Replies

1. 
   sapwood | Jul 28, 2009 01:12am | #1

   No you didn't do anything wrong. That's the way that stain works. It's filled with tiny particles of color that lodge in all the nooks and crannies of the wood grain. Once filled there's no room for more so another darker stain will have minimal affect. Best to sand off the stain and redo it.

2. 
   webby | Jul 28, 2009 01:38am | #2

   Simchart,

    Before I stain my finished piece, I  take a large psice of scrap and make test samples of stain so I can get a better idea what the color would look like. Write out beside the stain what it is. Make sure to show it to the wife. ;^) What the other poster said is true usually when the stain is dry, applying darker stain wont get you very far, although you could try it. I think it would depend on how dark you want to go. 

   I have also had good luck blending fresh cuts on old wood using golden pecan applying it and before it is  dry wiping  a darker stain over the golden pecan, in my case english walnut.

   Hope this helps.

   Webby 

    

3. 
   SteveSchoene | Jul 28, 2009 05:05am | #3

   One way to deal with problems like this is to start with a base coat of dye.  Oak takes dye pretty well, no blotching, only occasionally it doesn't seem to take inside the pores.  But, that's not a real problem since you can follow up the dye with a pigment stain that will stick in the pores.  The one-two punch gives a richer looking finish.  You should experiment with wash coat sealing the dye before applying a pigmented only stain--such as a gel stain.  That can have a big impact on what incremental effect the stain has over the dye. (Of course that would make it a 1-2-3 punch.)  Strangely enough it is often simpler and more reliable to separate coloring steps rather than seek the "right" stain in a can.