timbo2410

Hi all. I have done a bit of carving from a lump of Oak. I was just wondering what finish I should use to highlight the grain and give it good depth. I would like a semi gloss sort of finish if I can. Any suggestions would be great.

Gene Howe

Without knowing what your carving looks like....relief or full 3D...I would suggest wiping on Watco Dark Walnut, letting it set for a few minutes and wiping it off. That should highlight the grain. Then spray it with a good brand of semi gloss polyurethane after the Watco dries. Usually 24-48 hrs.
I suggest Watco because it's oil based and more forgiving than some lighter weight mediums.
Gene

timbo2410

Ok this is going to sound weird but I have carved a field mushroom. It stands about a foot high and is from an old Oak tree that is over 200 years old. The top of the mushroom really brings out the rings and where I have carved the gills, the grain shows through very well. That's why I want something to bring out that colour and still show the grain. I live in the UK so need a product I can source locally.

Streamwinner

Oak grain is pretty easy to "bring out." Any type of oil stain or dye would work well, and if it's for outdoors, perhaps using a penetrating sealer as opposed to a film finish would be best. Avoid water based products as this will cause the open grain in oak to swell.

Sounds like a cool mushroom. Can you post some pics?

timbo2410

yeah no problems I'll post as soon as I'm ready to finish. I want a finish that is going to seal it but it's not an "outdoors" item. The wife loves frogs and mushrooms and a mushroom is easier to carve than a frog ... hence me carving a mushroom. I also want it to be very smooth. So perhaps a sealnat, then another sanding and a final coat ...

Grandpa Dave

I'm new to woodworking and using forums so I don't know the protoccol but I have a question that I need help with. I just made a hope chest using an oak veneer. I applied a wood conditioner before applying stain. I used MinWax dark walnut stain and found that there were spots that would not take the stain. I tried putting extra stain on those areas and it didn't help. What could have caused this and what do I do to fix it?
Grandpa Dave

JW_in_Indy

You probably shouldn't have used a "wood conditioner" on oak. ESPECIALLY if it was a "Minwax" type big box store type of product. They are basically junk. With that being said, "wood conditioners" or "pre-treaters" are for very soft woods like pine or poplar. They tend to "splotch" and spot like you mentioned that the oak is doing. I find making my own wash coat out of dewaxed shellac mixed with 50% denatured alcohol makes a much nicer, more uniform wash coat.

If you're getting "splotching on a hardwood like oak.... it's for precisely two reasons. First, you didn't sand properly. Great surface prep goes a long way to a fine end result. I would start with 120 and graduate to 220 prior to staining oak. In fact, I always do that. The second thing, is to use a high quality stain. Again, none of the "price point" brands of the big box stores. Something like the Sherwin Williams wiping stain http://oem.sherwin-williams.com/us/e..._wiping_stain/ (not always available in their retail stores, where they push their Wood Classics stains - but always available at their commercial centers) or any of the General Finishes products http://www.generalfinishes.com/finis...es/oilbase.htm are of much higher quality which you will notice right away the first time you use them.

As for what you can do right now to remove what's been done, I'd try some agressive sanding to see if you can remove most or all of the splotches and start over. Of course, there is only so much veneer there to sand so that may not be practical. You might also try a combination of sanding and wood bleach (no, not the Mrs' Chlorox) and start over. I've never used any wood bleach before so it may not even work for your particular situation. You will need to do some research on it and see what you find.

Or, start your own thread on the subject and see what the pro's here think.

Good luck.

garryswf

Timbo,
I think i read that it is an indoors item? Years ago i built a dining room table out of oak, i finished it with boiled linseed oil. The final sanding was with 320 grit, then after i cleaned it i started with the Linseed oil. If i remember i ended up putting 5 coats on the table. I talked to an old woodworker that was in my area and he explained to me how the Linseed oil should be applied, with a felt eraser. So that is what i used. i applied the first coat let it dry then went over the whole thing with 4-0000 steel wool. Done that 5 times which took awhile but when it was finished the grain looked 3-D. Just a thought. I will say this, it took a;ot of elbow grease to put those 5 coats on.

timbo2410

I have just found out the amount of work involved in sanding. I merrily carved away with my dremel and made a good job of some of the detail. I have now started the sanding process and have almost backed myself into a corner. It's REALLY hard to get into all the nooks and crannies In some areas I have lost some detail due to just trying to sand. Does sandblasting help? Yes before anybody says it, I am a woodcarving virgin but I'm giving it a go anyway. I'll post pics when I feel it is not too embarrassing. I've got some Oak wax to go on it so I will have even more of the same but I think in the end it will look ok.

JW_in_Indy

I'm sure it will look great timbo.... we're all looking forward to it.

timbo2410

Ok here it is ... had problems with it after sanding. Got it all done nicely with very fine sandpaper and applied a coat of wax. I could hear a funny noise and the wood started to crack !!!!! Is this normal? The wife thinks it gives character but I'm a bit annoyed. The surface of the wood has also gone a bit "furry" ?? should I give it another sanding and apply another coat of wax?

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joesdad

That is really nice!, original at the least. I can see your frustration with the cracks, but because of where they are it doesn't bother me and I also think they work with the shape of the design and add something. That piece was doomed to crack from the start though being that you used the center of a log, oak no less which expands and contracts a lot. There wasn't much you could have done to prevent those cracks even under the best of circumstances. Definitely not a loss just a lesson, my house is full of them.

-Armand

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timbo2410

Thanks for the nice comments they've cheered me up. At least I can sit back and say hey it used to be an old bit of wood that was going to rot, but now I've turned it into something else ... and along the way I've learned a lot

Tony B

I kinda like the cracks. They 'belong' there.

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