Favorite finish for cherry?

[Alan Tolchinsky]

I'm making a bandsaw box out of cherry and thought that just a clear finish might be dull looking or boring. Any suggestions on a stain to use for cherry? Thanks Alan in Md.

[Eric Apple - Central IN]

This question usually starts a war. I would ask the person who will receive the box what they would like. A finish that I and many people who request cherry from me like is treatment with lye. Dissolve about 1 tbsp in 16 oz of water. After it cools, brush it on the wood. It will turn blood red in about 30 seconds. I wash it off after a minute, then neutralize with 1/2 cup white vinegar in 1 qt of water. Then follow with a good water rinse.

Wear protection - you don't want to go blind or burn yourself.... Lye is strong and can do both.

After that, let it dry, sand a bit. Then shellac followed by WB top coat. Looks about 70 years old in terms of untreated natural color. Shellac only topcoat gets damaged by unexpected things. The last thing a customer found was felt pads melted into it. Very odd...

Oddly, many people don't want to wait 70 years for a deep color. While others think it's very necessary. A pleasing light pumpkin color seems to take about a year to develop naturally.

[Craig Honeysett]

I'm making a bandsaw box out of cherry and thought that just a clear finish might be dull looking or boring. Any suggestions on a stain to use for cherry? Thanks Alan in Md.

My favorite is a coat of 50% boilled lindseed and 50% mineral spirits to bring out the grain. Dry for a few days and a couple of coats of Deft or Poly depending on how durable you want it. You will probably get a ton of differing responses!!

[Kevin Gerstenecker]

I was hesitant to reply to this, because everyone has a different opinion on finishes, but I prefer to finish Cherry with an Oil Finish. Tung Oil, or Danish Oil is good for me, although my first choice is Tung Oil. Click on my "www" link at the bottom of my Post Reply area and you will see some small boxes I have made using Cherry with Tung Oil, followed with Paste Wax and hand rubbing. I think Cherry looks too nice in it's natural state to apply stain..........but that is just my opinion and what I like in a finish for Cherry. I say do whatever makes you happy! :D

[Jim Becker]

I'm making a bandsaw box out of cherry and thought that just a clear finish might be dull looking or boring. Any suggestions on a stain to use for cherry? Thanks Alan in Md.

I also prefer a natural finish on cherry and use a liberal coat of BLO allowed to soak in for an hour or so, wipe off the excess and let it cure for about a week. I then topcoat as appropriate for the project. Sometimes I add a coat of garnett shellac to add a "little" color and clarity. Objects not requiring a lot of durability just get a coat of wax. Otherwise, I spray on a couple of coats of PSL (WB Lacquer) or use a wiping varnish.

[Ken Salisbury]

I'm making a bandsaw box out of cherry and thought that just a clear finish might be dull looking or boring. Any suggestions on a stain to use for cherry? Thanks Alan in Md.
I personally think adding a stain or any other color medium to cherry is a cardinal sin. I have comitted this sin before but only upon the insistance of a customer.

I use an Oil Finish followed by either wax, or in case of a table for instance I use a topcoat of polyurethane for durability. My favorite oil is Minwax Antique Oil.

There are lots of examples of both applications on either of my web sites.

[Alan Tolchinsky]

I'm making a bandsaw box out of cherry and thought that just a clear finish might be dull looking or boring. Any suggestions on a stain to use for cherry? Thanks Alan in Md.


Thanks for all the advise. I'm going with no stain using BLO and a wipe on poly for this one. I'll post pics when it's done. Thanks for your help. Now it's back to sanding this baby. Man these things take a lot of sanding. Thanks again. Alan in Md.

[Lee Schierer]

Personally I like Lacquer, which will really bring out the grain and highlights in the base wood. Deft is easy to apply and durable.

[Alan Tolchinsky]

Personally I like Lacquer, which will really bring out the grain and highlights in the base wood. Deft is easy to apply and durable.


using it over wipe on poly? Do you use the spray type or brush it on? Is this going to give a glossy finish or can you control that? Boy, that's a lot of questions. Thanks Alan

[Jim Becker]

using it over wipe on poly? Do you use the spray type or brush it on? Is this going to give a glossy finish or can you control that? Boy, that's a lot of questions. Thanks Alan

Alan, you use the Deft instead of the polyurethane varnish. Combining them is not a good idea. You can, however, put the Deft over an oil, like BLO that has cured, to pop the grain prior to the protective coating.

Deft is avialable as a brushing lacquer or in spray cans...the latter is great for small projects, too. I believe it's avialable in both gloss and satin.

