Finishing up a Hickory Backed Osage bow with a black locsut handle. My question is what type of stain (oil or water based) and finish would be best to use on this HBO? I believe the hickory and black locust takes staining differently then the osage. Curious to what would work best for both. Any color suggestions would be great as well. I was thinking of a reddish or darker color for the hickory & black locust and leave the osage natural cause it will darken with age.
Thanks,
jimmyZ
I like to let osage darken naturally. Hickory backings works well with most dyes. Fiebings leather dye or Rit dyr in alcohol both work well. I prefer more of a wash than a stain on hickory to show off the grain. By adding extra alcohol to either Rit or Fiebings you can "water" it down into a wash. Another stain I like for hickory is hand rubbed finely ground charcoal. You can do it dry ow with the alcohol or oil. Just rub it in and wipe it off.
I use Tru-Oil on all my bows as a finish.
Thanks for the information. I am assuming you would use denatured alcohol with the Rit dyes. I will have to experiment to get a color I am looking for. Done that with stains for other wood projects. Have not used Tru-Oil, but got some scraps to work with first.
jimmyZ
Well, here is what minwax stain looks like. Not that happy with it. I took a lot of time sanding and preping, but still did not come out even..
(http://i383.photobucket.com/albums/oo273/timberwolf177/5%20bow%20build/100_1941.jpg)
It's not bad.. but I like Pat's idea of a dry rub... you can go to an art store and get colored charcoal.. will try that next time!
This was a water based stain from Home Depot.
I use Toungue Oil.. I have also used rub on poly.. like the Toungue better. Rubs in real deep into the wood.. takes a little bit of time, but worth it.