In a thread in the finishing forum (here) I asked about finishing cherry and getting rid of a couple of stripes on the top after leaving it clamped in cauls for a week or 2. And got a lot of good advice. Well, here's the finished product.
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After much testing and finally getting the Boss' approval, I ended up using - ready for this? - Watco Red Mahogany Oil. I know, I know. But it's what she liked and the table was a special request after she saw it in one of my books. I must have done 50 or 60 test pieces. All kinds of combinations involving shellac (blond, orange, and out of the can), WOP, stains, GF products, TransTint, etc etc. It took 3 times as long to finish it as it did to make it. And I did more planing and sanding on the sample pieces than the entire table. But it's finally out of the shop. And MOST importantly - she loves it. Mission accomplished.

And I immediately started a couple of Morris chairs in QSWO. Back home again.