Question about Aqua Fortis finishing

[magyar]

I have read a good deal here about Aqua Fortis but it seems there may be slight differences in the way it is used from person to person.

So my question is this, should I apply it to the entire stock and allow to dry first before heating it up? I read some do small sections and some have mentioned doing the entire stock and allowing it to dry first. Should it be used sparingly or a really good soak given to the stock?

Some thoughts from you good folks please?

Anyone used AF followed by natural Danish oil as a finish? That is my initial thought for the finish but am open to suggestions on going darker or not. May even give beeswax a try instead of oil......

thanks in advance!

[tallbear]

I apply the stain to the whole stock allow to dry thoroughly,blush with heat and then repeat.

Danish oil doesn't build up enough for me to use as a gun finish.


Mitch

[g rummell]

I apply it to the entire stock, let dry, heat blush, repeat if not satisfied with the first staining. Then I do an over stain of LMF Honey Maple.

I then finish it up with 5-6 coats of Watco Teak Oil.

[Dennis Glazener]

So my question is this, should I apply it to the entire stock and allow to dry first before heating it up? I read some do small sections and some have mentioned doing the entire stock and allowing it to dry first. Should it be used sparingly or a really good soak given to the stock?

I stain the whole stock, let dry then blush with a heat gun.

Anyone used AF followed by natural Danish oil as a finish? That is my initial thought for the finish but am open to suggestions on going darker or not. May even give beeswax a try instead of oil......

I used to use Watco Danish oil finish and really liked it, fast and looked great with only 3 coats on it. I now use Chambers Oil Finish which I like better, I think its a more durable finish.
Dennis

[bama]

I have applied heat with the stain wet and with it dry and noticed very little difference. One thing I have noticed is the more heat that is appied the darker the stain gets. You can heat the stain until the color is nearly black especially on red maple. Sugar maple does not get quite as dark.

[David R. Pennington]

I use my own homemade aqua fortis so I can't vouch for what works with what is commercially sold. I make my own because when I first started it wasn't available commercially and I bought the nitric acid and made my own. I had to by a quart of the stuff and cut about 3 to one with water it will last me a long time. I mix it outdoors in a stone crock and add steel or iron filings or steel wool till it won't eat any more. I have heated it wet and dry with similar results. You are less likely to scorch the wood heating it wet. I usually heat it till it starts to look like it is dry. It tends to darken some over night so I stop a little lighter than I want to end up.

[Jim Kibler]

My experience with my ferric nitrate solution (made from nitric acid and iron) is that it doesn't really get any darker after a certain point no matter how much heat is applied.   There have been times when I've wanted darker but couldn't get it in this way.  Perhaps different solutions have different results.

Jim

[smallpatch]

Yeah, I'm with Jim on this one. Once it blushes, that's as dark as it gets. If it's turning black,  you're scorch the stock.

[WadePatton]

I added tannins to the maple before AF in order to get more contrast.  AF'd/blushed twice, scorched here and there as I don't have a heat gun, just a torch. Every piece of wood is different. Having "test wood" to experiment on is key-and another reason i'll probably never work with pre-shaped wood. 

[moleeyes36]

Magyar,

If you're using a commercially made mixture of AF the stuff is quite possibly very acidic unlike that made by some of the folks here.  If you don't neutralize it when you're done staining with it, it will probably continue to darken for some time thereafter.  It's best to not take a chance when using a commercial mixture and neutralize it with some household ammonia or baking soda and water before you apply the finish.  Many here, including me, have learned that lesson the hard way.  It only takes a minute to wipe down the stock with a cloth wet with ammonia and not take a chance.

Mole Eyes

[Pete G.]

OTOH, If you are building an early style with little figure in the wood with a dark stain, then there is nothing quite like a couple of applications of AF. It will continue to darken for a few weeks, at least when used with linseed oil, and will give a dark translucent color that is difficult to replicate with pigment stains.

[magyar]

Interesting points about ammonia or baking soda. I never would have thought about that. I have some ammonia as well as baking soda to use and will do so. How do you clean up baking soda residue before finishing? Anything specific I need to do?

[tallbear]

Use the ammonia and you don't have to worry about any baking soda residue 

Mitch

[Mad Monk]

I have read a good deal here about Aqua Fortis but it seems there may be slight differences in the way it is used from person to person.




Anyone used AF followed by natural Danish oil as a finish? That is my initial thought for the finish but am open to suggestions on going darker or not. May even give beeswax a try instead of oil......

thanks in advance!

You might want to give the beeswax idea long and serious thought.  Once you apply any beeswax to the wood that may prevent you from putting another finish on it later.  Once the wax wax works into the wood you will not get another finish to adhere to it.  And with an oil or oil-based finish it would migrate into the finish and soften it.

To a degree.  Intensity and depth of color, on the wood, with a nitrate of iron stain is in part determined by how much iron (as the oxide) you get on and in the wood.

When I worked on it in the lab I set up a beaker of the nitrate of iron stain solution.  Used very fast agitation and added potassium carbonate slowly.  The idea being to convert the ferric nitrate to ferric oxide under high-speed agitation to get as fine a particle as possible.  That gave me a very fine particle size sludge.  Down near a micron in size.  Then tried this as a wipe on stain.  Very dark results.

The magnetic media used in the old recording tapes and computer disks was produced in this.  I thought it funny that several hundred year old "technology" was still being used to create modern "high-tech" products.

Ran into the same thing with the copper horn dye.  (Project Green Horn).  Writings from Pliny, in 50 AD Rome involved copper salts in hide treating before tanning.  While at home I was using pressure treated wood treated with copper salts.  That project became known as "Pliny to Piney".

Mad Monk

[moleeyes36]

Use the ammonia and you don't have to worry about any baking soda residue 

Mitch

Absolutely.

Mole Eyes

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I used Ferric Nitrate Crystals dissolved to super-saturated solution for the cradle for this water barrel, for my camp.  The cradle is sugar maple, and it is finished with natural Watco Danish Oil finish.  The barrel, BTW, is red cedar with spruce ends, made by my friend Dog Spit (Sue Bender) of Victoria, BC.

Find out what that box-maker uses for his paneled shooting boxes...excellent results whatever it is!

[aaronc]

How many of you guys wet or dampen the stock before applying AF???

[Keb]

Nice barrel and great looking dog there. I have one that is a little smaller and is cast iron. He holds the door open for us.

[FALout]

I don't think that wetting the stock before AF would help.  A stock that is already wet may not allow the AF to get "into" the wood.  Try it on some scraps.  To me, wetting the stock would be like diluting the AF.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I think I'm understanding the concept...a wet towel seems to pick up a water spill better than a perfectly dry one.  but in this case, I agree that you are likely just diluting the AF.  My ferric Nitrate Solution wets maple really well.