How to Make Figured Maple Pop!

[@TristanJCumpole]

Guitar maker here. This is a common technique in figured tops! There is however a fair tradeoff when "popping" the figure with direct dye application. To a degree this flattens the chatoyance which the oil recovers for the most part. The biggest culprit here is use of coarser black pigments that easily kill it. Sanding maple to 400-600 and doing a couple of distilled water grain raising and 800 grit knocking back at 20° to the grain direction produces a finer and less furry result with water based dyes. 20° helps cut the damaged raised fibres instead of simply pushing them back down where the dye causes them to raise back up. A few guitar makers I know polish their maple through to several thousand grit, essentially burnishing the surface, oiling and/or shellacing before shooting toner colours over the sealed wood to get maximum chatoyance. It's a decision between whether you want to trade off a little of the surface reactance to light to gain contrast in general. Ultimately, everybody should experiment with different finishing schedules and try variations to see which path and desired characteristics works for them and the workpiece itself. Guitars have different expectations and human interactions than furniture! Recommending this video, definitely. Thanks!

[@WoodAndShop]

Thanks for the great comment Tristan! Yes, guitars have a much higher expectation than does my furniture. But it's great to learn more depth on the subject. Hope to have you comment again!

[@chipsterb4946]

Tristan J. Cumpole - different methods work for different end goals. I finished a Birdseye maple top as follows: sand to 220, apply black water-based dye, sand to 220 again, then switch to alcohol based dies so the wood doesn’t get furry anymore. No BLO - just multiple coats of lacquer with wet sanding 500 in between. The first few lacquer coats were tinted to dial in the red I was looking for and they added some depth to the color as well. Next time I’m going to try a card scraper after the initial water based dye application.

[@TristanJCumpole]

@@chipsterb4946 I agree totally. Finishing schedules are about control over what one wants to express from the wood itself, and add in via the finish. I've never been a fan of using black dye to accentuate the rising/falling grain as the contrast is a bit too dirty and artificial for my taste. Generally I stick to neutral dye colours that compliment the Maple such as a medium brown, or for extra pop doing two rounds with a tobacco and maybe amber or medium following. This maintains as much of the wood's natural chatoyancy as is possible under the tonered lacquer or whatever else is going on. As you say, it's all about the goal. I like finishes that the owner/player can love at close quarters, whereas a strong high contrast pop makes an instrument look a million dollars across the room. Thankfully there's a nice graduation between these two extremes, which is where the fun comes in!

[@jojo5544]

Sounds really fascinating and sophisticated, wish there can be videos showing how this is done. All the best

[@dangsxgomez]

Tristan, do you have a website? There's a flame maple bass body I'd like to do this to if you're interested. 🤘

[@cudazi]

Thank you! There aren't enough real-world dye/toner type videos... it's an intimidating process!

[@WoodAndShop]

You're welcome Curt! But this wasn't too intimidating after watch it, was it?

[@ClydeBuilt]

I'm building a guitar and I think I'll use this technique for finishing the flame maple top. Thanks for the inspiration.

[@connormathies4647]

I am building a guitar too. I have a quilted top and I’m thinking of having the darker dye like the brown first then a go over with a deep red.

[@TaxPayingContributor]

Hope your guitars turned out as good as mine. I started with ebony dye, sand, indigo dye, sand, green dye on top of my gorgeous LP.

[@wa8ars]

Did you do the linseed oil like in the video? What topcoat did you use?

[@Bill-mw7sh]

Great video. I have a nice knife in dark curly maple I'm modifying the handle. Sky is the limit with the dyes and finish. Thanks

[@Tito-jf3gz]

This guy: its good for bringing attention to your furniture Me: G U I T A R

[@valebliz]

Same lol

[@apeterson1453]

This is why i am here lol

[@hkguitar1984]

Me too. While in the beginning he states 1/8th tsp the measuring spoon in the video is 1/4 tsp. With Aniline dyes being susceptible to UV fading I'm kind of surprised they use it for furniture.

[@phentas]

Even me.

[@lvonh9388]

Same

[@josephkuykendall7209]

I have a maple drum set that I took the wrap off of and this looks like a perfect way to make it look perfect. Thank you.

[@jwandhistools]

I do similar stuff with guitar tops. I really like danish oil for a satin finish. Dries real quick.

[@patricksquires77]

Thanks for this vid! Excellent step by step knowledge share. The ‘then I x’ vs ‘then you will x’ is much better presentation in the video too btw.

