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Raw black swamp ash.

dmraco

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  I am looking to achieve this type of finish.  No grain fill with a satin clear.  I am not sure if ash will take a dye very well.    Or is it better to paint?  I have heard India ink works too.

Thanks
 

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This guy got good results with a piece of Swamp Ash..

[youtube]NhCcBc6kndk[/youtube]​
 
Cagey said:
This guy got good results with a piece of Swamp Ash..

[youtube]NhCcBc6kndk[/youtube]​


I like this.  Simple and easy.  Good to see a nice oil based stain.  That water based is crap.  I think doing both is the ticket.  A light coast of satin poly and we are good to go.
 
I think the results he got are exactly what you're looking for. I went looking for the ebonizing process when I found that.

But, I think if it was me, I might try ebonizing the wood first, then do the dye/stain combo anyway. The advantage of ebonizing the wood is the wood itself changes to black; it's not a finish. So, any banging around you do later won't leave obvious dents and divots. The reason I'd do both is I'm not sure how evenly swamp ash will ebonize. Adding the dye/stain ending would insure and even color.

Ebonizing is easy. Look it up for fine points, but basically you drown some steel wool in vinegar for [some period of time], then strain the results through a coffee filter, spread it on your wood, and let the magic happen. Depending on the species, you will get pure black wood out of the deal. Woods with higher amounts of tannins respond more favorably.

I've done a similar thing with a different chemical and some Mahogany, and it's a neat trick.
 
If you fancy something a little more brainless and harder-wearing, I highly recommend Wudtone. Their Black Magic Woman finish is the black for ash. If you dye the ash with a weak blue-purple dye first, to neutralise the natural wood colour, BMW goes on as a perfect black with the grain texture intact. They also sell it with a silver highlight which picks out the grain even more. Their semi-gloss top coat wipes on and is, in my experience so far, about as hard-wearing as a medium nitrocellulose finish, while being a little thinner than most other wipe-on finishes.

A simply dye + any other top coat will work for sure, but for keeping the wood properly protected, Wudtone has become my go-to. Especially with ash, which will pick up any and all marks and stains if it's not given a proper coating of something tough.
 
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