Pestvic Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 (edited) hey guys and gals. i just received my black stain from stewart mac (i love presents from gfs haha) and i was wondering do you guys prep the figured maple first before you stain with water so the stain soaks better? or do you stain right away (stain on dried wood) let me know! this is what i came up with, but i cant help but feel like i can do better. this is watering the wood raising the grain then sanding it down and i think i stained while it was half dry sanding the top coat down keeing the high grain (tiger stripe looking ones dark) then re staining again a second coat to get that light and dark figured maple POP the grain look :-P. sorry bad pic it was with a 1mp cell phone camera :-P anyway thanks everyone! im looking to get a top like this Edited May 21, 2009 by Pestvic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marko_slash Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 You will need a little of blue to get that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 Your dye concentrate doesn't look anywhere near strong enough, how are you mixing it and in what? And I never wet first, it just dilutes your concentration. I've never even heard of wetting the wood first to be honest, and I've been dying tops for 15 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vinny Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 A great reference for ALL types of wood finishing, including dyes is a book by Bob Flexner, Drak clued me in on it a while back. Every guitar builder should have a copy. Here's one of the threads: -Vinny http://projectguitar.ibforums.com/index.ph...&hl=FLEXNER Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 I will however add this: What I do do a lot of times is make the concentration very strong, wipe it on as fast and neatly as possible, THEN I will take a wetted towel and go over it again (quickly) just to even out the dye in case swirl marks are showing up. So yes, I do use water, but after, not before, and as little as possible to get the job done. I agree with the above, pure black really doesn't cut it for me, I would add a few SMALL drops of blue to it. Very very very small amount of blue. And I think your concentration is too weak by your pic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pestvic Posted May 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 A great reference for ALL types of wood finishing, including dyes is a book by Bob Flexner, Drak clued me in on it a while back. Every guitar builder should have a copy. Here's one of the threads: -Vinny http://projectguitar.ibforums.com/index.ph...&hl=FLEXNER cool man thanks a lot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pestvic Posted May 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 Your dye concentrate doesn't look anywhere near strong enough, how are you mixing it and in what? And I never wet first, it just dilutes your concentration. I've never even heard of wetting the wood first to be honest, and I've been dying tops for 15 years. oh sweet so its better to stain dry. I forgot where i read it here to stain while wet, almost like stain conditioner. But thanks man . So how much dye should i mix? Oh yeah im using water ask a mixer. Also how shpuld i apply it? I used a paper towel on this one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marko_slash Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 There is a great video in which some guy says that it's better to wet the wood first, to prepare it. And it looks great! Here's link: http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/Ski...e.aspx?id=30182 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pestvic Posted May 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 There is a great video in which some guy says that it's better to wet the wood first, to prepare it. And it looks great! Here's link: http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/Ski...e.aspx?id=30182 yeah thats what i watched! that green crazy peice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pestvic Posted May 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 i want to use shellac now haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pestvic Posted May 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 I will however add this: What I do do a lot of times is make the concentration very strong, wipe it on as fast and neatly as possible, THEN I will take a wetted towel and go over it again (quickly) just to even out the dye in case swirl marks are showing up. So yes, I do use water, but after, not before, and as little as possible to get the job done. I agree with the above, pure black really doesn't cut it for me, I would add a few SMALL drops of blue to it. Very very very small amount of blue. And I think your concentration is too weak by your pic. what should my concentration be? i know it should be strong the first coat to bring out the high grain maple tiger stripes. but what about the second coat? shouldnt it be a tiny bit let concentrated for that Grey/silver look? a ratio guide would be nice like 1 part water 2 parts stain etc. Ill be searching while i wait for an answer thanks a lot everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 I have always used baby food jars to mix my dye, the concentration is usually 1/3 teaspoon to a full jar. If you're using liquid dyes, just play it by ear, but it needs to be stronger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDub Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 Are you using stain or dye? I think they're different. FWIW, when I did my skull LP to look similar to the one in your pic, I used analine dye. I mixed black dye and tested on scrap, until I got the color I was looking for. I did wet the wood first. It helps to get an even color. I've also done a burst using the techniques in that tutorial, and it came out great. Now, with stain, I don't know if that works the same way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soapbarstrat Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 End grain is where you can wet first to keep it from sucking up too much stain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pestvic Posted May 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2009 I have always used baby food jars to mix my dye, the concentration is usually 1/3 teaspoon to a full jar. If you're using liquid dyes, just play it by ear, but it needs to be stronger. cool thanks man. well its hard to see in the cell phone picture but after testing and testing clear coat and polishing and buffing its actually comming out pretty damn amazing ill go ahead and make the mix a little stronger but im liking the way it comes out Thanks for the help man the baby food idea is great also should i use the old t shirt with paper towel on the inside wrapped with a rubber band as an applicator? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pestvic Posted May 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2009 Are you using stain or dye? I think they're different. FWIW, when I did my skull LP to look similar to the one in your pic, I used analine dye. I mixed black dye and tested on scrap, until I got the color I was looking for. I did wet the wood first. It helps to get an even color. I've also done a burst using the techniques in that tutorial, and it came out great. Now, with stain, I don't know if that works the same way. im using the stewart mac transtint liquid dye the way i did it at first ended up looking great so ill post pictures for you guys with a REAL camera :-P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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