[@lousekoya1803]

What a great video Sir ! I do an amber ngr dye mixed with denatured alcohol on a guitar maple neck and two out of five come out blotchy and I'm freaking out every time when it does this . When they come out perfect , I spray some clear coat nitro over but man what a stress !

[@johnharvison5780]

Thank you so very much. Ive watched all the videos on popping grain, yours is by far the best. Im looking for a very professional high end finish and now I'm confident I'll get it. I just ordered the dyes through your link. Thanks!!!

[@kennethfitch]

Never used the dye before. Looks cool.

[@eggman1978]

That looks amazing. Thanks for the tips

[@rikiandov17]

Well done 👍✅, thank you for your time. I was looking to create a wet look on my DIY guitar project, which has got awesome maple flame top.

[@lupatorres]

Very good!! a question for hard indoor wood door, very good quality wood, what you suggest PU or Varnish? thanks regards from brazil 🇧🇷

[@l3wisgtr]

That looks great! Thanks for sharing it!

[@Satchmoeddie]

I build musical instruments, and the dye & sanding techniques are very similar. After the grain is accented I may do a dark border (sunburst) or some kind of a darker border only in colors that the sun should NEVER EVER be, like green with a blackish border and a blue center or purple to lavender or pink. After that some sort of a clear coat is applied. Nitrocellulose is the vintage classic traditional finish, but polyesters and polyurethanes are a lot less problematic especially with a brand new not fully cured finish that may ship in the freezing cargo hold of an airplane.

[@electrojazz14]

I'm building a guitar the video answers a few questions concerning my project, thanks

[@matthewfocheezy8740]

Wow at time stamp 5:10 you can see a face in the wood. Figured maple is awesome

[@MOAB-UT]

You have a great eye which is rare. Are you an artist or photographer? Where exactly is the face, relative to 12 noon at the top of the image. Towards the right of center between 1pm-4pm? GO LIONS!

[@jonasgrunberger5382]

I want to do this on a guitar and give it a clearcoat of nitrocellulose finish afterwards, i guess that makes the oiling step obsolete right?

[@lbu4191]

Is it possible to get the same result with oil-based stains?

[@robertmoran4841]

Thanks very much, great info. I'm going to try this on my new Tiger Maple Rifle stock. will let you know what happens. I am using a Keda brown liquid dye. Take care

[@tonychang7784]

Is polyurethane sealer over oil o.k.? Seems like the oil would keep the poly from sticking to the wood?

[@drzainnas]

Sorry I think I have missed it what is the last step of finishing you have used please? Thank you.

[@oldmanofcotati]

I'm a newbe. This lesson was very helpful. Hope it works a Ash.

[@nathanr5737]

Really helpful video, I’m doing a project on guitars for my design and technology class and one of the designs I’m looking at is a flame maple body, so this video was great.

[@ritchtaylor3831]

Any tips for making it "pop" when using it naturally? I am making a tigerwood and flame maple table and want to keep it all natural but want the maple to really stand out.

[@chesterpielock8824]

Great video! It works and it's relatively simple.Thanks,Chet

[@ubacow7109]

I'm curious but how does dye compare to like water based wood stain?

[@jimb3900]

Will this work on thin curly veneer?

[@drewwilkins4170]

Would this method be safe for cups or bowls?

[@Bill-mw7sh]

Can you mix dyes to get the color you want?

[@bgurtek]

I typically use aqua-fortis followed by aniline dye on my maple.gunstocks.

[@WoodAndShop]

Have you seen this video I did? woodandshop.com/make-figured-wood-pop-mark-thomas-workshop-tour-part-4/

[@billsutton801]

Is the Lockwood Golden Yellow you are using the Lockwood Orange/Golden Yellow mix? I could not find Lockwood straight Golden Yellow.

[@gunslinger80sguitars]

I am working on a flame top guitar and thinking about blue then sand and then go over it with white stain. Will the blue smear when the wetness of the white stain goes over it?

[@allanbarber4038]

Going to have to try this some day! That sample piece sure did make my projects done with white pine look blah.

[@WoodAndShop]

Hey, nothing wrong with White Pine!

[@allanbarber4038]

@@WoodAndShop True enough. A bit like having a taste for champagne and enough $$ for beer. Curly Maple is (can be) stunning; white pine is pretty, very functional and a whole lot less expensive.

[@WoodAndShop]

@@allanbarber4038 LOL. And a whole lot easier to cut joints and handplane on.