[Ken Miller]

Shellac (3 coats rubbed out) and paste wax. It's fast and easy and looks great!

[Alan Tolchinsky]

Alan, you use the Deft instead of the polyurethane varnish. Combining them is not a good idea. You can, however, put the Deft over an oil, like BLO that has cured, to pop the grain prior to the protective coating.

Deft is avialable as a brushing lacquer or in spray cans...the latter is great for small projects, too. I believe it's avialable in both gloss and satin.

Hi Jim, I think there is some confusion here. I wasn't asking about using poly and Deft together. I was wondering what benefits Deft has over a wipe on poly. Is it better, worse, same? I appreciate you and others here taking the time to answer my questions. Thanks Alan (sweatin in Md. )

[chris toomey]

Hi Jim, I think there is some confusion here. I wasn't asking about using poly and Deft together. I was wondering what benefits Deft has over a wipe on poly. Is it better, worse, same? I appreciate you and others here taking the time to answer my questions. Thanks Alan (sweatin in Md. )


alan,
deft is a lacquer, poly is a varnish. one isn't better or worse than the other....just different. lacquer dries fast. translates into several coats in one day...less dust in finish to worry about, but you can't keep going over it like varnish. lacquer is less scratch resistant, but that allows it to be rubbed out easier. it is also less water resistant. for a low use item like a box i think spray can lacquer would be fine. bob flexner has a book on finishing that lays all this out for you. i highly reccomend it.. good luck.

chris

[Lee Schierer]

Deft is easy to apply and you get excellent results with little effort. It dries fast and can me made glass smooth with sanding and steel wool. It can also be rubged out with paste wax. Another nice thing is if you scratch it 10 years down the road, you can sand it lightly and apply another coat to make it like new. I find it doesn't yellow like Poly and keeps the wood color better longer.

[Ace Karner]

This question usually starts a war. I would ask the person who will receive the box what they would like. A finish that I and many people who request cherry from me like is treatment with lye. Dissolve about 1 tbsp in 16 oz of water. After it cools, brush it on the wood. It will turn blood red in about 30 seconds. I wash it off after a minute, then neutralize with 1/2 cup white vinegar in 1 qt of water. Then follow with a good water rinse.

Wear protection - you don't want to go blind or burn yourself.... Lye is strong and can do both.

After that, let it dry, sand a bit. Then shellac followed by WB top coat. Looks about 70 years old in terms of untreated natural color. Shellac only topcoat gets damaged by unexpected things. The last thing a customer found was felt pads melted into it. Very odd...

Oddly, many people don't want to wait 70 years for a deep color. While others think it's very necessary. A pleasing light pumpkin color seems to take about a year to develop naturally.

Here's a clock i made a couple years ago, I treated it with lye and followed with tung oil and wax.

[Mike Lubin]

Here's a clock i made a couple years ago, I treated it with lye and followed with tung oil and wax.

A question for the guys using lye...
Has anyone ever tried potassium dichromate? I have seen David Marks use it on many occassions on WoodWorks when he uses Mahogany. It seems like it would have a similar effect on the wood to that of lye, effectively aging it many years.
Would this work on Cherry as well as it does on Mahogany??
I suppose potassium dichromate is slightly more hazardous than lye, just wondering if the effect would be the same.

- Mike

[Jim Becker]

Has anyone ever tried potassium dichromate?...I suppose potassium dichromate is slightly more hazardous than lye, just wondering if the effect would be the same.

Yes, this chemical will work very nicely on cherry. But all of these preparations are dangerious to use. If you choose to employ them, take great care.

[Dave Arbuckle]

I suppose potassium dichromate is slightly more hazardous than lye,

[rant stifle mode = on]
Insanely more hazardous than lye... http://www.skylighter.com/msds/POTASSIUM%20DICHROMATE%20MSDS.htm

Fair use, quote: DANGER! STRONG OXIDIZER. CONTACT WITH OTHER MATERIAL MAY CAUSE A FIRE. CORROSIVE. CAUSES SEVERE BURNS TO EVERY AREA OF CONTACT. HARMFUL IF SWALLOWED OR INHALED. AFFECTS THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM, LIVER, KIDNEYS, EYES, SKIN AND BLOOD. MAY CAUSE ALLERGIC REACTION. CANCER HAZARD. CAN CAUSE CANCER. Risk of cancer depends on duration and level of exposure.

[rant stifle mode = continues on; back away from thread mode, engaged]

Dave