Target Coatings, Inc.

[Merle in East Mountains]

Does anyone have a suggestion for grain popping in WO? I saw many posts about maple and some about cherry and mahogany, but nothing about WO. I am concerned that the tannins in the WO might react with the alkaline WB finishes creating a problem. I know that I can use Ultraseal-WB on the oak, but I am not sure that this gives the best grain pop. I think I saw EM1000 suggested for grain popping, but I could be wrong about that. Anyhow, I am open to suggestions but would prefer to stay within the Target line if possible.
TIA,
Merle
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Merle

[jonathanmahnken]

Try a wash coat of em6000 with a little dye in it( 60%water 40% 6000) Just enough dye to make the wash coat look like weak tea. Test color strength on a piece of white paper. Sand smooth with 320. I like this step to get a head start on battling grain raise. Then do two coats of wr 4000 in the clear base, fully saturating the wood each time, then do two to three coats of the topcoat of your choice(any of targets top coats anyway)

[Merle in East Mountains]

Jonathan,
Thank you for the formula. I have a couple questions: 1. What dye do you suggest? 2. When you say to do 2 coats of the WR 4000, are they sprayed on heavy or wiped/brushed? 2.5. Also, do you wipe off the excess?
Again, thank you for your assistance.
Merle
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Merle

[jonathanmahnken]

I like to use trans tint honey amber and or tt light brown for the color in the wash coat. Mostly the wash coat is to subdue the grain problems you will have with the oak, and the dye is to add some depth and give it a little more of a solvent/oil based look. The reason I use the em 6000 for the wash coat instead of just going with the wr 4000 is so that I lock down as much of the grain as possible with a hard film. It is important to let the washcoat dry thoroughly so the stain base doesnt completely re-wet the wood and you end up back at square one with the grain raise.

Now you can:

1. One heavy coat(saturate) of wr4000 clear base(spray pad brush ect... doesnt matter) wipe off, let dry very well( prob around 4-6 hours) after this point you will have more grain raise and you will want to sand smooth with 320

2. One more heavy coat, wipe off, let dry for a minimum of two hours before starting your sealer coats.

I also think that em 6000 gloss is an awesome sealer over the top of wr4000. They blend very well with one another. If I need a heavy solvent look I will add TT honey amber dye to the 6000. Apply two full strength coats, sand smooth and level, then top coat with what ever you are using. My two favorites are em 6000 and 8000. I have used the 2000 recently for an entry door project and liked it, but for interior work I felt the clarity was not as good as with the 6000 and 8000. And it dries twice as slow.