Q: If I use India ink for ebonizing, will that affect the glue up?
A: Yep. Any stain will diminish the bonding ability of glue, though some more than others. Dyes are less obstructive than pigments (India ink is a pigment) but the rule is that if you stain before glue up, mask off the glue [...]
Q: I made a small box out of Purple Heart. What can I finish it with to get a brilliant purple color?
A: Purple stain or dye. I realize that sounds like a strange answer, but it will make more sense if you bear with me a bit and let me explain a few things about [...]
Q: Are there any of your books or DVDs that I can buy that would help me solve problems I am having with staining projects?
A: All four of my books and my DVD cover various aspects of staining, both in how to apply stains evenly and how to correct for uneven staining. The best combination, [...]
Q: I’m using Osage Orange for a sunburst top, and discovered it tends to color shift to brown. Is there a finish or other method you know of to prevent this?
A: Many exterior coatings, both oil based and waterbased, contain UV absorbers or blockers. These help, but to be honest, they really only delay the [...]
Q: I usually finish the soundboard of my classical guitars with dewaxed shellac. It has no color at all and therefore the soundboard ends up being very pale. I noticed all classical guitar sound boards are more toward a brown tint. My question is, do you think luthiers stain their soundboards only by using different [...]
Q: There’s a method I want to try; waterbased dye, seal, gel stain left dark in corners and wiped to simulate wear, top coat. How can I brush top coat using varnish without screwing up the gel, since varnish needs scratches to hold to?
A: No it doesn’t. Just let the gel dry thoroughly so that [...]
Q: I am using McFadden nitrocellulose through a standard spray gun. I just successfully shot my first guitar and am working on another which I would like to tone with a dark opaque to light translucent wine red on the headstock veneer and carved maple top. I am having a hard time determining if I [...]
Q: I’m having some problems getting dye to take evenly on soft maple.
A: I’m not surprised. Soft maple is notorious for growing with twisted and wavy fibers. That means when you cut a flat surface, you are actually getting flat grain interspersed with end grain. When you stain, whether with pigments or dyes, the end [...]
Q: Do I need to raise the grain before using water soluble dye?
A: You don’t need to, but it is certainly a good idea. When you get done sanding, the wood cells on the surface are shredded. These shreds will generally stand up once water hits them. If you are lucky, the tiny fibers will [...]
Some recent questions about using dye prompted me to post this very basic introduction to dyes and their use.
Dye is a crystal that dissolves in a particular solvent. Many are sold in powdered form; others are pre-dissolved and sold in highly concentrated liquid form. There are also further diluted, ready to use, already mixed dye [...]
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