Staining Tips?....

[reefwars]

Originally Posted by Maverick00

Well I tried various methods with no success. I got ****ed off and left it for a week. Friday i went back to rona and bought stain and polyurethane containers separately along with minwax brushes specifically for stain and poly. I conditioned the wood once again before adding the stain which (you guys were right) is a must. Then i applied two coats of stain using the method listed on the can. It worked GREAT. I then applied a coat of poly this morning, once again air bubbles appeared just as bad as the 2and1 i used previously. I thought for F sakes in my head, but as it dried the bubbles did get smaller. The poly is now dry and looks alot better than it did with the two in one. The finish is still alittle rough but with a quick sand and one more coat of poly im hoping it will lay even flatter. Ill try to get a pic and update after im finished, perhaps monday. So in my experience i wouldnt use the 2 in 1 again. Im not sure what i was doing wrong but i just couldnt get it together. I should say I am doing this inside (windows open) and my current tank is in the vicinity. I read air bubbles in poly could be caused by high humidity in the area of painting. This could be a factor..

funny you should mention that i was just about to ask are you staining outside or in the cold perhaps???

[Maverick00]

Originally Posted by reefwars

funny you should mention that i was just about to ask are you staining outside or in the cold perhaps???

Yeah it should be a summer project in the carport but i cant wait

[Mrfish55]

How long did you let the stain sit before clear was applied? If you did 2 coats of stain you should wait 48-72 hrs before topcoat. Make sure you are carefull with sanding the clear, if you go thru to the stain it will show on the next coat, the first coat of clear is normally the most difficult as you can get airbubbles from the wood pores, subsequent coats should flow nicer, if you are not using water base poly you can also thin 10-20 % this will slow dry time and flow better giving bubbles time to off gas before the poly flashes. Pine is a pita to get consistent nice finish, took me a long time and lots of experimenting to find results I could live with, good luck and post up some pics.

[Maverick00]

Originally Posted by Mrfish55

How long did you let the stain sit before clear was applied? If you did 2 coats of stain you should wait 48-72 hrs before topcoat. Make sure you are carefull with sanding the clear, if you go thru to the stain it will show on the next coat, the first coat of clear is normally the most difficult as you can get airbubbles from the wood pores, subsequent coats should flow nicer, if you are not using water base poly you can also thin 10-20 % this will slow dry time and flow better giving bubbles time to off gas before the poly flashes. Pine is a pita to get consistent nice finish, took me a long time and lots of experimenting to find results I could live with, good luck and post up some pics.

Im using oil based. I let the stain dry for around 20 hrs or so. Ill leave it alittle longer on my next test piece. The can on the stain states its dry and ready for finish after 8 hrs from what i remember but it wouldnt hurt leaving it longer i suppose. If im STILL unable to get a nice finish ill try thinning with mineral spirits like you suggested. Thanks for the tips though I am so glad i started with test pieces or my stand would have looked like it was built on the red green show :P

[Maverick00]

Well I have another update, i dont want to milk this thread dry but hopefully this will help someone else having the same issues i had. Its been frustrating as hell.

I went to rona and picked up some 3" foam brushes. I once again tried to put down another layer of poly with little hope it would work out but i was mistaking. I dipped the brush in 1/2" or so and started to brush very slowly using just the tip of the brush and to my amazement it sat down with little to no bubbles at all. There are small fisheyes that are currently noticeable but i think it may be because of how uneven my previously layers were due to the bubbles popping and leaving craters. I also found the foam brush to be alot easier to maintain a THIN coat evenly across the surface. Im very excited and going to try to mimic a stand door tomorrow from start to finish before moving onto the actual stand.

Saying this I believe the 2in1 probably would have worked out for me if i would have started with the foam brush from square one. However using a stain then poly gave me a completely different look which i actually like alot better. The contrast of the grain is much stronger which im assuming is due to the stain penetrating the wood deeper with 2 steps rather than sealing and staining the wood in one step with the 2 in 1.

Anyway here is what ive learnt so far.

- Sand the panels with the grain of the wood using 220 followed by 400
- Make absolutely sure the surface is free of debris.
- Stain with a bristle brush, keep the coat thin because you'll be amazed at how much you'll end up wiping off after 10 - 15 mins.
- Scuff the surface with fine steel wool and repeat stain procedure until your happy with the darkness of the wood. Make sure to keep surface clean
- Apply the poly with a foam brush, not only did i find this better in every aspect (keeping a thin layer, no air bubbles, more evenly distributed) they are also a buck and a half compared to the 20 dollar bristle brush i bought. Throw them out after use and start fresh with another one.
- After each coat i also wiped the surface down with a rag and mineral spirits, this seemed to work well for me in helping keep the dust away

Sorry no pics yet, i keep forgetting to buy some AA's. Thanks for the help everyone