staining rosewood

[aaron]

Thanks John. I actually did try out a couple stains on scraps. I had some special walnut and a couple others I tested but they all came out about the same. Perhaps the wood is darker than I was expecting. It is a grayish brown color. I was hoping to get that beautiful red color out of it that I have seen before.

[Mitch]

I actually did try out a couple stains on scraps. ... I was hoping to get that beautiful red color out of it that I have seen before.

Aaron, did you also put on the top coats? It's hard to evaluate stains, especially with regards to grain pop, without the clear top coats.

Mitch

[Mitch]

.. but I will stain the Mahogany neck to match he rosewood as on this guitar. The neck is stained with a custom mixed dye stain.

Brian, I was also thinking about staining my mahogany neck. I assume by "dye stain", you mean the water based stuff such as transfast? Any tips on getting even color on mahogany? Do you pre coat with shellac?

Mitch

[tippie53]

Martin used a 2 color stain mix red mahogany a and a brown mahogany , then last I seen in the finish department was the dark satin that I think is an analline dye and looks a lot like dark maple.They gave me some for a repair.
I still use the 2 color mix. Then I use a very dark filler that is almost black. this is as close to the old martin look as I can get and it holds its own against the martins I compared it to.

[B. Howard]

.. but I will stain the Mahogany neck to match he rosewood as on this guitar. The neck is stained with a custom mixed dye stain.

Brian, I was also thinking about staining my mahogany neck. I assume by "dye stain", you mean the water based stuff such as transfast? Any tips on getting even color on mahogany? Do you pre coat with shellac?

Mitch

I use Behlens Solar-lux for 90% of my staining these days. I do not care for water based dyes or stains as they will raise the grain and generally seem to turn out blotchy . It is much easier (for me anyway) to get an even color with a solvent or alcohol based dye. You do not want to put any shellac or sealer down first as it will prevent the dye or stain from penetrating and coloring the wood. To get an even color I will apply 2-3 coats about 5 minutes apart. Another nice thing about the solar-lux is it can be finished over in less than an hour where as conventional stains may need to dry for 24 hours. A trick to evening out the tone when needed is to wipe the wood down with DA after the dye has dried for about 15 minutes, this can help even out the tone by blending the dye. If you do use a water based dye, thoroughly wetting the wood prior to application will often help with even penetration and overall coloring.