removing excess stain 'gunk'

[yugyug]

hi everyone. I'm knew here, but I hope someone can help me with the following:

I've just stained a bamboo ply cabinet with feast watson prooftint black and I've discovered its left some gunk in a few places, which I guess it from excess stain evaporating down. I wasn't wiping down after brushing the stain on, figured that out later (doh).

Any tips for removing the residue? Is sanding back and re-staining the only solution? I was hoping a bit of mineral spirit or turps would dilute it so I can scrap it off, but I've only had partial success with that - it softens the gunk, but it still adheres quite strongly.

thanks in advance!

guy

[Bob38S]

You talk of gunk - is this dust/dirt which was not cleaned off before you stained or is it where the Prooftint has pooled giving you too much stain in one place?

You should have more "success" if you try the Prooftint thinner which is Diacetone Alcohol which is the carrier for the Prooftint. Before you go and buy the thinner - try methylated spirits which is the suggested clean up for Prooftint.

The metho / thinner will remove some / most of the colour and you will need to go over it again to even out the stain.

Hope it helps and let us know how you get on.

Regards,
Bob

[yugyug]

thanks Bob. Yes its concentrated prooftint residue. I think it got on the wood from the bottom or sides of the glass jar I was using to dip my brush in. I'll give the metho a try first. Maybe diacetone alcohol is the main ingredient in nail polish remover? I'll try some of that too on a small spot too before looking for the real thing if the metho doesn't work.

[Bob38S]

I would not use nail polish remover which is acetone - especially as most are regarded as "oily".

If you think you will be using more spirit stains check out the link which you may find useful.

http://www.woodworkforums.com/f9/classic-lightbulb-moment-131483/#post1277795

Regards,
Bob

[yugyug]

the ashtray thing is a great idea. The thing with glass jars is the stain dries out on the sides as the level decreases, which I think was the cause of my current problem.

I had my reverse lightbulb momenta few years ago when using a very strong stain made by Zweihorn - I poured into the only thing I handy, a disposable cup. A few minutes later the bottom dissolved and dropped out!

[dr4g0nfly]

The wife had a couple of those American Candle Co. candles in jars. When she finished with them I swiped the lids, heavy duty glass and just big enough to hold and mix the small quantities of stain I use.

[yugyug]

No need to find diacetone alcohol, the methylated spirits worked fine. It does remove the stain partially, but it was no problem to touch it up again with Prooftint.

thanks for the help.

[Bob38S]

You are welcome - that's what the forum is all about.