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re: Coloring wood?
I'm a fumer when it comes to white oak.
There could be volumes written on this but just a few tidbits for now.
(Yes, be aware of the hazards of ammonia and the fumes!)
Yes, it can be tricky. Wood from the same board may or may not all react the same. Use test pieces from your cutoffs!
Besides the color, to me the best thing is you can fume the wood before assembly, no affect on gluing what-so-ever and the finish goes deep so touchup sanding an edge won't burn through as with a stained part.
I use "janitorial strength" ammonia from Ace Hardware. 10% strength and a tad over $5/gallon. Many say you need to special order "blueprinting" ammonia for $$$. WRONG! Don't waste you time or $. The 10% will turn a part into a nice brown in a few hours, overnight and you will have a chocolate brown (provided the wood has enough tannins).
I fume small parts in a RubberMaid tub. I use PVC couplers to act as stilts so my parts are above a small pool of ammonia in the bottom. The PVC keeps the ammonia from wicking up.
Alternatively I also use a frame made from PVC pipe and either a large trash bag or plastic drop cloth to envelope it.
Make a tent with the frame and plastic, sealing off where the plastic meets the ground (I spread a ring of sand).
Place your parts (I hang them) in the tent, add a small dog food bowl of ammonia. I also set in a computer fan to circulate the fumes.
With clear plastic you can keep track of the process, don't be afraid to sneak a piece out to see how it is doing.
The frame is great for doing complete projects, the tub is ideal for smaller parts.
There could be volumes written on this but just a few tidbits for now.
(Yes, be aware of the hazards of ammonia and the fumes!)
Yes, it can be tricky. Wood from the same board may or may not all react the same. Use test pieces from your cutoffs!
Besides the color, to me the best thing is you can fume the wood before assembly, no affect on gluing what-so-ever and the finish goes deep so touchup sanding an edge won't burn through as with a stained part.
I use "janitorial strength" ammonia from Ace Hardware. 10% strength and a tad over $5/gallon. Many say you need to special order "blueprinting" ammonia for $$$. WRONG! Don't waste you time or $. The 10% will turn a part into a nice brown in a few hours, overnight and you will have a chocolate brown (provided the wood has enough tannins).
I fume small parts in a RubberMaid tub. I use PVC couplers to act as stilts so my parts are above a small pool of ammonia in the bottom. The PVC keeps the ammonia from wicking up.
Alternatively I also use a frame made from PVC pipe and either a large trash bag or plastic drop cloth to envelope it.
Make a tent with the frame and plastic, sealing off where the plastic meets the ground (I spread a ring of sand).
Place your parts (I hang them) in the tent, add a small dog food bowl of ammonia. I also set in a computer fan to circulate the fumes.
With clear plastic you can keep track of the process, don't be afraid to sneak a piece out to see how it is doing.
The frame is great for doing complete projects, the tub is ideal for smaller parts.
