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Is there any reason I couldn't use the underside of the top/back/sides to test my stains, provided I do it in areas not visible from the sound hole?

glue may not adhere there over the stain

Gotcha

That was a great question. I've wondered myself.

There is NO SUCH THING as a silly question. But silly people don't ask questions!

At least i learned I can test my stain on the underside as long as I'm not hitting any glue areas. Been sidetracked with a writing project, but hope to get back to the git this week!

Adding to the question: Do I need to be concerned with the type of stain I use? Oil-based versus water? Minwax or something more specialized? Analine? Or will anything work? I plan on finishing with Tru-oil or something similar....

I've not worked with TruOil. But, I've found that water based aniline dyes work well under shellac, nitro, water and oil based polyurethane. You want to make sure they're completely dry. I'm assuming since they don't care about water vs. oil polyurethane, that they'll work well under TruOil.

Keda makes powdered aniline dyes that are very reasonably priced. They sell a set of 5 for around $17. Just mix with hot tap water. They're beautiful colors that can be mixed and matched.

Thanks. I have a pack of various colors (dry, analine) I got for staining glue. I can check that...might look at the Stewmac liquid dyes as well.