Stain not staining!

[Dave Buchholz]

I'm running into a problem trying to stain some dowels for my port area.

I have a couple of cans of Minwax in greyish colors that I tried. But the color is not penetrating. It's acting more like paint on the wood, rather staining into the wood.

Any suggestions as to what I should be using instead? Maybe ink and alcohol?  Got a formula to share?

Your comments are appreciated.

[Rick]

Maybe try sanding and lightly roughing up the dowels first?

[jbvb]

If you have A&I handy, try it on a dowel or two. Some of the Minwax colors use dissolved pigments, others appear insoluble. The latter needs a porous surface.

[Jerry]

Dave 

On my dowels I grain them first and I use Silverwood.
One or two coats depending on how dark I want the color to look.

Jerry

[IWannaRetire]

I'm running into a problem trying to stain some dowels for my port area.

I have a couple of cans of Minwax in greyish colors that I tried. But the color is not penetrating. It's acting more like paint on the wood, rather staining into the wood.

Any suggestions as to what I should be using instead? Maybe ink and alcohol?  Got a formula to share?

Your comments are appreciated.

Dave, as a 1:1 woodworker, I strongly suspect it is the nature of the timber species the dowels you have are milled from.  Some woods, primarily because of the nature of the pores, but also other grain properties and characteristics, are indeed difficult to get an even stain penetration. 

A short list is aspen, maple, cherry, birch, poplar, and pine.

One solution is to use a conditioner. Since you are using Minwax products, my suggestion is that you try theirs:

https://www.minwax.com/en/search?q=wood+conditioner

[deemery]

Dowels are often made of birch, I think, so Mark's list is appropriate.  And his suggestion of a conditioner is a good one. 

dave

[Dave Buchholz]

The short dowels from a hobby store were unidentified as to the species of wood they were cut from.

Thank you for the idea of a conditioner, as I never knew such a thing existed. I'll head to Lowe's or Home me Depot to find some.
Mark. Your short list....
Is that species easy to stain?
Or difficult?
Thanks.

[IWannaRetire]

Your short list....
Is that species easy to stain?
Or difficult?
Thanks.

From a 1:1 woodworkers viewpoint, many species are just pretty difficult to get an even stain penetration and avoided by woodworkers where the finished item is to be stained rather than painted.   My short list is of difficult to stain species, and it's also incomplete.   Other factors such as heartwood vs sapwood, and grain exposure are considerations as well.  With a dowel rod, you have plenty of different grain exposure.   

When applying stains to wood in general it is best not to sand to too fine a grit, as over-sanding will actually start to seal the grain and further confound you.

However, if you're roughing up the dowels to simulate weathering, over-sanding obviously isn't a factor.

FWIW, here's a bit if info re: specific sanding grit recommendations for oil and water based finishes:

https://generalfinishes.com/instructions/how-prepare-wood-for-stain#:~:text=On%20most%20raw%20woods%2C%20start,grit%20for%20oil%20base%20stains.

[Dave Buchholz]

Thanks Mark. I appreciate the added details.