[@ewm416]

Thanks for the simple video.

[@RandyBertrand]

Would it possible to shorten this finishing process by mixing a batch of reddish-brown dye solution to do both the brown and red dye applications in just one step instead of two?

[@brucejohnson8521]

After the linseed oil, can a urethane or instrument finish be applied?

[@pigjubby1]

Amazing finish.

[@jameswarner6105]

Thank you for a great video. I really appreciate your work and instruction.

[@thomasclemens1386]

Hi. I loved the finished look. It’s exactly what I’m going for. I am building a table using curly maple for the legs and edge banding. My question is the table surface. I am using some Birds Eye maple veneered MDF. I’m worried that the three sanding steps might go through the veneer or accentuate the seams. Any thoughts?

[@mlagathomason2555]

Hey, just wondering if instead I used linseed oil my friend suggested that I used a few coats of walnut oil then use linseed oil. What difference would it make, what effect does it have?

[@WoodworkingBarcelona]

Fantastic tip. We'll definitely try it. Regards!

[@WoodAndShop]

Great! Are you located in Spain?

[@WoodworkingBarcelona]

@@WoodAndShop Yes I do!

[@WoodAndShop]

@@WoodworkingBarcelona Cool! I want to travel to Spain very badly.

[@WoodworkingBarcelona]

@@WoodAndShop Great country to visit!

[@MOAB-UT]

So no final sand before top coat?

[@kornkraker]

Does the final dye application not also raise the grain and require additional sanding?

[@bgurtek]

You can mix the dye powder with denatured alcohol to minimize grain raising.

[@kornkraker]

@@bgurtek That was a question I also had but didn't ask, thanks!

[@fredericklchipkin1680]

In the video you show the amount of dye but not the amount of water. Can you please give the approximate amount of water? If not then can you let us know how large the jelly jars are that you are using (It looks like they're Bonne Maman jelly jars that come in several sizes)? If it's too much trouble, If you give me the size of the jars I can probably figure out how much water by myself. Thanks again for your time

[@fredericklchipkin1680]

I'm totally inspred, Thank you. Question: I'm going to be using this your technique on a guitar. I'll be using true oil as a finish. Is the Liseed oil layer necessary under the truoil. Do you by chance know if the Linseed oil and truoil are compatible? Thanks again for taking the time to make this inspiring video.

[@danielslackergenius1641]

I have a piece of highly figured shedua that I would like to red with yellow highlights. I know it's backwards as far as color theory goes, but would appling the yellow first work? Or red having more value would overpower the hue?

[@ricktrainer5393]

Making some magnetic knife holders w/ bark pocket, curly maple. Maybe I missed it but after application and wipe-off, what is the recommended drying time for the BLO? I've gotten into gummy trouble here before. THX

[@ricksanchez7244]

I'm new to using water based dyes so I accidentally used odorless mineral spirits to clean the wood I'll be using the dyes on which I know is a big no no. Any suggestions for what I should do now? Now I need to make sure I get all of the mineral spirits off of the wood so the dyes can properly penetrate so I used some 90% isopropyl alcohol to clean the mineral spirits off but I'm just worried the mineral spirits penetrated enough to cause me problems now. Do I need to resand and/or thoroughly clean with water or a mixture of water and alcohol or should the wipedown I did with the 90% isopropyl alcohol be sufficient enough to remove the mineral spirits? Thanks I appreciate any and all advice.

[@alanparadis5061]

Is iron nitrate an option in this type of situation? I see it commonly used on curly maple gunstocks and I wonder if it's used in other maple applications... good video sir...

[@shibumi5210]

Fellow guitar lovers- for the neck, try Danish Oil finish... go to 400-600 grit, stain if you're staining, then apply Danish Oil and sand the first coat into the wood- this trick puts the fine sanding dust into the grain, making the wood even smoother. Then add coats to taste... when it wears down in time, just wipe on another coat or two... a beautiful satin finish, close to the wood, that you can easily redo in no time... 🙂

[@Meridenoguitars]

I'm going to try that! Thanks

[@johnsguitarmusicanddemos]

I've got to try this at work. Thank you!

[@unknownknown8555]

How do you prevent blotching on a large piece of wood?

[@rblues4u]

Enjoy the video. I use curly maple often for jewelry boxes. My questions would you finish the inside before assembling. I do miter spline construction. Would you dye it up laying flat for better control of dye then glue up and cut miters install them and just recoat with a light coat of dye before? I usually have to do a bit of sanding after gluing up the splines and cutting them down flush? Thanks for any suggestions. I did purchase some dye from your store

[@cdgee6399]

Great instructional video!

