How to match factory cherry finish?

[Mike Vermeil]

As much as I hate to stain cherry, I have a customer who wants me to match a new piece to some existing traditional, formal dark cherry pieces. This is such a common finish, I assumed I could find a stain in that color, but have had no luck.

Have any of you matched that formal dark cherry before, and if so, how?

Thanks,
Mike

[Per Swenson]

The folks at liberon will help you
Real nice people and knowledgeable.
http://finishsupply.com/index.html

[Ralph Steffey]

I have had good luck with bartley gel cherry for a dark formal color.

[Jim Becker]

The problem with matching a factory "cherry" finish is that they don't do things the way we do. Firstly, it may not even be cherry under that finish! Alder and soft maple are popular substitutes and cost less. Further, most factory finishes these days are layered multi-step spray processes that incorporate the color into the finish, rather than getting it into the wood. (No stains, etc) That's why a chip in the finish is even more noticiable on factory furniture than it is on the stuff we dye/stain and oil before putting on our clear top-coats.

You can usually approximate such a finish if you take your time and think about how color works. Between using dyes to move the wood color in the right direction and toners/glazes (I treat products like Bartley's Gel Stain as a glaze since they sit on top) to get you there, you can come close. This requires working through your regimen on scraps of the same material your project is built from (always have extra stock for that reason in addition to be sure you have enough to actually build it!). Bottom line...you need to work it out before you even get close to the real piece with any kind of finish...and document each try so you can reproduce it. You also need to go completely though it on your tests including your clear top coats...those affect the color, too.