Dexterity

[DEXTERITY]

I have a ? on finishs.I have a carving that I'm almost finished with.Believe I have more hrs into it than dollars of the us debt.Prob:wild cherry stump,somewhat hard,some cracks.I would like to inhance the color, burl and perserve it.Not sure which way to turn sense this is my 1st piece!?
Stan

[Claude]

First, take a piece of scrap from the carving. Then try a little MinWax Cherry Stain on it, followed by some polyurethane varnish. Put it in the sun for a couple of weeks, and it'll turn a bit darker. If you like what you see, then you can do the carving the same way.

Claude

[AlArchie]

I'd suggest you try either a "natural" light colored stain or a golden Oak to start with. If that doesn't get you what you want you can always go lighter.
Check at a store that handles Minwax stains....they have small, one use packets of stain to try out for about 30 cents a pack. While you are there check their stain color charts and see if you can match a color/wood combo that looks like what you would like as a final shade. There should be an extensive chart showing different colored stains on various woods.

As this is a burl, and most burls tend to be somewhat porus, I'd then suggest you apply a good grade sanding sealer, let it dry and apply one or two more coats. Then you can finish with a poly varnish...either brush on or spray...I like the spray but that is strictly a personal preference and either will work as well.

Al

[Bartster]

hello and welcome to the forum

bart

[vacation212]

Ice CreamHello,welcome to the WCI board.