raw Head cab staining ?

[Jamme1961]

just bought this head cab - its sanded from vendor to 150 grit. I like the look of it maybe daken it a little? what would be the easiest way to do that? not good at staining and don't want to screw it up. any ides thanks

 

[rarebitusa]

What type of color are you going for? Pine is a soft wood and can take stain unevenly. May want to try a wood conditioner first and that allows a more even distribution of the stain. Test pieces are critical. That looks like a Rawcabs shell. If so, I'd ask Reggie to send some pieces to test on.

 

[Jamme1961]

I was thinking of tru-oil or minwax tung oil - just darken it a little

 

[rarebitusa]

Cool, tung oil is a nice look with pine. If that is the case the conditioner is not necessary. The only issue is applying it evenly and that is just an issue with experience. Practice on a few test pieces and you'll be good to go.

 

[Jamme1961]

Cool, tung oil is a nice look with pine. If that is the case the conditioner is not necessary. The only issue is applying it evenly and that is just an issue with experience. Practice on a few test pieces and you'll be good to go.

I have to sand in between coats right? 220 grit? Thanks

 

[rarebitusa]

I've stained alot of pine and doug fir but never have used tung oil. However I don't think that sanding in between coats is required. This link is pretty good to follow.

Tung Oil on Pine

 

[Oscillator]

I’ve applied guitar finishes using gel stains, dyes tints, nitrocellulose (which I try to avoid), water based polyurethane, oils, epoxy, and UV curing resins. I wouldn’t recommend experimenting to learn about these things on an object that isn’t easily replaceable or disposable.

Pine is abundant though. My humble advice would be to get some stacks of offcuts and experiment like crazy.

There are lots of YouTube videos/tutorials for doing this kind of thing. The Highline Guitars YouTube channel covers all sorts of finishing and staining techniques.

Pictured is a guitar body with Solarez grain filler being cured in the sun, which gives you an idea of how much of a shade difference comes from just wetness. Also, one of my earlier projects with red and black tints applied to Crystalac water based polyurethane, not for any purpose but to stroke my fragile ego.

 

[domct203]

Stain is just a coloring, you will still need a top coat to protect the finish, polyurethane is the most common, available as a gloss, semi-gloss, or satin finish, and requires fine sanding (I use 0000 steel wool) between coats.

I recommend you go and research wood finishing and furniture finishes to see the many options you have and how it’s done.

I usually apply stains with a rag, I find that brushes, either foam or bristles, tend to be harder to get even application with stains.

For the polyurethane do not cheap out on the brush, you’ll regret it later when you find loose bristles in the finish and uneven application.

You’ll also need supplies to clean up, mineral spirits is what I prefer, especially to wipe down the polyurethane after sanding between coats.

Dom