Best stain for handles? How do I get it?

E

Eriksen

Joined
Sep 18, 2005
Messages
182
What is best coloring option for wood handles as Masur Birch etc?

Do I need to buy liquid stain or will it be better to buy stain powder and mix it out with water, alcohol or oils?
 
Hello:

I have been using that dry dyestuff powder, alcohol based..(Ie mix you own) wood stains..comes in a vaiiety of colous, and well..it works wonderfully well on leather too and is much less $$$ than "leather dye" which I have a sneaking suspiscion that it's the same stuff. I haven't bought "Leather dye" in the last 15 years or so...

It is available at most wood worker's suppliers...

Hope this helps

NVHammerHead
 
I've been using leather dye in brown or lt brown.Not the stuff from the groc store but real dye.

reunionknife.jpg

Take care
TJ
 
Ive seen the end result from using home made stain out of a little ferric acid and rusty nails the rust bleeds into the birch or maple in some auesome staining. Get a recipe from one of the guys here it would be fairly simular to the knife with the leather dye.
 
hellgap said:
Ive seen the end result from using home made stain out of a little ferric acid and rusty nails the rust bleeds into the birch or maple in some auesome staining. Get a recipe from one of the guys here it would be fairly simular to the knife with the leather dye.
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Nice idea. I have ferro chloride in my house and with that I can dissolve copper or brass and make a nice color.

Do you think I can use strong vinegar (35%) instead of ferric acid for rusty nails? Vinegar works well as a rust remover.
 
Erickson I saw a guy on here that used a formula like that copper and brass may make poisionous gas find out first.
 
Not sure if it works with birch, but dissolved iron darkens tannin-rich woods dramatically.

All you have to do is dissolve steel wool into some vinegar. Rubbing this colorless compound on the wood will immediately darken it. I used it to turn walnut completely black for some picture frames. It's basically free, too.
 
Thanks Mike I knew some one had the thread some where. I have over 100 board ft of maple I think ill try it out for the hell of it. Vinegar and steel wool sounds good too.
 
Will it be a different color if the steel wool is moisten and allowed to rust before dissolving it in the vinegar?
 
Eriksen said:
Will it be a different color if the steel wool is moisten and allowed to rust before dissolving it in the vinegar?
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The idea of the vinegar is to accelerate the rust process. It takes a little while to get it all gross and soupy. The reaction itself is between the dissolved iron and the tannin in the wood. It's colorless until applied to the wood. If your wood has a low tannin content, you can apply strong black tea to the wood in advance. Tea is high in tannin. It's fun to experiment with.
 
I find what works well also (being an artist myself) is to use some Artists Oil Color which you can get in any color imaginable and they are made with natural pigments and oxides. Just squeeze out a bit onto a plate and dilute it a bit with a drying oil like Teak or Danish oil. Rub this into the wood and wipe off the excess. Let it dry and give it some more coats of the drying oil. It gives a really nice hand-rubbed finish with a natural stain.
 
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