Will dye run from one wood to another?

[Graham Orm]

I'm doing some dovetailed jewelry boxes. I've got maple, beech and mahogany (sapele) to hand. I want to create a black and white effect on one of the boxes with the maple being the white tail boards and the pin boards being as black as I can make them.

I plan to stain/colour somehow the pin boards once cut and before glue-up.

Suggestions welcome for :

1. Ideas on colouring
2. Which of the above woods will take the colour best?
3. Will it bleed into the maple over time?

Ta!

 

[marcros]

It won't bleed.

I have seen it somewhere that to get the blackest black, put some navy blue into the mix. Whether it is true or not, I don't know.

I would use dye rather than stain. They may be mislabelled, but a stain contains a pigment, whatever the label calls it.

I would also suggest a water based stain, but it depends a bit on your top coat.

 

[Jake]

The mahogany will take both dye and stain as it is open pored, so I'd try using that for the black first. I'd try using a couple or three passes of dye and then one or two of stain (to get pigment in the pores) for maximum colour change, but with all these things only experimentation will tell you what looks best with the timber in hand.

 

[Graham Orm]

Thanks guys ;-)

 

[Sgian Dubh]

I would use dye rather than stain. They may be mislabelled, but a stain contains a pigment, whatever the label calls it.

Not necessarily, certainly in the UK. To find out if the ready mixed "dye" or "stain" you've purchased is really a dye or really a stain you need to look at the application instructions. If it's a dye, i.e., contains no solid pigments, the instructions will simply say something like apply with a brush or soft, lint free cloth. If it's a stain, i.e., it does contain solid pigments, the instructions will advise the user along the lines of, "stir well before using, and keep the mixture agitated (or stir regularly) during use to prevent settlement."

I'm not convinced Grayorm can satisfactorily dye these dovetailed parts prior to assembly and maintain the desired contrast. Inevitably there will be some sort of misalignment on the outer face(s) requiring levelling off with a plane or scraper and/or sanding, and this will surely mean some removal of the dyed elements leading to the natural wood colour revealing itself. I recommend in this case a test corner be executed prior to a full-on commitment to a method of work. Slainte.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

+1 The last paragraph was exactly what I was just about to say. It'l be near impossible to touch up after finishing.

 

[Graham Orm]

I recommend in this case a test corner be executed prior to a full-on commitment to a method of work. Slainte.

That will have to be the plan I think. The more I think about it, the less I think it will work.

Thanks for the input guys.

 

[Graham Orm]

Might just track down some dark walnut!