Getting dark and light hickory to match

[Alan Lightstone]

In the middle of a project. Cabinet storage shelving unit. The inside hickory/pecan is much lighter than the outside. Finish on the outside is multiple coats of clear shellac with some red Transtint and a small amount of amber shellac which has made a near perfect match for the other hickory cabinets. I can't seem to get the inside pieces dark enough on a test piece despite multiple coats of shellac.

What is the best approach to darken the hickory? Should I add Dark Vintage Maple Transtint to darken it (that's a very close match colorwise on the samples I've seen online), or use a smaller amount of a darker brown Transtint Dye, or mix in some Garnet Shellac, or is there a better approach?

[Joe Chritz]

I can't help on what colorant to add but I can say you are definably into continuing using a toner. By using darker pigment in the toner you can probably get it where it needs to be.

I still think toning is more art than science and I am not very good at it.

Joe