Looking for simple ideas to colour the quilted maple top

[Danielknoll]

Hi there.

I was planning to dingo tone the hollow-Body that I have with coolongatta gold. I ordered it several weeks ago - and no sign of it arriving.

Now it is starting to get very hot in Sydney (and given that the DT is not coming any time soon)...I am looking for other very simple ideas. I see from the countless posts on DT that this will require patience that I am still in the process of developing (I blame my parents for this)...and the warmer weather may not be my friend.

I was hoping for a gold quilted finish of some sort. I have tru - oiled the neck and it looks amazing.

I am after some product ideas to pop that gold. The maple top is the usual < 1mm thick - so dyes look tricky to me (with the post dying sanding)

I am looking for a simple colourant that will pop the grain...and requires little post colour sanding...that I can top with tru-oil.

All SIMPLE ideas welcome. Thanks so much.

[Sonic Mountain]

Really for you want, a stain is the way to go. You really don't need to sand after staining. I'm not sure what you are getting at there - sometimes people do a dark stain and sand it back before putting a lighter one on to give the grain a stronger appearance. but its' not strictly necessary.

This Tele I did I used Feast Watson Golden Teak Stain on its own, no sanding afterward and finished with Cabots Exterior Polyurethane over the top. The Poly is very forgiving. Just follow the instructions on the can and give it plenty of time to dry. Even if you have a bit of orange peel in the finish, it tends to flatten out really nicely over time.

[Danielknoll]

Thanks so much - that is awesome

[TZK321]

By all means, use a gel stain. It's incredibly easy and gives great results.