CHERRY Coloured stain needed!! 🤔

[ksl]

Howdy all~~ I'm looking for a source of an oil-based wood stain in CHERRY RED, not SG or LP Special like cherry, but more like a Luden's cough drop or cherry Nyquil, to mix with my natural flavored oil-based Minwax to put on my custom birdseye maple neck (not the fingerboard). The closest thing is Minwax's Sedona Red, but not quite soup. Being my first & probably only DIY, I am working blind, but knew enough to inquire whether it was oil or water based before jumping. So, where to to purchase such an seemingly evasive shade?  I've been to Lowe's, H Depot, Ace/True Value, and fished endlessly online, & I'm tired. My imagination is leading me thoughts of Grenadine, Cherry Jello & the likes, food dye, but I know better.  Any leads before I settle on just a trace amount of Sedona....don't want to go too dark & lose the birdseye.
Thanks all & happy holidays.
Kenny
🕉

[Telecruiser]

https://www.rockler.com/homestead-dry-dyes?sid=V9146?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=&utm_content=&utm_campaign=PL&gclid=Cj0KCQiAw4jvBRCJARIsAHYewPMZ6IXY6BO6qlqEU7BIs17K56JHo4NPWYPtKIgXWHnD8dsznJgn5DoaAhQ1EALw_wcB

https://www.amazon.com/Red-Dye-Solvent-Bright-Crimson/dp/B01J2BXAEK

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Keda-Red-Liquid-Dye-For-Making-Premium-Bright-Red-Wood-Stain-Keda-Alcohol-Dyes-/351877454965

https://www.veneersupplies.com/products/TransTint---Bright-Red-2-oz.html

[daddymack]

try just looking for an oil soluble pigment [moved from now deleted thread in Elc Guit]

[ksl]

Thanks for the TDRI tip~~

[Phil O'Keefe]

I'm not sure if it's the shade you're looking for, but StewMac sells red stain... 

https://www.stewmac.com/Materials_and_Supplies/Finishing_Supplies/Colors_and_Tints_and_Stains/ColorTone_Liquid_Stains.html

 

 

[WRGKMC]

Stuart McDonald has any color wood dye you want but how effective they actually wind up being when you combine the brown color of the wood is questionable.

I just did a guitar where I used a Blueberry colored stain and it wound up looking like Purple Heart (dark purple wood)  after I applied the clear finish. 

If you're wanting a transparent red finish like you find on most Gibson and Epiphone guitars you might want to use tinted lacquer instead of simply staining the wood. (or both)  

Stains bring out the wood grain but it can also make some woods too dark to actually come through as being red.   The way most guitar manufactures get that deep transparent color is to used colored lacquers.  The wood is left light in color with maybe only Shellac as a sealer.  Darker woods can have light colored Shellac or even white lacquer applied.  Without the lighter color below the clear cost winds up looking more like paint.  With the light color and tinted lacquer you have a three dimensional effect where the light passes through the lacquer and bounces off the wood below and it reveals the wood grain below the colored lacquer. 

You also have the option of buying pigment which is added to the clear Lacquer to Tint it.  This of course requires a paint sprayer and a whole lot of experience using one including knowing how to work with chemicals, adding dryers and thinning the coats as more layers are applied.  The other option is to buy pre mixed aerosol cans.   These tend to do a decent job but because they are only one viscosity you  wind up having to do allot of buffing to remove flaws and get a mirror finish.  Again, I'd suggest you use a sealer first to avoid getting lines caused by the grain absorbing the lacquer. 

Stu McDonald and ReRanch are the most popular sites for the supplies.  Expect to spend about $100 when all is said and done. 

There is another method you wont find in any books or on the internet.  I been using it for nearly 40 years now and can confirm the long term results do work without rejection of any kind.  You can use oil based stains and mix them with Tung oil to create a tinted Tung oil finish.  Tung oil is mostly Varnish and varnish has been used on Violins for centuries.  Modern Tung oil like Minwax has added hardeners and dryers so you don't have to wait for ever for it to dry. 

I did a large scale test mixing Tung oil and Stain nearly 30 years ago when we bought an antique table for the dining room which was a dark cherry color.  I couldn't find chairs for it at the right price so I bought 6 kits you put together yourself.  Problem however they were nowhere close in color.  I then found a stain that would match but the wood couldn't absorb enough to match it.  That's when I started mixing the Stain and Tung together.  It did thin the Tung oil quite a bit but it worked perfectly.  Each coat gradually darkened the wood till they matched the table and then I simply applied the clear over it.  I can still see the grain through the Tung and they matched the table perfectly.  They've only looked nicer over the years too. 

I Have a thread in the guitar forum where I just did another guitar using this method , except I stained the wood first then mixed a little for the second coat.  I probably would have been better off only mixing it with the Tung and applying it but the wood was so light I wasn't sure it would be dark enough.  Still came out decent though. 

 

 

 

 

[6down1togo]

I stripped and refinished the top on this SG1. I stained with Minwax Mahogany, a couple light clear lacquer coats, then Mohawk Deep Red Toner, more clearcoats, then the black burst edge (makes the burst "float" above the top) followed by multiple lacquer clearcoats. The more red coats you apply, the deeper it gets. Another alternative is to use Tamiya or Testor's model car paint in Transparent/Candy Red. Just let it cure a couple weeks before top coating with lacquer and build the clear up with multiple light, dry coats before apply heavy coats. The back and neck were flawless and were a nice deep burgundy that you could see the grain through. God only knows what Gibson was thinking when they finished this. The top looked nothing like the back at all, looking like it was sprayed with maroon paint.

Had I not stained the mahogany first, it would probably have had the crimson color you are looking for.

Before (really fugly with someone's bad touchup):

After (blended the finish into the edges, back and neck were perfect):

 

[AJ6stringsting]

On 12/2/2019 at 4:21 AM, Phil O'Keefe said:

I'm not sure if it's the shade you're looking for, but StewMac sells red stain... 

https://www.stewmac.com/Materials_and_Supplies/Finishing_Supplies/Colors_and_Tints_and_Stains/ColorTone_Liquid_Stains.html

 

 

One of the best thing about Stew Mac , are not only the products and tools ....they have books. CD Roms and videos on how to use the product, how to use the tools and how to get great results.

[Phil O'Keefe]

On 3/16/2020 at 4:18 PM, 6down1togo said:

I stripped and refinished the top on this SG1. I stained with Minwax Mahogany, a couple light clear lacquer coats, then Mohawk Deep Red Toner, more clearcoats, then the black burst edge (makes the burst "float" above the top) followed by multiple lacquer clearcoats. The more red coats you apply, the deeper it gets. Another alternative is to use Tamiya or Testor's model car paint in Transparent/Candy Red. Just let it cure a couple weeks before top coating with lacquer and build the clear up with multiple light, dry coats before apply heavy coats. The back and neck were flawless and were a nice deep burgundy that you could see the grain through. God only knows what Gibson was thinking when they finished this. The top looked nothing like the back at all, looking like it was sprayed with maroon paint.

Had I not stained the mahogany first, it would probably have had the crimson color you are looking for.

Before (really fugly with someone's bad touchup):

After (blended the finish into the edges, back and neck were perfect):

 

 

That turned out really nice - great job!