Question about watco, wood tinting.

**Biff** · 29 March 2009, 10:37 Sunday

Put your cherry in the sun for a few hours and it will darken all by itself - now of course it is dependent on the UV screening properties of Danish oil! At least for your test piece. Sunlight is a nice slow controllable way to darken cherry, just get it back inside and coated at the point you like.

**ThomasW** · 29 March 2009, 12:24 Sunday

The wood will absorb a limited amount of the oil and therefore stain when the stain and oil are combined into a single product.

IMO the best approach is to use separate products. Stain the wood first getting the color depth desired, then apply a clear oil...

Cherry darkens as it ages..

**EdL** · 29 March 2009, 12:26 Sunday

Even in your room the cherry will continue to darken over the years. Are your expectations based upon other pieces of cherry furniture you have or have seen?
Natural (unstained) and what the finish companies pass off as "cherry" are two different colors.
Furniture companies will use a darker stain to cover the lighter sapwood of cherry.

**scyan** · 29 March 2009, 12:59 Sunday

Yep, this is what i base it on..

cherry coating, on cherry veneer..

Clearwave Loudspeaker Design

http://clearwaveloudspeaker.googlepages.com/

From Jed at Clearwave.

Mine was like 30% of what this one comes out to be. I`ll post pics of what i got a bit later.

**EdL** · 29 March 2009, 13:15 Sunday

There is also the range of color among different sources of cherry. The conditions of climate and mineral content of the ground in which the tree grows will cause color variations.

Those cherry cabinets in the link you provided appear to have very little (if any) stain. I have similar color in cherry items with uncolored danish oil. The color of danish oil will deepen with additional coats. Mine aren't "finished" until there are 5 or more applications.

Below see an Azurite C-channel...the one with the tweeter pod...finished with natural danish oil.

**ThomasW** · 29 March 2009, 13:16 Sunday

Buy cherry stain, use it to darken the wood. When you get the shade you want, apply your oil finish...

And remember Watco Oil soaked rags can and do spontaneously burst into flame. So store them in a metal can with water in the bottom.

**scyan** · 29 March 2009, 13:37 Sunday

This is a reply from another dissatisfied customer I found on the web and it`s exactly whats happening to me..

''I used this on red oak, and the colour was very washed out after 2 coats - using the instructions on the can. So, I applied a third coat - big mistake! the oil no longer seeps into wood after 2 coats so if your colour is not even - applying more does not help. I found it ended up in a nice sticky mess which I had to wipe off with rags and then wipe off the stuck on fibers from the rags. Now I’m going to sand the entire piece down, getting rid of any remnants of WATCO and I will be reverting back to my MINWAX stains. I was told that WATCO was extremely easy to use - maybe the ORIGINAL but any coloured WATCO does not apply well (I also tried another coloured WATCO with same results on another piece). It seems that the oil seeps in before the stain therefore the colour stays on top and basically when you return to wipe off the excess oil, you are actually wiping off the colour. I’m extremely dissatisfied with the oil.''

So, I really dont know.. maybe the wood was too hard after coming off from the planer, maybe I should use a 150 sand paper to open the pores a bit... No idea at this point. It pains me because I REALLY liked the color

**EDIT**

Guess what, the guy that complains like me got his on march 19th. I'm kinda thinking they might have a bad batch out there...

**EdL** · 29 March 2009, 14:25 Sunday

Watco Danish oil is a penetrating finish. It is more IN the wood than on it. Any expectation to build a surface layer with it will meet with the results you have shared.
The excess material on the surface MUST be wiped off before it dries.
I don't think that sanding with a coarse grit will satisfy you. I go in the other direction...220, even 320 then XXXX steel wool. There is no replacement for elbow grease with this finish.
The pores you refer to remain open to oil penetration until the oil fills them and catalyzes...hence the 5 or more treatments.

**Dennis H** · 29 March 2009, 14:59 Sunday

I found it ended up in a nice sticky mess which I had to wipe off with rags and then wipe off the stuck on fibers from the rags.

That's what happens when you don't follow the directions and wipe it off immediately. However, if you do let it get gooey, it's easy to fix. Just put more fresh oil on top and it will dissolve the goo so you can wipe it off as normal. Some people do it that way on purpose if the wood is slow to absorb the oil. Don't wipe the first coat or two off at all and then wipe the final one.

BTW, I've had pretty good luck getting the shade I want by mixing a dark color, say dark walnut or red mahogany, with natural oil. Experiment on scraps of course.

**scyan** · 29 March 2009, 15:23 Sunday

Well, mine didnt get gooey, the finish is awesome. But I dont have the color I was looking for. The 3 places I have seen it so far show a MUCH darker color and thats what puzzle me. Its as if I got one that almost had no pigments in it.

I still have to post pictures but im not home right now. I'll do it as soon as I come back.

Heres the link whre I got the comment up there.

http://toolmonger.com/2008/11/12/hands-on-watco-danish-oil-cherry-finish/

Look at how rich and deep the color is after one coat ! Mine is like I tried to dye teflon ! lol The one in the link looks a lot like what Jed got... and the indications on the box are real easy to follow..

**bob barkto** · 29 March 2009, 18:29 Sunday

The finish in that link is on Red Oak.
Your Cherry might as well be teflon in comparisson.

Cherry doesn't take stain the same way oak does.

Try dyeing it first, then apply the Watco.
Or.. let it age a little, sunlight/uv light speeds the process.

Originally posted by scyan

Well, mine didnt get gooey, the finish is awesome. But I dont have the color I was looking for. The 3 places I have seen it so far show a MUCH darker color and thats what puzzle me. Its as if I got one that almost had no pigments in it.

I still have to post pictures but im not home right now. I'll do it as soon as I come back.

Heres the link whre I got the comment up there.

http://toolmonger.com/2008/11/12/hands-on-watco-danish-oil-cherry-finish/

Look at how rich and deep the color is after one coat ! Mine is like I tried to dye teflon ! lol The one in the link looks a lot like what Jed got... and the indications on the box are real easy to follow..

**scyan** · 29 March 2009, 19:08 Sunday

Do you have any recommendation for dye ?

**bob barkto** · 29 March 2009, 20:08 Sunday

Transtint

Originally posted by scyan

Do you have any recommendation for dye ?

**bobhowell** · 29 March 2009, 23:27 Sunday

Transtint Will work great. I use it all the time. You can use water or Alcohol as solvent. As you have used Watco, I suggest you put it in Alcohol and apply several coats, till you are happy. It is easy.

I had a friend who just used lye. It will age cherry 10 yrs. in a day. However, Sap wood must be dyed or stained.

Question about watco, wood tinting.

Question about watco, wood tinting.

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment