Hi Flatsguide,
Thank you. Dane, I stain based on my objectives and the kind of walnut. Eric's post shows a nice black walnut stock, unstained. While there is considerable variation in color, American black walnut generally looks like Eric's gun. Personally (no pun intended), I do not favor that color. It has a cold purplish-brown hue. If I am not trying to make black walnut look like English walnut, I usually give it a coat of LMF's walnut stain. This works wonders on black walnut and brings out more red. I also sometimes stain it with alkanet root infused in mineral oil. I test scrap pieces to see which stain brings out the best color in that particular walnut stock. If I am trying to match the look of English walnut using a black walnut stock, I first paint the stock with pure yellow aniline dye. That kills the cold purple brown completely. Then depending on the specific piece of wood, I might stain over the yellow with LMF walnut stain or alkanet root, or nothing. The photos below show guns with black walnut stocks made to look more like English walnut:
If I am using English walnut, I usually stain it with alkanet root. The guns I showed in my previous post where stained that way. Also, during the whiskering process, I sometimes stain the stock with pure black aniline dye. As I scrape it off, it reveals scratches and rough spots but also embeds in the grain giving the finished stock an old mellow look. Here is an English walnut stock done that way:
dave
