew the finger joints would be darker.
I tried the bottom first. I am trying to determine if I like the much darker fingers or not,
Picture is bottom with one coat BLO and bare side
what do you think? Do they work dark? Thinking they might look better if I could make them closer to the top pine
Is there any suggestions for the fingers to be less dark?
I have heard that pre-stain with BLO will make it gummy and might not even work as it would prevent penetration of the BLO

[sluckey]

End grain will always look darker when using any kind of penetrating finish because end grain soaks in more of the finish. I like the contrast.

[brewdude]

I also like the way it looks with the darker contrasting fingers

[thetragichero]

it's a good way to show off your joinery!
i'm much more of a utilitarian so i use butt joints, titebond, and hardwood dowels and tolex em. but if i had fancy finger joints, i'd make em a part of the aesthetic by using stain/dye that makes em stand out

[acheld]

This comes under the rubric of:

"It's a feature, not a bug!"

[G._Hoffman]

As others have said, the end grain will always soak up more finish, and become darker.  You would need to paint it or cover it to keep it from being darker.  Basically, wood is like bundles of straws, and the end grain is the open ends of the straws, so it just sucks up either finish or adhesives (which is why end grain joints are relatively weak). 

[scstill]

I now agree, the finger contrast is great.
I also applied a pre-stain sealer to the ends because on a test piece it provided a more striking end grain.
more masking work that is worth, but a good experiment.

After three coats of Boiled Linseed Oil it doesn't seem to want to suck up any more.
Also somewhat tacky couple days in so I set aside to cure for a week or so.
Process: brush on, let sit for 10, wipe residue off, after dry light 400 sanding between coats.
Any tricks to getting more on? Have heard that some guys get 5+ on.
Also any tricks to deepening the color? Maybe a Danish dark?
Have tried oil stain, artist oil paint and dye mixed into BLO but doesn't seem to work that well
Also have heard that BLO needs to be re-applied with age.
Amp will get home use with a few church gigs. Has a transport cover.

BTW - second pic is good illustration of the front and rear cabinet slope
and #3&4 show baffle cross to capture the Supro Mojo I guess :-)
more challenging and likely won't do again.

[Lectroid]

First, I like the joints visible.  If you've got, flaunt it.   

Second, a furniture refinisher taught me a trick I've found useful many times. 

Use clear acrylic spray to lightly and evenly "pre-coat" any problem (ie, stain-sucking) surfaces. In your case, the end-grain surfaces.  This will limit the uptake of stain into the wood.  It allowed him to get a very even coatings of the selected stain all across large furniture pieces.  I know the purists out there may be gasping in horror BUT--I've used the technique many times and it works.

Also, when he used oil he applied it with 000 steel wool, then went to 0000 steel wool on subsequent coats.  Just be sure it's sanded down as far as you want first.  The oil mixes with tiny wood particles and produces a great sheen.

[bmccowan]

I am late to this parade. But the problem with BLO not fully curing is common. And weirdly, BLO is not boiled; its mixed with distillates. I have had good luck mixing up finishes that include either BLO or Pure Tung Oil. You can find many formulas searching furniture building websites like Fine Woodworking. Equal amounts of BLO, spar varnish, and real turpentine has worked well for me. A top coat of rubbed on Carnauba wax or mixing beeswax with some Terps of spirits is a nice way to top it off. BTW I love the look of contrasting dovetails or finger joints. 

[scstill]

its been curing in the corner for a few weeks now
Gonna pull it out this week and see if I can get some more in, maybe darken it a bit
Good ideas

[shooter]

our work-bench on the ship was topped with 1/2 Masonite, 1st major inspection everyone's polishing n shining.  Nick kicks everyone out of the work area, strips all the equipment from the bench, puts on a haz-mat suit and starts sanding the Masonite.  Once he was happy he'd poor the lined oil and work it in.
pretty soon all the equipment's back up, bench looks beautiful, all the important folk leave, I sit down at the bench and my hands are now oily, my coffee cups slipping with the waves.


I asked Nick in sailor-speak, He just smiled n said "i'll be dry in a week, or so"

[tubenit]

I did a similar approach on an amp a few yrs ago.  I used a piece of flamed maple on top and then pine on sides and bottom.


With respect, Tubenit

[sluckey]

its been curing in the corner for a few weeks now

That's why I don't use the stuff.

[scstill]

That's why I don't use the stuff.

The problem is the soft pine. Nothing I tried would provide a uniform finish.
Simple clear coat was too light. This is getting close to what I was looking for just need to deepen it a bit more.
Then figure out if its enough protection or need something else on top on the blo.
I'm not in a hurry as the split chassis 1696 is still in work.

[shooter]

FWIW;
pick up a tube of oil paint, Hobby Lobby is fine, grab some odorless turpentine.
squirt out a pe-sized paint add equal portions Turp and BLO, stur til it's a brush-able liquid, no chunks.
brush it on a test board, buff out with a good rag, repeat til you're happy with color
Clear coat with a good quality lacquer


brown is a secondary color, think about what color your wood is and what primary color do I mix to get brown


pic up a color wheel for your bench   

[scstill]

I have already tried the oil paint mixed with blo (on raw scrap)
It was somewhat blotchy on the pine and absorbed overly dark on the ends.
Need to try on scrap with added turpentine. Could I substitute Mineral Spirits or Acetone for the Turpentine?
Do you see this combo absorbing differently on the wood with a couple of blo coats (as it is now)?

