Brush for Staining Wood?

and if you have not done finishing before, be sure to tack your work off with a tack cloth or micro fibre cloth after sanding. some flippers worked on a house near us and i could tell what kind of people the had doing the work so when there was an open house I went and took a look and sure enough, they had not tacked and i could see it in the top coat on the balustrade.

also, blow it off or dust it with a brush between sanding grits. if you are doing something fine on a closed grain hard wood like maple or birch, even a stray piece of grit from a heavier coat will leave a swirl and that will be a pain in the neck to get out. this matters less on oak.

and if you are doing something in line with what dork is saying above, i would stay away from oil base top coats. the oil base tops coats that i know of all amber and look like something from the past anyway so to me, there is no point in running them out to 600 grit. if you are going to put that kind of work into it you will want a lacquer as it stays clear. even water base poly casts a slightly gray hue wh en you look at it a certain way in the light. if you are polishing it, you will want a crystal clear coat.

conditioner is only necessary on soft woods. also, stay away from acetone based stains (they are no longer alcohol based but acetone) unless you need them. only use acetone based dye stains or even water based dye stains on problem closed grain woods, an under coat for birch say to kill the blond color that will cast through the dark stains and do not rely on a dye stain as the final stain. always go with oil stain over dye stain and if you do use a dye a second coat of oil will not be neccessary.

i do not do furniture finishing so i am less able to advise on top coats for furniture. when i have had to, i apply a sanding sealer and sand that off. and they go with whatever top coat. i cannot speak to lacquers ( i have used them but do not have a spray booth and cannot use them in the city) but if you use oil top coats, start with gloss and finish with what ever (semi or satin). Build with gloss. if i do not use a sanding sealer but make my own sanding sealer by cutting the varnish, i sand only after the first coat as i do not want to sand through the sealer and into the stain.

also, if you are doing fine work, i suppose you can sand to 150 or 180. i do not sand anything finer than 120 and then i seal or prime. because i work on entry doors, i am more worried about adhesion and longevity than a high end finish. between coats i sand 180. again adhesion. i suppose if i were working on something in doors i might sand to 320 before the last coat. i might sand finer and wax over. (yes, i have done some interior work but most of mine is entry; my high school shop teacher used to make tall clock cases and lacquer and wax and buff). Dork suggest finer wet sanding and if that is what you are after, go for it.

see what dork say about the big box store product. i think i said it above in this post as well. DO NOT ASK THOSE FOOLS IN ORANGE APRONS ANYTHING and if you do you are in serious trouble. there is no telling what they will tell you (i have a story about these idiots from yesterday and when i final fix the problem that they could not help me with, i will post). you can buy incidentals there, sand paper, thinners. It used to be that we could go to abbot paint and ask charlie hoey about all things finishing and he was like an encyclopdia . but they have replaced him with less eperienced people who are happy to sit there and take mony but will never take the initiative to learn more than they have to; why do i say something like this? i was purchasing a spray toner and needed to know if it was lacquer based and the idiot looked at the can and said i think so (well, i can read as well and had read the can before i got to the counter and it did not say; so i took his word and instead of knowing so i listened to him and was reminded why i only ask certain people things. if you can pull from the auto body industry, those guys know their stuff and there is a good supply house just off queens blvd over here and also on Grand or Flushing ave in maspeth.

i just wish to add a note to what brownstonedoors said about the VOCs. if i can, i always work outside (and op might be able to work outside). that said, when i have to work inside, i tell the females of child bearing age (and their children) they have to leave until it is dry. I advise men to leave but if they want to stay, i at least advised tem. and when i have a family that cannot vacate i switch products (i hate water base stains but have come to accept water base top coats for INTERIOR work). i had something similiar come up this past month: somenone asked me to lightly sand the old finish in a vestibule and prime and paint. i ran a lead test and it came back positive. i FLAT around refused to sand even though every woodworker reading this knows that to make a nice, lasting finish, it should have been sanded. we compromised and i primed and painted. at this point in my life, i am not worried what a monthly exposure to some of this stuff will do to me – but morally, we cannot impart that carelessness on others.

