Inconsistent Shellac Results on Maple

[jmail000]

I am building a closet using Maple. I am new to woodworking and this is my first project using Shellac. The color of the finished wood has come out excellently (a dark yellow color). However on the last piece I am making (a laundry bin) in one of the units, the cover (20" x 28") of edge glued Maple - came out much lighter (pale yellow almost brown) ... odd and ugly than the rest. I do not want to spend the time stripping if it is the wood and/or buying and edge gluing etc... the wood if I can finish it in some way. Has anyone had similar experiences

I have not stained the wood just sealed the Maple with Shellac. I did however 1st use a wood conditioner on the Maple hardwood as I found this ensured the color I received on the Maple was the same as the color on the Maple plywood after applying the Shellac finish. The shellac is Super Blonde Shellac from "Lee Valley" which was not cheap. This is the flakes which I diluted with alcohol.

[Tim Douglass]

It sounds to me a bit like you may have a different variety of maple for that piece. Is there any possibility that you got soft maple for that and hard maple for the rest?

-- "We need to make a sacrifice to the gods, find me a young virgin... oh, and bring something to kill"

Tim Douglass

[Patriarch]

Tim Douglass wrote in news: [e-mail]:

I think Tim may be on to something here. There are dozens of varieties of maples in commercial production in North America, and they all behave slightly differently. I'm doing a bathroom vanity, and, to make certain that the colors match, all the drawer fronts are cut from the same board. And I got one big, honking plank of rough 12/4 to do a pair of chairs, so I have a better chance of matching color & grain.

BTW, what's with the 'wood conditioner' on maple? Shouldn't be needed with shellac, in my (OK, not completely exhaustive) experience.

Patriarch

[jmail000]

Before I chose a finish (as I am new to this), I tested a few different stains (did not like the color on maple) and finishes (oil, water based and shellac). I put them on a piece of Maple and Maple hardwood to make sure the color was the same. What I found when I just used the sealants (which I felt looked really good on Maple) is that that the color on the plywood was slightly darker - which for obvious erasons I did not want to happen. If I put conditioner on the maple before I sealed it, the color came out slightly darker and matched the plywood really well.

Thanks for the feedback on the wood. Makes sense - purchased the last piece from a different source. !@#$$%!@#!. Doing this occasionally at night for a little time - getting the piece ready to install took a while.

[Larry Jaques]

Why does everybody and their brother think that perfectly good wood has to be discolored (stained)?

You'll also find that plywood and solid woods look slightly different. Allow the slight differences between boards to become a feature in your furniture rather than a detraction.

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[Norman D. Crow]

RBS, C-less?

[Larry Jaques]

Ayup, the dreaded Reddish Brown Shit, Nahmie. As always, the question is

W H Y ?

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[WillR]

W H Y N O T ?

Jewel Boxes and Wood Art

power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those=20 who have not got it.=94 George Bernard Shaw

[Larry Jaques]

Because it's usually BUTT FUGLY.

Because it takes more time to apply.

Because it invariably goes on unevenly.

Because it costs more in the long run.

Because it takes more of your time to accomplish (poorly.)

Because it never looks like the real wood after all that hassle and frustration.

Because some people have a little bit of TASTE.

Izzat enough for you?

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