Question
I am trying to match a stained sample on figured anigre. The sample is grain filled with the color very even (Brown Maple color) and the 3 dimensional grain really pops as you move the sample around. I can get a very even color by spraying a light coat of dye stain, but it is killing too much of the figured graining. I tried to put the colorant in the sealer with pretty much the same result. Does anyone have tricks that will keep the figured grain from being obscured?
Forum Responses
(Fnishing Forum)
From contributor T:
I have seen finishers spray a light coat of water and alcohol solution to pop the grain first, then apply a dye.
If you spray a 12" X 12" sample you should be able to wet it out enough to achieve this. Now, what if you're spraying wall panels 40" X 120" - can you get it wet enough to get the same effect as the sample? More than likely the answer is no. This will be your biggest problem and this is how I deal with this exact situation. Are you reducing the dye stain with a solvent? If not, reduce it 50/50 with solvent. You need to look at the evaporation rate of the solvent that you're using with the dye stain. Instead of using acetone, use alcohol. If that's too fast, use methanol. If that's too fast, use slow reducer. Remember to take a break in between each pass that is made on the sample. You want your spray rate to resemble spraying of the actual product. This will give you a better chance at making the transition between sample and product. There is no other way to do it, especially if your customer is a fanatic about the pop in the figure. If they were not, they would have chosen maple.