[shooter]

stick with what you're doing, more a suggestion for next time, or informative to others lurkin

[Willabe]

Also any tricks to deepening the color?

I've used Watco Danish Oil. Comes in different shades/colors.

Worked very well for me.

[scstill]

I tried the Watco danish dark oil on the front and back panels which are out of Birch Ply
They are noticeable lighter that the pine
Did not absorb much (already have 5 BLO coats)

[scstill]

Two more coats of BLO on.
Finish is getting nice and smooth. You guys were right about the contrast very nice.
Sitting for a week. Hope to get a few more on.

Is the BLO finish all I need or recommend a varnish topper?

Any suggestions to get the baltic ply back panel to more closely match the pine?

[sluckey]

Any suggestions to get the baltic ply back panel to more closely match the pine?

Light coat of Minwax Golden Oak Oil-Based Stain. Test on a scrap.

The baltic birch side panel in this pic has a couple coats of Zinsser amber shellac. Use more coats for more yellowing. Thin with denatured alcohol for less yellowing. Very quick and easy to use.

[scstill]

I've always been impressed/inspired with how you converted the TV Stand.

[G._Hoffman]

And weirdly, BLO is not boiled; its mixed with distillates.

The traditional method of making boiled linseed oil was boiling it in lead pots, and it would pick up lead ions from the pot, which is what should allow it to dry.  These days they add metal ions without having to boil it, but it's the same result.  You could try adding a bit of japan dryer, if you needed, but honestly oil finishes are a terrible choice for anything which is going to be handled and moved around, unless you are dealing with a oily wood like rosewood or teak, or a really dense wood like ebony.  Maple really does want a hard film finish to keep it from getting discolored over time.

[owen]

First, I like the joints visible.  If you've got, flaunt it.   

Second, a furniture refinisher taught me a trick I've found useful many times. 

Use clear acrylic spray to lightly and evenly "pre-coat" any problem (ie, stain-sucking) surfaces. In your case, the end-grain surfaces.  This will limit the uptake of stain into the wood.  It allowed him to get a very even coatings of the selected stain all across large furniture pieces.  I know the purists out there may be gasping in horror BUT--I've used the technique many times and it works.

Also, when he used oil he applied it with 000 steel wool, then went to 0000 steel wool on subsequent coats.  Just be sure it's sanded down as far as you want first.  The oil mixes with tiny wood particles and produces a great sheen.

came to say this. learned this trick from an uncle, and it worked well when I had to hide my joints from being less obvious on an older project.

[scstill]

So I restarted this project and got some Zinsser Amber Shellac.
Applied two coats straight from the can. 320 sand between.
But starts tacking up before I can brush it smooth, a poor finish. Its very amber too.
Thinking it needs to be thinned. But you cannot buy DeNatured Alcohol in Cal
I heard that grain alcohol is pure and good to thin the shellac,
and that isobutyl (rubbing) alcohol has too much water.
what do you think? other maybe better substitutes for DNA?

[acheld]

It looks like the finish was applied too thickly -- so yeah, I agree with your assessment about thinning the shellac.

You'll have to sand off what's there now.

You can definitely thin shellac with Everclear -- so off to the liquor store you go. 

It's possible that when you sand off the thick shellac, just enough of the amber will be in the wood so that a light spray of clear shellac will do the trick.  Zinsser spray cans will work great in that situation. 

[tubenit]

Why shellac?  It is not a durable finish! IF it's the amber color you're wanting, then I'd use water based analine dye honey amber and then finish with urethane which is more resistant to heat,cold and water. That is what is on this cabinet. I can put a hot mug of coffee or a frosty beer mug on top of this and not worry about it.


Wet the end grain that shows with water prior to putting on the water based analine dye. This is the same analine dye I use on building my guitars. Guitars are finished with nitro-lacquer.


I'd sand it off and start over.


With respect, Tubenit

[Jalmeida]

Back to working on the Repro Supro 1696 TN
I plan to leave the home built pine cabinet natural wood.
Early on I tried to stain some pine scraps but that was too blotchy even with pre-stain conditioner
I decided to use several coats of boiled linseed.
I tried on scrap and knew the finger joints would be darker.
I tried the bottom first. I am trying to determine if I like the much darker fingers or not,
Picture is bottom with one coat BLO and bare side
what do you think? Do they work dark? Thinking they might look better if I could make them closer to the top pine
Is there any suggestions for the fingers to be less dark?
I have heard that pre-stain with BLO will make it gummy and might not even work as it would prevent penetration of the BLO

End grain tends to wick in glue and everything else more so than the flat grain. So if you intend to finish or especially stain, wipe naptha on the endgrain and glue joints to look for glue. Often the glue is invisible until you finish or stain because the glue inhibits the endgrain from absorbing stain or finish. Then it looks blotchy. To clean up glue, wipe with acetone of lacquer thinner then check again once dry with naptha.

[dude]

If you want to stain pine the only way to avoid a blotchy finish is to spray the finish on. End gain will be “slightly darker” but nothing like rubbing it on. Use an alcohol dye stain. I have sprayed alcohol dye stain on many light woods with great results. You need to also spray the top coat sealer too, no brushing.
If you don’t have spray equipment you can buy a spray jar and canister setup, “Preval.com”,  mix the dye stain in the jar and screw on the top and spray away, you don’t get more then a pint or so, might need a few cans of Preval spray, it’s cheap, about $6 a jar and spray adapter