How well does poplar take stain?

Probably easier'n every other wood, soft or hard. Planing poplar doesn't even count as practicing.

I didn't raise the S2S/S4S HD ripoff question because I figured the OP was in the same situation I used to be in. I made stuff out of poplar because Lowe's was the only place I knew to get wood, and it was all I could afford at their exorbitant prices. I made the best of it.

Once I discovered a place to buy real wood, I've never bought poplar there, even though it's cheap. For what I was paying for S4S poplar (with wider than 3" boards done as glue-ups, no less) I can afford a similar quantity of walnut. Let's see, walnut is available. What wood do I want? Duhhhhhhh. :)

It hasn't saved me a dime finding a cheaper source of wood. :)

I really need to look elsewhere still, but I guess I don't care enough to drive out to some yonder (Bedford, say) or fool with mail ordering or whatever. I don't think I would build much more, or much bigger stuff than I do if I had a whole tree cut up and stacked somewhere, and somewhere to stack a whole tree. I have a little bitty shop, and I favor either purely utilitarian projects made out of whatever crap salvage I can scrounge (my Frankenstein music stand, or trebuchet, say) or else I do small projects in (predominantly) walnut that take me weeks or months to complete.

I'm not really aiming to do things faster, or put more wood through the shop just to be doing things in a hurry, and I don't mind doing a little bit to ensure I can continue to go buy wood on the other side of town whenever I want to, even if their prices are high.

Reply to
Silvan
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So was I.

A "library" to me means lots of shelf edges and bases with shaped edges and crisp corners exposed to vacuum cleaner tools, chairs, kids, the occasional idiot with a step ladder, etc...

I also like the wood I'm going to touch to have a solid feel. For some reason, poplar always feels hollow, like basswood with grain, to me. Denser woods, like maple and birch feel more like real cherry when you tap or knock on them.

Barry

Reply to
Ba r r y

They sell cheaper woods at expensive prices.

Barry

Reply to
Ba r r y

It's really not a hack.

Some awfully expensive, household name furniture is stained with a pigment stain over a clear coat, with awesome results.

Barry

Reply to
Ba r r y

I have great luck staining Poplar. I used to look down on it as a cheap wood but It is so easy to work and stains to look like anything I want, I really like it now. Find a commercial wood supplier and you'll pay about 1/2 as much as you do at HD.

Here is an example of a Poplar project

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used General Finishes Rosewood stain with shellac over that. It's a water based finish so be sure to raise the grain with watre and knock it down first. Woodcraft carries the General Finishes products.

Reply to
SonomaProducts.com

That's why it makes great drawer sides, second only to basswood in my book.

Barry

Reply to
Ba r r y

Reply to
Richard Clements

I wonder of grow light would have the same affect? then you could do it year round

Reply to
Richard Clements

Cherry stain on maple? Excuse me, I have to go barf up my breakfast.

If anyone is interested I can sell you a real nice chrome-plated gold ring.

Tim Douglass

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Reply to
Tim Douglass

Depends on the maple.

Barry

Reply to
Ba r r y

bought some honey amber dye -- and was going to try that on this cherry and maple music stand I"m building. I'm trying to really highlight the figured maple, since it really is only on the 4 legs and the vertical rails of the easel.

I was thinking hit it with a light concentration of the dye, then either shellac or spray it with lacquer. The only problem is, there are cherry parts to this, and I wasn't sure if I should try to do something else to them. Honey Amber dye on cherry doesn't sound good at alllll....

Either that, or I'm leaving it completely natural and using boiled linseed oil.

Reply to
mark

I personally favor the light, natural look for maple. BLO or other oil finish will bring out the grain and warm it up nicely. I currently am favoring oil with shellac if I want more protection and some gloss. My current maple project will get danish oil and maybe shellac.

For the combination of maple and cherry I would think that BLO would give you perhaps the best overall look - especially as the cherry darkens with age. I have never worked with cherry, so my opinions there are rather suspect.

Tim Douglass

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Reply to
Tim Douglass

Absolutely. This was not, by any stretch, a fine finish but it was attractive for its use - a multi use office and conference center. It was pretty much what is used in a lot of residential construction and that process is not indended to be beautiful - just attracive and quick.

The biggest mistake I made when we built our house was not knowing about these 3-step production laquer finishes (sprayed stain, sealer, finish). It sounds impressive but basically it allows a good gun guy and a couple of high-school drop outs to finish a 2,000 square foot house in two days (while they are doing another down the street, during dry times).

Reply to
RonB

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