Quarter sawn oak table..

Absolutely nothing wrong

Dick Coers

Nothing wrong with the color Mother Nature gave that wood. I've only applied clear for decades now.

Re: Quarter sawn oak table..

Jim Hoeller

The lines are sap wood.

Re: Quarter sawn oak table..

roger lance

For a finishing schedule for QSWO, look up Jeff Jewitt of homesteadfinishing.com. He is the maker of TransTint products.

Re: Quarter sawn oak table..

Don Stephan

Quarter sawn means the annual growth rings are perpendicular to the surface. They are not prominent, but each board will have fine lines running the length, which are cross sections of the annual growth rings. The wider lighter colored "lines" are areas of sapwood. I'm not sure which you meant in your question.

If you couldn't see the areas of sapwood before stripping, there may have been a lot of color in the finish itself, like a thin paint, covering up both the figure and the sapwood.

If you want the top to look similar, can you show a picture of the base?

First time project - simple finish

Jim Matthews

Rather than delve into dyeing lighter sapwood to match the rest, a simple finish will do.

Seal with Shellac and sand to 220 grit.

Apply Waterlox in a ventilated space (it stinks while curing) and buff with a soft abrasive pad between coats. Three coats will look good, and last.

https://www.wikihow.com/Apply-Waterlox

Re: Quarter sawn oak table..

Bill Tindall, E.Tn.

1. finishing is not trivial. Don't presume no experience is necessary.

2. Considering point 1, turn the top over and practice what you want to do on the bottom.

3. Probably to achieve the look you desire will require a wiping stain. But you have not sufficiently described the look you desire. For a lot of reasons choose one that is solvent based. Minwax makes a good product. See picture for the result on white oak.



4. So it would seem, simply strip off what you got, apply stain, let dry and finish.

5.Where you can go wrong:

The stain will not take unless the wood is free of finish. The finish must be thoroughly removed. Low angle light coming from the side of the table is best for seeing any defects in surface preparation.

Sanding has to be perfect. Any rogue scratches will absorb stain and show up from across the room. For the stain I suggested you need to perfectly sand to 180. With good light if you see any dull patches after 180, before dusting, it indicates rough grain catching sanding dust just as it will catch stain particles. These areas will stain dark and patchy. They must be sanded perfectly to yield a uniform appearance before dusting.

I like the Minwax stain as well

Keith Newton

And would like to note that the sapwood having less extractive than heartwood will absorb more of the stain than the heartwood, which helps even out that contrast, unless you choose to do really dark, which will make it even darker.

QSWO example.....

roger lance

This is the top of a blanket chest following Jewitt's finishing schedule.....