When Using Wood Dyes....

[yorgo]

When using wood dyes on a veener in what order do the following go?

stain.....sealer......clear coat

or

sealer....stain....clear coat

or

stain...... clear coat

[killemall8]

the first one. obviously if you seal it you wont be able to stain it.

[yorgo]

When using wood dyes on a veener in what order do the following go?

stain.....sealer......clear coat

or

sealer....stain....clear coat

or

stain...... clear coat

I read somewhere...I think guitar reranch.... depending on the type of dye you must seal before staining. It just doesn't make sense to me, because how does the stain absorb in the wood if it is sealed?

[ihocky2]

I will freely admit that I do not understand it, but you are correct about seeing to seal the body first. I don't understand how it works yet, but my take on it is that you are dying the sealer, and you only use a light coat of sealer. I have only ever dyed and then shot clear. Sealer is not necessary, you just have to go with mist coats for the first several.

[carousel182]

This should be in inlay and finish chat. What I did was stain sealer clear coat.

[Drak]

If you are truly asking about applying stains to VENEER and not just ordinary tops of 1/8" or more, then you did leave out an important step.

Prayer. :D

Pray deep and hard that you don't apply your stain too much, loosen up the glue, and pop the veneer back up.

If not referring to true veneer, carry on then.

PS, this is listed in the wrong forum.

[killemall8]

I read somewhere...I think guitar reranch.... depending on the type of dye you must seal before staining. It just doesn't make sense to me, because how does the stain absorb in the wood if it is sealed?

i think you might be thinking of how some people suggest a wash coat of some kind so that the dye absorbes evenly and doesnt get as blotchy. if thats what i remember hearing.

[Drak]

'Wash coats' are typically used on woods that are known offenders to absorb dye or stain unevenly, like Pine and Spruce, and are usually Shellac or sometimes Hide Glue, although technically any finish that closes up the pores could be termed a 'wash coat'.

And technically, #1 and #3 are both correct, the use of sealer is completely optional and typically unnecessary (IMO).

[Mickguard]

the use of sealer is completely optional and typically unnecessary (IMO).

Except that you take the risk that the clear won't absorb evenly into the wood as it cures --if the wood absorbs more in some places than others then you're asking for heartache when you go to sand and polish (speaking from experience). It depends on what you're clearing with, of course, and how thick a finish you want.

[Mattia]

The only 'sealer' I've ever used is shellac, and that's only because waterbased finishes don't pop wood grain at all well. There's nothing magical to it; a light coat of nitro will seal just fine, for example. Sealer is important if your finish doesn't like adhering to the wood underneath (some polys don't like the oils in rosewood, so need to be sealed first in order to ensure adherence), but that's not really an issue with the vast majority of common finishes or common woods used in guitarmaking.