[@akipachoekie]

Can i do the same with mahogany. I have a mahogany Ukelele. And i use shellac. Do i have to use the same proces you use????

[@WoodAndShop]

Not sure you'd need to do it with such a dark wood.

[@chrisrand7705]

I’m making a live edge table out of English elm. The grain pattern in the slab has a lot of swirling and is quite striking. However, English elm has an interlocking, open grain, unlike maple. I’ve been doing extensive experiments on various finishes on a test board, using different combos of de waxed shellac, BLO, stains, and waterlox, but everything seems to end up a little muddled. Do you have experience using dyes on English elm, or other open grain hardwoods? Any suggestions?

[@jrbass62]

I'm doing a flame maple bass, I really like you're process...

[@markstoneguitar]

Thwo part question here: 1.Can you use Tru Oil as a top coat for this process? 2.And would the figure of the flame come out using just Tru Oil. (several coats of course) Awesome video btw. Your insight would be really helpful.

[@David-fv7zg]

I have usd the same process for years, and I love it. The only difference is I use trans tint rather than the powered dye. I wonder if there is much difference in result?

[@WoodAndShop]

I haven't done a side-by-side comparison between the two, but I imagine there isn't much difference...maybe a slight shade difference.

[@davidjennings9253]

Sadly figured maple is raely available in the UK so I am very jealous!!!

[@OTBMaster]

I'm testing on a scrap piece with limited figure and it is not looking like yours... Lots to learn here, but maybe it's just not ideal because of the lack of figure in the test piece? (I have limited stock and didn't want to trial and error on the nicer pieces)

[@OTBMaster]

I'm thinking I over-sanded the darker dyes. Need to keep some of that darker tone to see a good result.

[@brettryan7091]

Have you used the Rit brand of dyes on wood?

[@WeckLab]

Is there any kind of reaction with polyurethane finish? I made a guitar using blue anilin and after some months the color faded...

[@paullockyer7230]

have you ever tried Aquafortis?

[@alexb8439]

Great video. Many thanks. You are getting the exact tone I am looking for with a maple guitar top I am working on. In your notes you describe the yellow you are using as "Golden Yellow". When I look at the Lockwood range I see "Lemon Yellow" or "Orange Golden Yellow". I'm keen to achieve the colour tone in the video so which yellow would you recommend?

[@WoodAndShop]

The blog post has the exact colors

[@brettryan7091]

I'm looking to do the exact same thing. I found golden yellow on the site [toolsforworkingwood.com]. I'm wondering if the Rit brand of dyes will work too. They have all the exact colors mentioned.

[@brianlee6849]

Very nice 👍! What would you do different in you were working with tiger striped Walnut? I'm going to be refinishing a new replacement stock for a M1 garand. DuPage trading Post sells a nice tiger striped Walnut replacement stock. Thanks for sharing

[@kingtiger2phillips511]

I have done the exact process you're speaking of with my M1 walnut stock. Sand down to 220 or whatever you're comfortable with, apply linseed oil as it really popped my tiger striping, wipe off after 30 minutes, let it sit an hour or so and then apply a few coats of Tru Oil. Mine turned out a stunner!

[@brianlee6849]

@@kingtiger2phillips511 Very nice 👍.

[@wilco300674]

is it possible to put a hard finish after that oily stuff ?

[@WoodAndShop]

Yes, just let it dry first.

[@wilco300674]

@@WoodAndShop ah okay tnx

[@tommasobego4816]

Really good!

[@scottturner2529]

Ever try this on turned work?

[@equaleyez]

Great video! A question about linseed oil: is the type of linseed oil that is used in the kitchen ok to do this? It says it's cold pressed

[@delrioroy2]

Boiled Linseed oil. Raw Linseed oil won't dry (unless you want to wait a few+ years).

[@bembyagustian7208]

Antiq oil finish, glossy or satin?

[@cwjr1968]

Great video!

[@WoodAndShop]

Thanks Chuck!

[@jaykepley5238]

Very informative video!

[@WoodAndShop]

Glad you liked it!

[@CelticSaint]

Were Les Paul guitar bodies made out of that wood?

[@WoodAndShop]

Probably. It's a popular wood for instruments. Do you have a Lester?

