Cherry wood & fuming

[wet willy]

I've a nice piece of curly cherry suitable for a pistol stock. Knowing that not many pistols were stocked in cherry, but there was a process where the wood was suspended over a tank of ammonia or brushed with an alkali paste to bring out the colors and contrasts.

Anyone on the Forum know how this process works?

[FALout]

If you do a search, you will find your answer.  Fuming works, but is a slow process.  I liked using spray oven cleaner (lye), will darken it right up.  Wear gloves.

[PPatch]

I am pretty sure there is loads of information on staining cherry in the archives, try doing a search using "staining cherry" and see what pops up.

Do post some finished pictures when you get her done.

dave

[Keb]

I'll just throw out what I've found using oven cleaner on cherry. Don't use the "Extra Heavy Duty" stuff. It'll turn the cherry a muddy color that's not at all attractive. Now I only use the dollar store stuff cause it's kinda weak compared to the national brands. It gives the cherry a nice warm aged look IMHO.

[okieboy]

 I have not fumed cherry, but have fumed a lot of white oak for furniture. For small pieces like a pistol stock, you can use something like a large piece of Tupperware for a fuming chamber with a couple of wood waste blocks for support. It works better to have concentrated ammonia from a chemical supply. The stuff is potent and should be handled using a proper respirator in a well ventilated area.
 You should know that results of fuming seem to vary with every individual piece of wood. Also part of the reason for using fuming is that it colors both the harder and softer parts of the wood more evenly, making patterns in the wood more subtle rather than more pronounced. When people desire to make a maximum contrast in the wood, fuming is not the process of choice. The idea of subtle variation rather than startling contrast seems rather out of modern style IMO.
 Fuming is a rewarding process to learn, but needs to be approached with safety in mind. Some people "safen" the process by using dilute grocery store ammonia, they generally produce dilute results. 

[Dennis Glazener]

I have not fumed cherry, but have fumed a lot of white oak for furniture.

I tried it once and did not like the outcome. To fume the wood needs to have tannic acid in it. I don't/didn't think cherry had tannic acid in it so I cooked up a strong brew of tea and applied it to the cherry (worked well for me on pine) then fumed the wood in a closed box with 28% ammonia in a saucer. It turned darker but I didn't like the looks, to me Cherry looks far better using lye water.
Dennis

[JCKelly]

If you choose to fume with ammonia, do it very, very far away from your centerfire ammunition and pretty brass whatevers.

Ammonia cracks brass.

You may look this up on web if you like, under "Season Cracking".

The Brits learnt this while tormenting the Indian subcontinent with their .577 cartridges.

[moleeyes36]

If treating wood with lye water, oven cleaner, etc., do you need to neutralize it by applying a mild acid solution of some type to the wood when finished to stop the action?  Essentially just the opposite process of applying baking soda or ammonia to a stock that was stained with aqua fortis?

Mole Eyes

[Dennis Glazener]

If treating wood with lye water, oven cleaner, etc., do you need to neutralize it by applying a mild acid solution of some type to the wood when finished to stop the action? 

I never have I have built three cherry stocked rifles stained with lye water and have not neutralized any of the three. The first one I kept for a year or so and never noticed a difference, the second one I sold fairly quickly and the last one I had for about 5 years and never had it darken even after I left it in the sun a couple of times hoping to darken it.
Dennis

[grabenkater]

I found a blog a few years back on medieval woodworking and the writer claimed that lye water was used on cherry and other fruit woods in Europe 500 years ago. His source was supposedly a French furniture makers treatise from the 16th century.