stains and finishes question

S

Soozook

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Hi. Nooby questions here. I'm building a ZHL Blackpearl kit from about 6 or 7 years ago. I now have the hull fully planked and want to stain it and the deck before continuing. I know the model is supposed to be painted black but having spent so long doing the planking and being very happy with it I wanted to used a lighter finish. I have some oil based stains in the shed that I tested on some strips and I'm quite happy with the colour but as I suspected my glue (titebond II) does not adhere very well so I'm concerned about how I would add the rest of the parts. Should I use the oil then coat with some sort of varnish? would that work?. Or should I look for a non oil based solution?
thanks in advanced for the help.
 
The problem with oil based stains is that they tend to leave a surface that is impervious to most wood glues such as Titebond. Your best bet is to use a water based stain. After staining a light sanding to smooth it all out - water based paints in general tend to raise the grain - and you should have no problem gluing things to it. Most instructions tell one to use this approach - staining before glueing - as the glue will prevent the stain from penetrating the wood. As a result - if you have used Titebond to do your planking you could end up with a "freckled" surface from any glue left on the outside of the planking. If this occurs then your only option is to paint it. I always use water based paints and stains because of the easy cleanup and lack of an overpowering smell.
 
I think Jim is correct, I have used thinned down ink as stains, depending on color and if you want to show wear patterns you can stain very lightly with highly diluted stains, and then sand deck areas down a bit to make newer lighter wood show as wear marks in older darker parts of deck.

After all construction is done, I use Q-tip to apply light coat of Danish Oil, Natural color to decks to help seal them, Then wipe them dry to remove shine from oil.

Many others may have different methods, depends on your thoughts, practices, experience and what you have to work with.

Kurt
 
thanks. Jim, Kkonrath, I think I will look at the water based stains. To prevent the freckled surface problem I presume I just need to make sure sand any areas with glue carefully first. is it recommended to seal after construction?
 
Soozook said:
Hi. Nooby questions here. I'm building a ZHL Blackpearl kit from about 6 or 7 years ago. I now have the hull fully planked and want to stain it and the deck before continuing. I know the model is supposed to be painted black but having spent so long doing the planking and being very happy with it I wanted to used a lighter finish. I have some oil based stains in the shed that I tested on some strips and I'm quite happy with the colour but as I suspected my glue (titebond II) does not adhere very well so I'm concerned about how I would add the rest of the parts. Should I use the oil then coat with some sort of varnish? would that work?. Or should I look for a non oil based solution?
thanks in advanced for the help.
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The water based stain will as described raise the grain and make the wood fuzzy. I suggest spraying the parts involved lightly with a spray bottle of water. This will raise the grain before staining. Let the wood dry completely and then sand VERY lightly with let’s say 400 grit sandpaper. Vacuum off carefully the small amount of saw dust created. Then apply the stain. Putting on a sealer after this is personal preference. I would suggest wipe on poly for this procedure.
 
I would use a spirit based ebony wood stain brother. The black pearl is supposed to be black, and ebony stain would still give it a realistic look.
 
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