Anyway to pop QSWO rays after stain has been applied?

[Mike Monroe]

Ran out of time a couple weeks ago on a 4-H project that has some nice QSWO showing. All we had time to do was slap a couple coats of Varathane stain on the project, a simple bookshelf. Now that the County Fair is over I'd like to see if I can't do something to pop the flecks and rays in the QSWO. Top coat will be de-waxed blonde shellac or Deft Clear Wood finish.

[Bruce Page]

Not that I'm aware of.

[John TenEyck]

The best approach would be to strip off the stain and start over. Alternatively, you could try sanding it lightly, like you do after dying QSWO, to lighten the harder fleck areas.

John

[Scott T Smith]

Mike, I'm with John - I'd strip off the stain or sand it down until the medullary rays pop out.

If you want to change the color on QSWO, a dye is a much better approach as it does not leave a pigmented layer on top of the rays.

[Mike Monroe]

Thanks for the suggestions guys, but sanding it down is not something my kid will even contemplate as she absolutely abhors sanding wood. The shelf doesn't look that bad as it is... I just thought if there was an easy way to get a little more pop out of the rays, we'd do that. I think I'll just spray on a few thin coats of blonde shellac and call it good.