Novice Question - How to finish plywood for a built in desk

Hi all,

I am attempting to build a built in desk. I have 30mm BB HOOP PINE plywood that I will need to join (I have a biscuit joiner and believe I can handle this bit)

I want to stain the plywood down toward a cedar - mahogany colour and then finish it with a durable top layer.

I have done a lot of reading and feel like I know even less! :)

I am confused about if I should use a "sanding sealer" (not sure if this is even the correct term) in order to make the stain application more consistant.

Then what type of stain (eg water based? brand).

Again the same for the top coats.

Ideally if I could have suggestions around the most suitable products (and application method) that will work for a novice (I have varnished before etc, but was more luck than good judgement I'm sure)

Thanks for your time
Steve

Because hoop pine is so porous, it's best to prime it before sealing so the stain absorbs evenly. Feast watson timber primer makes a really stable base for staining.

As for the stain, the truest colour you'll get is with a spirit based stain like Prooftint. To get the application right, mix prooftint with prooftint colour reducer which will give you more time to work it and make it really forgiving.

I'd recommend getting some extra timber and testing your stain mix and application technique before you do your desk.

Do you have an orbital sander? If so, go over it with 180grit then 240, u can even go over with 320 just to get rid of the sanding marks. Ya need spirit based stain and a slow or medium drying thinners. 50/50 mix. Spray the stain not too heavy, i usually haze it with 2 coats. the trick is wait till the stain starting to dry, which is dulling off no massive wet or shiny spot then just rub it with clean rag then spray sealer on top 3 coats. Let that dry for an hour or so. Just Quickly run sander over it evenly then should be ready for top clear coat. Good luck

Thanks all for your replies. Working on this now :)