Good suggestions here. I’ll just add that as a new finisher (many avg woodworkers are not great on finishing IMO) but if you are new seeking looking for a masterpiece then i have some suggestions: to consider – – testing conditioner on the wood before staining the actual item comparing one coat of stain vs conditioner + two coats of stain (no idea what Species you are using); – – use oil based stain and multiple coats (if you can, voc’s are a consideration); – – seriously consider if you want to fill the grain with grain filler or not (if you want a mirror finish then probably yes) – – the clear coat decision is not insignificant – possibly the most. Guessing you wont be spraying, perhaps a great water based poly will be doable; get your wet sanding between coats – 600/1200 grit and finishing sponge block from autozone etc. Buffer and compound. Get a finishing book (tauntons etc) if none of that made sense. I usually tell my friends that if the finishing isn’t at least as hard as the woodworking you have not done your best finish. And if you have purchased anyth ing except for insignificant supplies from big box stores you could be compromising it.

Keeping in mind you said you wanted a masterpiece. There is not much room for corner cutting in finishing if you want the piece to be as good as you say. Takes a lot of time as well. Budget 2-4 weeks.

Good luck, for me not many things more rewarding than a great finish!

If you want to learn more about wood refinishing, find yourself a copy of THE FURNITURE DOCTOR by George Grotz. It’s an oldie but goodie: full of great tips — and many witty anecdotes.

Like Steve I also use Mohawk products for staining wood 95% of the time… but I also have a registered and compliant spray booth. The VOC content of Mohawk oil stains is upwards of 700g/l . I would NOT recommend this product to a home owner, as it is intended for professional use- in a spray booth. In many states you can not buy these products without showing your permits for a spray booth.

I am not a fan of water-borne stains, but they are very low in VOC’s and necessary for some field applications (many buildings in the city do not allow any oil-based finishes).

Find the product that is best for your application. Gel stains and modified oil/waxes like Rubio and Osmo are easy to work with and easy on you body as well. Be safe.

Bob, all that means is you are highly talented. here is what i discovered about using professional products: they are easier to use than the retail stuff; they are much more forgiving. with mohawk stains, you can overcoat the same day.

in general, once you use commercial product you will not go back. adhesives, top coats, epoxies, stains. commercial produccts are easier to use and they work better under a wider range of conditions and they look better when done. commercial product can make pros out of amuateurs (maybe that is the difference?) also, if you call the techinical support team at a commercial product manufacturer, you will be dealing with a person at an altogether higher level of expertise; they have to be that way to answer the broad range of questions put before them from other manufactureres and commercial users. the stupity that comes out of the mouths of some of the customer service help for retail suppliers makes me think that they all wear orange aprons and all attend the same Home Depot University.

i had a very serious problem with a minwax top coat years ago and i switched and never encountered it again. all it takes is one time.

I know you have a lot more experience than me Steve, but FWIW I’ve been using Minwax products on and off for 50 years with pretty good results. I know they’re amateur products, but that’s exactly what I am. I especially like their Antique Oil Finish on oak.

Hey guys, thanks for your valuable tips and your recommendation (cheap china bristle). I think this one will be good for my work.
Thanks again

and also, do not use minwax stains. go with mohawk stains. minwax is home depot junk.

brush matters more on the top coats. and like brownstone doors says, i use those cheap china bristle brushes for the profiles.

as with any woodworking project every step of the process is equally important from sanding, tacking off, staining and top coating. mess any of those up and the entire job is a do over. the only things you can mess up and still salvage the job are the final top coats which can be sanded out without interfereing with the work beneath.

It depends on what you are staining and which type of stain you are applying. If it is an oil based wiping stain- cheese cloth followed by a rag works very well. China bristle (cheap) brushes are good for getting into details. If you are using a waterborne stain- synthetic bristles are preferable. Alcohol based stains are best sprayed.