EZ Off on Cherry??

[Dave R]

I sprayed HD EZ off Oven cleaner on a scrap piece of cherry and let it soak in for 5 minutes and washed it off with water and let dry overnight, It had a rich deep cherry color then coated it with tongue oil / linseed oil finish and wiped it off in one hour and let it dry overnight,The color and finish looked GREAT! I then  Subjected it to water for 10 minutes or so and the finish turned whiteish and stayed that way which someone posted in a previous post that would happen if the EZ off was not neutralized with vinegar! I did the same exercise however added the vinegar wash to neutralize the EZ off!! Well it sure neutralized the Ez Off and took 90% of the dark Ez off color with it!! What did I do wrong??

[Mauser06]

Maybe I'm wrong.... but I think white spots from being wet would seem to be an issue with the finish itself not the stain....? 

[Tim Crosby]

 Your test strip may not have been completely dry from the H2O wash. Also if it was not coated on all sides it worked like a sponge. The White/water stain probably came from below. Try letting it dry longer or use a heat gun.

  Tim C.

 May help:

  http://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=44858.msg439635#msg439635

[Marcruger]

My experience with Easy Off is that it is a strong stripper.

I also don’t add finish to wood until after my staining is done.

The way I read your post is that you stained w/ Easy Off, then added finish, then Easy Off again.

If that is correct, then I would have expected something unusual to happen.

Best wishes, Marc

[Martin S.]

Best way to darken cherry is to leave it in the sun.

Use boiled linseed oil, or something similar, and let the sun do its magic for a nice dark classic cherry color.

I don't make guns, but I have made several furniture pieces out of cherry, and sun light is the way to go.

I have heard that you can also use a tanning booth, but I have not personally done so.