[@suhoops1620]

LP bodies are typically made of Mahogany then they glue a figured maple cap on top

[@markkoons7488]

Nice video. I look forward to my subscription. Good luck!

[@john20pb]

Just a heads up in the parts of your videos where you're standing in front of the camera talking, the sound is only coming from the right ear. It's perfect for the rest of the video though.

[@WoodAndShop]

Very strange, because the audio was filmed with the same microphone without stopping, start to finish. But I'll check it out. Maybe there was a temporary short in the mic.

[@kevpod]

Do you think this technique is possible to use on paper-backed maple veneer? Or would I end up sanding it too thin?

[@WoodAndShop]

Not too sure, but if you keep the sanding light, it would probably be okay.

[@eamonhaverty3191]

i like to plane the wood instead of sanding

[@WoodAndShop]

Yeah, I like to handplane too, but not curly maple.

[@shibumi5210]

Try a scraper with a well-burnished edge...

[@gusgus9963]

You should sing, you know!

[@elsenmemmedov820]

He looks like james hatfield

[@RussellStClair-cy1vu]

Rule one . Measurements matter. Rule two . All powdered dyes require 24 hours to acclimate. Rule three . Time There's a lot more than most will understand . By following 1&2 you eliminate 80-90% of the 72 ways chemical coatings will fail ( not can, WILL ) Liquid is measured in milliliters. Dry matter in grams . Coats of paint/lacquer measured in milliliters per. Square Centimeter.

[@MOAB-UT]

Great info. So are you saying, after you mix the dye in warm water, let it sit for 24 hours in the jar before applying?

[@RussellStClair-cy1vu]

@@MOAB-UT yes , it has to acclimate .

[@MOAB-UT]

@@RussellStClair-cy1vu I would think 10 minutes to 1 hour would be good enough as long as the liquid temp matched the room- no? I have an infrared temp. meter. Also, diluting in warm filtered water first so it melts nicely. Any thoughts on using 1. water based, then alch. based, then oil based? I think PRS Guitars uses that method. After stain, how long until you can sand- then how long to Tung Oil coat. Also, what grit do you use to sand? Thanks- it's my first real time doing a piece of furniture so I want it to look very nice and to last. I appreciate you.

[@RussellStClair-cy1vu]

@@MOAB-UT I prefer dyes in alcohol because I don't want grain raise . If you want consistency of color . use a washcoat in between the dye and oil . When I do oil stain alone I also use a washcoat . It's better than using " stain controller" . Washcoat : 1 part clear ( preferably the same top coat that you using for the project) 4-5 parts lacquer thinner . Sprayed 1.5 - 3.0 mils. Sometimes you lightly scuff w/ 320 , sometimes you don't . ( Experiment with your color sample ) Side note : what is prep-sanded today "should" be stained/ sealed/washcoated today . Wood oxidizes . Not a huge deal but it can be at the worst time . Really important part . The " Drying Time Clock " starts when the last piece is stained especially with oil. Hint : once you are ready to start sealing , you can tone with either . Dye also work's in lacquer, sealers and your washcoat . Drop the fluid down and the air, small color gives big results . Play around with scrap till you find what you want . Just using the same two colors . You'll get a few different results . P. S. If a dye looks light an hour after staining . It's not ! Don't do it !! Don't try to restain it ! Unless you want a checkerboard 😂😂😂😂😭😭😭😭

[@MOAB-UT]

@@RussellStClair-cy1vu Wow great tips thank you for taking the time to write all of that and I will take it to heart.

[@davesatosky5840]

no sound after intro

[@bald_chicken]

Dave Satosky voice is in the right channel while music is in the left

[@MisterKisster]

Some powder products should be strained before application.

[@WoodAndShop]

Yes, some powder products, but not all powder products. Aniline dye dissolves completely after stirring it. Thanks for the comment Mike!

[@apeterson1453]

Crazy how many people are here because of guitar lol.

[@caciopeia]

Good vídeo. Bad áudio.

[@michaelwallis4468]

no sound on main video, sound on opening and closing. disappointed.

[@MrMegatudo]

Have you ever heard that you looks like james hetfield?? He's your brother

[@bobbys4327]

yay........in the 21st century I love mono sound on a video....not

[@smegulate9826]

Literally the only sound in the video is one person speaking. Where else in the stereo field do you want his voice to come from??

[@paulesterline5714]

And how much $ did you pay for this video lesson?

[@theee_baldman]

Thanks man! 👍🏻