werneb01

Hello,

I am getting close to the finishing stages of a crib I'm building for my son. He is growing fast and soon will outgrow the bassinet we are using. I have a lot of questions about how to proceed.

At any rate, the crib is a combination of brazilian cherry and red oak. I know both have fairly open pores.

My plan is to stain with a natural stain to bring out the color of the wood. Final finish poly/shellac whatever I haven't decided on.

I have used Timbermate water based wood filler as a grain filler before with pretty good results. If needed I could do that here.

My current plan is to grain fill and then stain with natural stain.

I was thinking about using wipe on poly. However, with all the slats and many pieces this is probably going to be a pain, but better than brushing.

I do have a Graco Magnum dx sprayer I've used for painting but I'm not so sure it is a good idea for clear.

So, I'm looking for suggestions on whether or not I need to fill the grain. Whether to use oil or water based natural stain. What type of clear to use and can it be brushed, or maybe sprayed with the sprayer I have.

Thank you for your help. I'll post a picture what I get something assembled.

Brad

firehawkmph

Hi Brad,
Just a couple of comments. I have never bothered to use a grain filler on oak, or ash for that matter and was always happy with the way it looked. If you are building up a finish with the clear, it shouldn't cause any problems. The braz. cherry has a tighter grain than the oak. What kind of sprayer is the graco you have, airless, HVLP, etc.? If it is an airless, I personally wouldn't use it to spray the clear. It can be done with the proper tip, but not much room for error. An HVLP gun would work well, very controllable. I shoot most of my smaller projects with an automotive trim gun that I bought at Lowes. About 40.00 if I remember right. You can dial down the spray pattern to shoot anywhere from a one inch circular pattern to about an eight inch cirle. I shoot fast drying varnish thinned twenty percent with paint thinner. Dries to the touch in less than twenty minutes. Put on as many coats as you want in short order.
Mike Hawkins

jerry

Twice you mentioned natural stain,what is that ?. I have been finishing for over forty years and I'm not sure.

Regards

Jerry

cabinetman

He might be talking about a product like Minwax #209. It's called "Natural". It's really nothing but a clear oil base sealer, that slightly darkens wood. Sherwin-Williams also sells the same type of product. I buy that stuff as a mixing base for pickling colors.

You could forego the grain filler, and just use a clear interior varnish thinned to wipe on. You start spraying oil base stuff on spindles and such, it's gonna run all over. It takes too long to dry and you'll have dust nibs galore. You might try a satin waterbased polyurethane. If you want to spray, practice some first.

werneb01

The natural stain I have used is basically thinned down oil finish. I've used this one in the past frequently:

http://www.calwood.com/main.php?type...ategory_id=145

It just brings out the color and grain differences.

I had another idea after posting my initial question. What if I used just penetrating oil instead of the stain and then if my wife and I are happy about that lower sheen level just leave it. If not then investigate some clear on top since spraying sounds like the best option and I've never done that.

Can I put clear over a penetrating oil like Watco or something similar?

Thanks!

Brad