Darkening pre-oiled wood

[tony359]

Hi there,

My first post here. I'm just a DIY'er and I've built two speaker stands using plywood. I wanted them to be dark in colour so I used some dark oak danish oil I had. I've recently discovered Danish oil and I love it!

However, the finishing is not dark enough. I've applied two passes. What can I do now that the wood has already Danish oil on it?

Thanks for your help!
Tony

 

[Phil Pascoe]

You can't do much, really, as it's ply so you can't sand it to any depth. Use a darker Danish or PU varnish is about all you can do, as a stain will not penetrate the existing oil.
Number one lesson - test your finishes on a bit of scrap first.

 

[marcros]

you could investigate a gel stain. i have not used it, but the idea is that it site on top of the finish.

 

[tony359]

Number one lesson - test your finishes on a bit of scrap first.

Lesson learnt!

Thanks both. Are you aware of a very dark danish oil?

 

[marcros]

i dont think that they come in shades as such- you would need to tint with an oil compatible pigment or dye. test first though before using it!

 

[Sgian Dubh]

As marcros said, you can add a compatible dye. In this case, use either a spirit (alcohol) based dye or possibly an oil based one, although the latter are usually stains rather than a dye, i.e., they contain pigment as well as a dye. Personally, I'd go with adding dye rather than stain as my first means of experimenting.

If trying this add a little colourant, say 4 - 5%, by volume to your Danish oil to start with, do a test application, then if required add more colourant a little at a time until you get what you want, assuming this does the trick. Slainte.

 

[tony359]

Thanks.
I had a look around but could only find water-based dye. I'll keep looking - do you have an idea where I could find an oil/spirit based dye?

Tony

 

[Phil Pascoe]

http://www.axminster.co.uk/liberon-spir ... ye-ax22572
It's only a quid for delivery so by the time you find some locally, you'd have it delivered.

 

[ED65]

Simplest solution here is just to use a compatible coloured topcoat. Gel stain as already suggested by marcros is probably ideal, its thicker consistency generally makes it easier to get an even colour than with a coloured varnish (more runny) although that can work also.

 

[tony359]

Thanks Phil
I didn't find that! I'll give that a go.

Thanks ed65 too.

 

[tony359]

Hello Phil,

took a while but I purchased the dye you recommended. It worked, thank you for your help! I'll make sure I test the colour on a offcut next time!!