what color of stain, and what grit paper?

[mrblue]

I will finishing this little piece soon and am not sure what would actually look good on it instead of just what i happen to have laying around .
They are 2x4 yellow pine 3ft pieces.. The last time was a dark stain and tung oil rubbed on it. ( still not sure what tung oil is ) it was all i had.. I am thinking of using the poly type stuff this next time...
is there any reason not to use dark stain on pine ?
what number of grit should be my last one used on such a wood for a nice finish...?? Sorry for all the question.... Don

[Honorary Bloke]

G'day Mrblue,

Did you mean to post a piccy? What kind of piece is it?

Anyhow, as you may already have discovered, staining pine can be hit or miss, regardless of the colour chosen. The grain density largely controls the effect of the stain. Therefore, wherever the grain is more dense (around knots, for example) the stain will not darken as well as it will where the grain is more open. If you don't mind the differences, go for it.

(Try some of your stain on a scrap of the same wood to see if you like the effect.)

Tung oil is basically a varnish.
Poly will give a harder finish.

The higher the grit, the smoother the finish--I often go as high as 400 or 500 and even higher on finer pieces--BUT . . . the higher the grit the closer the grain will be and the less effect the stain will have. So you may want to hold up at 220 or even 180, if you like the feel of the wood at that grit.

[mrblue]

Thanks for the info.. I posted this pic of my first attempt a little while back... it was all weathered scrap wood so i didnt worry to much what i put on it.. I am building this one for a friend . I thought i might try and find out what might look better on it.. and to use the correct grit paper.. if you look at the link --that one is done with the same stain and it all dont look the same....lol
This is all for practice.. thanks for any help...

http://s21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ent=000034.jpg