Staining flamed maple

[stefanhotrod]

I’d like to stain a flamed maple neck in a dark amber color with mucho grain popping. My desired method would be Liquid stain from Stewmac diluted in denatured alcohol.

What’s the best way go get an even finish? I know staining figured maple can be a pita (don‘t ask how I know)…

How fine should I sand the wood before applying the stain?

Thanks for your help!

 

[docteurseb]

Those liquid stains from StewMac look suspiciously like TransTint (they tend to rebrand stuff they find and jack up the price); here are a few tutorials using TransTint I made last year:

[youtube]https://youtu.be/pwpFqWOVlH4[/youtube]
[youtube]https://youtu.be/KGsX2Pzjhfw[/youtube]
[youtube]https://youtu.be/jjQlJQ4AgC4[/youtube]


The trick is to find the right dilution ratio which varies by brand and color.

First you'll need curly maple to practice.

Ideally you would order the neck without Warmoth's penetrating sealer, otherwise it may be hard to dye it properly.

With curly maple there is no particular trick to get an even finish I can think of.
Maybe you're thinking of plain maple that gets all blotchy ? Not a concern with curly maple assuming you have a very figured neck.
You may just want to open up the grain by wetting the surface lightly with water in order to get good dye penetration with the first layer of stain.

I generally use 180 or 220 grit for bodies and necks and TransTint, Keda, or Fiebing's dyes diluted in denatured alcohol (or isopropyl alcohol for smaller parts): sand, open up grain with water, let dry, dye, sand back, dye.

This body was done last week-end and I'm hoping to do the neck in the coming days:
https://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=32743.15

 

[docteurseb]

I did dye the neck yesterday and it was a real pita:
https://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=32743.15

 

[NedRyerson]

I will state unequivocally that StewMac's ColorTone dye is just relabeled TransTint.

Exact same colors, exact same bottle, but the privilege of paying $4.00 more for the ColorTone label and StewMac's shipping. Buy the TransTint from Amazon or any number of other retailers.  It's the same stuff.

 

[Rick]

I've used keda dyes on bird's eye and comes out great.  Basically, dye dark amber first, sand back a little, that makes the bird's eye's pop, then light orange.  Cover with an oil finish of you choice.  Et viola.  Easy peasy.  Just takes time and patience.

I set the proportions and sanding instructions here:

https://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=30424.90

 

[docteurseb]

I've used keda dyes on bird's eye and comes out great.  Basically, dye dark amber first, sand back a little, that makes the bird's eye's pop, then light orange.  Cover with an oil finish of you choice.  Et viola.  Easy peasy.  Just takes time and patience.

I set the proportions and sanding instructions here:

https://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=30424.90

Interesting, that turned out great. Was that neck specifically ordered without their penetrating sealer ?
I was told back then (from Warmoth and others here) that I should order necks w/o it if I am to dye them.

 

[Rick]

Had the penetrating sealer.  The sealer is like nothing.  Literally ...  I couldn't tell it was there.  Some of the scientists here could probably find some.  I couldn't.  Didn't interfere at all.

 

[docteurseb]

Well thanks, I know what I'm going to do then next time I see an appealing flame maple neck in the showcase (one day when it's no longer empty, and when it's discounted again ;-) ).

 

[Megatron]

Looking to dye a quilt maple top, but need to learn a lot.

Few questions:

1) Where can we one find little pieces of flame maple to experiment with dye and gloss? (Mentioned by @docteurseb above)
(Found many sources online)
2) Thoughts on Keda dye followed by StewMac Modern Clear Gloss Nitro?
3) Good place to read up on Tru-oil vs Nitro gloss vs Poly gloss vs other?

 

[docteurseb]

#2 no problem at all. Just make sure you wipe off excess dye before sealing/clear coating.

 

[ragamuffin]

3) Good place to read up on Tru-oil vs Nitro gloss vs Poly gloss vs other?

What do you want to know about Tru oil vs nitro vs poly?
Are you finishing a body? Neck?

 

[Megatron]

What do you want to know about Tru oil vs nitro vs poly?
Are you finishing a body? Neck?

Looking to finish a quilt maple top body. Want to dye with Keda dyes first and then finish with clear gloss. Ordered Mohawk gloss nitro lacquer because it seemed to be popular online for guitar bodies and I’m going to test on the box of flame maple craft wood samples I received. Wondering if tru oil or poly are superior based on your experience(s). What is the main difference between the three?