Odd black smudges (minerals?) on sycamore. How to remove.

[Johnathan Giordano]

Hi,
I am really struggling with finishing quarter-sawn sycamore for my keepsake boxes. Invariably, I find that there are black smudges (for lack of a better word) that appear on portions of the board. This discoloration runs through the board and so I suspect some type of mineral deposit. The smudges are there before finishing but seem to be more visible after finishing. I've included some photos of the raw wood. I've tried to use A-B bleach to no avail. Has anyone see this before on sycamore? If so, is there a way to remove the black smudges?
Thanks!
JG
2019-04-21_170000.jpg2019-04-21_165945.jpg2019-04-21_165746.jpg

[Jim Becker]

"Removing" something like that in wood where it's through and through is pretty much not going to happen, IMHO. It's a natural feature of the wood and personally, I'd embrace it myself. But if it's an issue for you, then about the only sure way for it to disappear is to either finish really dark or replace the wood with material that doesn't have the staining and use these pieces for something that's less sensitive to the feature.

[Prashun Patel]

You can experiment with bleaching. For my money, I agree with Jim. Just prep and finish it properly and the black streaks will look natural not unsightly.

[Johnathan Giordano]

Thanks, Jim. I was afraid that was going to be the answer.