mahogony finish need filler?

[tom tangie]

I have Honduras mahogany made into a chair. Does mahogany need some sort of filler first? Or can I just stain and put a clear coat finish on it. Im might just put a oil finish on also...but either way does it need some sort of filler?

[mike holden]

Tom,
unless you are looking for a glossy, reflective type finish - NO

If you do want to fill the pores, then there are many ways to go about it. But for a chair a low gloss finish seems more appropriate.

BTW, Jeff Jewitt suggested "six coats of original Waterlox" as an attractive mahogany finish. No staining required.

Mike

[Prashun Patel]

I found that BLO is the perfect 'stain' for mahogany. Really makes the color a deep and irridescent (sp?) brownish red.

I topcoated with Waterlox; worked great. Waterlox original is more glossy than you'd expect, though, so caveat emptor!

I was also concerned about pore filling. Many say you have to do it with Mahog to get a glass finish. But my experience was different. On half of my pieces, I put on about 5 coats of 2# shellac between the BLO and Waterlox, sanding back each time. That REALLY made the surface smooth and allowed the Waterlox to start building on the 1st coat.

On the other 1/2 of the pieces, I eliminated the shellac step but found that the finish built glass smooth with Waterlox alone. It took a few more coats, but it worked well. On the 1st few coats, you could see the pores under raking light

[Howard Acheson]

To fill or not to fill is based on whether you want a formal, perfectly flat surface or whether you want a finish that presents the "look and feel" of the wood. Mahogany can be very nice with either finish. What matches the furniture where it will be going?

Traditional, high end 1800's early 1900's Cuban and Honduran mahogany was filled.

If you want to see how each will look, use some of your scrap and put a filled finish on one piece and a film finish on another. It's the only way to see how things will actually look. And, using a grain filler takes some knowledge and practice. I recommend you get either Bob Flexner's Understanding Wood Finishing or Jeff Jewitt's Tautons Complete Illustrated Guide to Finishing. Both have excellent sections on using grain fillers.

[tom tangie]

OK. thanks. I'm not looking for a glassy finish. I want the wood to be honest looking so Ill try without. I like the idea of using linseed oil. I have a can I have had for 30 years that will give it a nice golden color.

Id also like to put a clear coat on top using spray on lacquer for the convenience /speed of putting on several coats in a day.

An problem with lacquer sprayed over the top of boiled linseed oil?

thanks again for the tips

[Howard Acheson]

>> I like the idea of using linseed oil. I have a can I have had for 30 years that will give it a nice golden color.

Throw it out. Why would you want to take a chance on old linseed oil--is it "raw" or "boiled"?. Always use fresh finishing products. You've spent a lot of time up to know. The finishing step is not the place become frugal.

[tom tangie]

its boiled. It looks, feels and smells fine. I though it might have gotten warmer coloring with age. Ill try some on a sample. Can you spray lacquer over it?