Red Woodstain suggestions

[cwilson]

I'm going to refinish the stock on my SMR an I'd like that dark rich red look, looking for suggestions on how to do this, been practicing on scrap curly maple but haven't gotten the look I'm wanting, I've tried LMF Maple and Cherry but not the color of red I'm looking for. Appreciate any suggestions you might have, Thanks
Chris

[KLMoors]

That's a tough one as it depends on the piece of wood and what you consider red. I use the LMF stains and I usually end up using a blend of maple and walnut. Sometimes I blend in some nut brown or american walnut too. I also thin it down at least 50% with denatured alcohol so I can sneak up on the color without going past it.

[Jerry V Lape]

All else fails you can the aniline powder colors and mix your own dye with alcohol.  Or add more red to the LMF colors you already have.  I think LMF is really the aniline powders and alcohol  pre mixed anyway.  Also, cherry can be stained with ammonia fumes but I have never done this and don't know exactly what colors it produces.  

[Dr. Tim-Boone]

Try some Madder root powder ........





http://www.herbco.com/showproduct.aspx?ProductID=612&SEName=maddar-root-powder

OR try some Dragon's Blood  http://waynesword.palomar.edu/arbimg3.htm

I think you will have to mix your own color

[g rummell]

Try a mixture of LMF Honey Maple, Walnut, and Cherry.
Just mix equal amounts of each and you may be suprised.

[cwilson]

I'm pretty sure thats the mixture I used on my GPR, Maple, cherry an walnut, I'd really like to get that color I've seen referred to as Violin red.
Chris

[keweenaw]

You can get those reds pretty easily using aniline dyes.  I like the water soluble ones best.  the mahogany shades like dark red brown chippendale or medium red are good.  I also really like the one called dark wine red cherry.  I use them in combination to get the tone I want.  If you're the type to leave your gun in the sunlight for years on end and are worried about photobleaching, you can use the light fast series which are alcohol soluble and try some combination or red (barn), brown or red brown.  One thing to remember when playing with these, or other stains or dyes, is that the color, etc. will look quite different when you have the finish on it and built to the thickness wanted.  I usually experiment with a series of dye combinations in strips on a piece to test wood that was prepped the same way the stock will be and then apply finish over it to about the extent the stock will be finished.

Tom

[wetzel]

I can usually get a decent red using aquafortis.  I apply a coat and let it dry, then apply another coat, apply heat till it gets dark, then steel wool back as much as desired (I rub a little water on to see how dark it is), when happy with how light or dark, I put on more aquafortis and apply heat for just a second or two till it blushes.  This gives a real pretty red hue to the wood.  I'm by no means an expert like many of the guys on here, but just thought I would give you a technique that worked for me.

[bgf]

One thing about the "violin red" is that it is most likely a tinted finish over the base stain.

This article by Jack Brooks is helpful, or at least it was to me.
http://www.jsbrookslongrifles.com/theclassroom.htm -- go down a bit to "Violin Red Finish".

[Glenn]

I recall readiing a reference to a stain that gunmaker James Purdey (British) used was supposedly based on alkanet root.  This supposedly gave a deep red color when used for more than one coating.  I have never tried this myself but again, I have seen more than one reference of this when researching stains in the past.

[Bill-52]

Chris,

While still a novice builder, I've achieved a deep dark red with Dangler's stains, sold by Jim Klein.  First, several coats of the orange (very scary), then two coats dark red, two coats golden brown and finish with dark brown as needed.  After that, several coats of garnet shellac, finished with Chambers oil finish.  Of course, I tested many combinations on scrap wood before attacking the stock.

Check out Mike Brooks' gunbuilding tutorial who also uses Dangler's stains.

Bill

[Jim Kibler]

Sorry, it seems I am always the critic, but I would test the aniline dye before using it.  I stained and finished some samples and put them in the sun with half covered and after a half day of strong sun there was considerable fading.   The nice red tends to turn brown.  You might not notice this so much if it happens over time, but with a side by side comparison it is obvious.  I understand alkenate to be quite fugitive as well. 

[Acer Saccharum]

I dissolved dragon's blood in alcohol, mixed with shellac, and I've had the piece of wood in my window for two years with little color change. I'd be leery of the anilines.

You can get a lot of red in a varnish, by building up layers of color. I'd experiment with a medium brown stain on the gun, and then build up layers of red varnish.

Dragon's blood is quite orange, maybe a madder would be a better tone.

[Bart]

I have had lots of luck getting red colored stocks using Fiebings alcohol based Leather Dyes. I start with putting an even coat of orange down followed by several coats of light or dark brown. Yes, I know that I said brown, but they have a lot of red in them. If the red is to dark you can wash it back with straight denatured alcohol. Good luck
Bart

[keweenaw]

There is this common perception that aniline dyes fade quickly.  Do you all notice how your clothes turn brown in a day or two in the sun?  Or that the Navajo eye dazzler blankets from the 1870's are all brown?  The light fast series of aniline dyes are just that, light fast.  On the other series the water solubles tend to be the most light fast, followed by the alcohol solubles with the oil solubles being the least.  What do you guys think the color is in those stains you mention?

Tom

[Osprey]

Muzzleloader Builders Supply carries a line of stains that has some great reds.   I've got cans of their Dark Cherry Red and Lehigh Red and depending on the piece of wood one of the two will give great red colors, mix with browns and orange coats of stain to get what you want.

[Jim Kibler]

There is this common perception that aniline dyes fade quickly.  Do you all notice how your clothes turn brown in a day or two in the sun?  Or that the Navajo eye dazzler blankets from the 1870's are all brown?  The light fast series of aniline dyes are just that, light fast.  On the other series the water solubles tend to be the most light fast, followed by the alcohol solubles with the oil solubles being the least.  What do you guys think the color is in those stains you mention?

Tom

My experience is with leather dye and transtint dye.  I was working with a red mahogany color of each.  I found the red to weaken and fade rather quickly when exposed to good direct sun during finish curing.  I understand Transtint to be some of the best for resisting fading.  This is not a statement of what I think should happen or what others suggest should happen.  This is my experience.  Try it and see what happens.  Maybe there are better materials or methods than I used.

Jim

[valongrifles]

An old Muzzle Blast article attributed iodine as used on a cut to use as a reddener for staining a stock. Haven't tried it. Could work, I guess.

[cwilson]

Thanks for all the replies, someone else mentiond Lehigh Red I think I'll give that a try and see what I come up with. I've got a scrap piece of curly maple I can test on. Thanks guys.
Chris