Hi everyone,
I could really use some help here: I've finished making a cabinet in ambrosia maple and am struggling with test finishes.
I am shooting for a relatively light colored Danish oil finish. Knowing that (ambrosia) maple blotches easily, I've been testing pre-stain wood conditioner. The difficulty I am experiencing is that just the pre-stain alone produces blotches. And I am beginning to think that the only way to deal with this is to use a darker stain that will bring everything to the color of the darker blotches. (If that would even work.)
So I guess my first question is: is there some way to avoid blotches and keep a light (slightly darker than natural) finish on ambrosia maple?
If not, can someone suggest how I might go about finishing ambrosia maple keeping it as light as possible?
Is cut shellac likely to produce better results that an oil-based conditioner?
Thanks in advance for your help (I'm pulling my hair out here).
-Mark
It now occurs to me to ask specifically whether shellac will darken wood less that oil-based conditioner.