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Hi,
Start with 5 parts water to 1 part ferric nitrate. Do a little testing on scrap wood. If it is not dark or red enough try a second coat or a higher concentration of ferric nitrate. If too dark, use a lower concentration. The color comes from the iron oxide molecules (rust) being bonded to the wood fiber through reaction with a weak acid. The more iron, the redder and darker the color. Jim Kibler does not neutralize his stain after blushing. Theoretically, the heat drives off the hydrogen ions (acid part) leaving iron oxide behind and thus there is no acid left. Just for insurance, I wipe my stock with ammonia to make sure any acid residue is neutralized so there is no chance it will corrode the metal parts. Below are photos of another rifle I made for a member of this forum. It is stained with ferric nitrate and although the wood was plain, the stain brought out whatever curl there was and produced nice warm tones. The photos are part of a tutorial I recently posted in this section on building a Chamber's Little Fella's rifle. The last photo of me holding the gun in sunlight really shows the warm reddish color.
dave
Start with 5 parts water to 1 part ferric nitrate. Do a little testing on scrap wood. If it is not dark or red enough try a second coat or a higher concentration of ferric nitrate. If too dark, use a lower concentration. The color comes from the iron oxide molecules (rust) being bonded to the wood fiber through reaction with a weak acid. The more iron, the redder and darker the color. Jim Kibler does not neutralize his stain after blushing. Theoretically, the heat drives off the hydrogen ions (acid part) leaving iron oxide behind and thus there is no acid left. Just for insurance, I wipe my stock with ammonia to make sure any acid residue is neutralized so there is no chance it will corrode the metal parts. Below are photos of another rifle I made for a member of this forum. It is stained with ferric nitrate and although the wood was plain, the stain brought out whatever curl there was and produced nice warm tones. The photos are part of a tutorial I recently posted in this section on building a Chamber's Little Fella's rifle. The last photo of me holding the gun in sunlight really shows the warm reddish color.
dave
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