BLO and exotics

[Jerry Bruette]

I started a new project yesterday that will have strips of Honduran Rosewood, Lacewood, Padauk, and Curly Maple glued together to make a octagon.

I'd like to use BLO to help pop the grain on the Maple, will the BLO help pop the grain on the exotics I'm using or will it mess any of them up.

If the BLO isn't recommended for the exotics any ideas on how to do the Maple before glue up?

Jerry

[Scott Holmes]

BLO will enhance the grain of all the woods.

[John Lanciani]

One thing to watch out for is color bleed into the maple. In my experience, padauk and maple don't play well together with oil; every time that I've tried it I've been unhappy with the resulting orange stain creeping into the maple. You may want to mock up a sample to test on before you commit to the real thing.

John

[Prashun Patel]

I'm with John. The bleed won't likely be a prob on the darker woods, but you might notice it on the maple. You might experiment with shellac. Amber shellac can have a similar effect on grain, without solubilizing and carrying over any oils from one wood to another.

Further - I'm sure you know this - even sanding can carry color from one wood to another. I have best luck (as if I've done this a million times :p) planing adjacent surfaces.

[Jerry Bruette]

Guess I should have been clearer in my description of the project. I'm actually making several octagonal tubes. Each one having maple alternating with one of the exotics, four maple four exotic.

I've read that sanding will carry dust into the maple but I didn't know about the BLO carring color from a dark exotic into maple.

All good information. Thank You for the warnings.

Jerry

I was going to use Arm-R-Seal as a finish. Would I be better off to forgo the BLO and just use the Arm-R-Seal?