Aqua Fortis Stain Question.

[greymount]

I recently used aqua fortis on one of my stocks and it came out a nice reddish brown amber color.  I really like the look, however, on this gun I want a color that is more of a darker brown.  I was thinking on mixing some brown burnt umber in my permalyn sealer and sealing the stock with it to make it a little browner.  I would use Chamber's oil for the subsequent coats.  Is Chamber's oil compatible over Permalyn sealer? I was also thinking of using some bone black also to darken areas of the stock to give some contrast. Does this sound like something that will work. I don't want to muddy up the curl.

[rich pierce]

Sounds like it could get muddy to me. Here is the result of homemade AQF stained 3 times.  This is in bright light.  Inside the house the gun looks very dark.  I don't have a problem getting it plenty dark with homemade AQF.

[davebozell]

My experience with aqua fortis is that your result depends very much on the wood that you are using.  Test samples prior to staining your rifle.  You can apply multiple coats to see if that makes a difference on your wood.  Also make sure that you apply enough heat to the wood.  Dark has never been a problem on the stocks that I have used aqua fortis (the commercial variety).

[Three balls]

How long should a guy leave the aqua fortis stain on the wood, before he puts the heat to it? I've never really found the answer to this.

[smylee grouch]

A lot of stocks darken with age when you use aqua fortis.

[Eric Krewson]

Being a beginner I have only stained one stock with aquafortis, I neutralized the stain with ammonia. The stock has darkened a good bit over the years, I like the change.

[Joe S]

How long should a guy leave the aqua fortis stain on the wood, before he puts the heat to it? I've never really found the answer to this.

As far as I can tell, it doesn't matter.  Heat it while it's still wet, or let it dry for a day or so before heating and you seem to get the same result.

[Hungry Horse]

 I have had better results heating after the aqua fortis has dried. It doesn't tend to raise the wood grain as much if you let it dry.

  Hungry Horse

[Joe S]

Yeah, there is that aspect of it.  Forgot about that.  Color is the same though, at least as far as I can tell.

[Ed Wenger]

If you haven't sealed the wood yet, you could apply another treatment of AF, that should darken it.  I'd do some experimentation on a scrap piece of wood...  LMF stains like American Walnut, Nut Brown, or even Ebony Toner, could be wiped on with a rag to darken.   I'd try either of these before adding anything to the Permaly....  Again, try it on a scrap of wood.

I think Permaly would be okay with Chambers Oil, but would let it dry completely before I applied Chambers Oil.  Do the strap wood thing again.  It's been my experience that Chambers Oil will "eat" bone black, and make it disappear.  Hope that helps.


        Ed

[bama]

In my experiance the more heat you apply to AF the darker it will get. I like to heat with the AF still damp but thats just me. I have applied after the stock has dried and it will still blush and go dark. I find that if I apply heat while the AF is still damp if I had missed a spot on the stock with the AF that I can blend the stain in that area with the AF still damp. It is harder for me to blend the AF after the stock is completely dry and then go back and try to touch up a spot I missed.

If it is not dark enough then I go back over the stock with the heat gun first to see if it will darken more. If that don't do it then I apply another coat of AF and re-heat. If it is still not dark enough the I apply a coat of Birchwood Casey's Walnut stain. This will make the stock darker and add a little bit of redish yellow highlights which I like. I sometimes use this as a base coat before the AF with good results also.

The advice of trying all of this on a scrap piece is good advice and should be heeded.

You might try using Jim Kiblers finish. It has a pigment added to it already that gives a nice amber color to the finish. I am not sure but I think Jim Chamber's finish has a tint to it also. Both are excellant finishes.

[Hemo]

If you haven't sealed the wood yet, you could apply another treatment of AF, that should darken it.  I'd do some experimentation on a scrap piece of wood...  LMF stains like American Walnut, Nut Brown, or even Ebony Toner, could be wiped on with a rag to darken.   I'd try either of these before adding anything to the Permaly....  Again, try it on a scrap of wood.

I think Permaly would be okay with Chambers Oil, but would let it dry completely before I applied Chambers Oil.  Do the strap wood thing again.  It's been my experience that Chambers Oil will "eat" bone black, and make it disappear.  Hope that helps.


        Ed

I had the same question about using Chambers Oil over Permalyn, and just e-mailed Jim Chambers today to ask if that could/should be done. Jim says no, the Chambers oil based finish is not compatible with LMF Permalyn finish. I expect there are those who have done it, but there's the official word from the maker. So use at our own risk!

Gregg

[smallpatch]

I've used Chambers oil over Permalyn sealer on multiple occasions.  Never had any issues.

[wattlebuster]

A bit off topic but Rich i sure like that gun