willland Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 (edited) Since the subject pertains to a 2-channel rig, I am posting here. I bought four 6" x 20" poplar boards and replaced the 5" 12" oak boards on my speaker stands. Woodworkers out there, how well does poplar take a cherry poly stain? I was thinking of using Minwax Polyshades natural Cherry Gloss. Any thoughts? Bill Edited July 27, 2014 by willland Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minermark Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 Iv been a minwax guy for years, but never tried this stuff, please report back as to your liking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willland Posted June 19, 2014 Author Share Posted June 19, 2014 (edited) Iv been a minwax guy for years, but never tried this stuff, please report back as to your liking. I used the Polyshades Minwax Wipe-On Poly Clear Gloss when Jeff Hoak veneered my Revel B15 in natural cherry and it took the stain very well. I think the clear may be too light for poplar. Bill Edited July 5, 2014 by willland Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnydrama Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 This is a thread I'm definitely interested in, for many different reasons. -I'm considering staining/building my own speaker stands because the cherry stands I bought from PE don't match my cherry RB-81iis and it bothers me. I'm pretty anal when it comes to aesthetics. -I'm considering using the same gloss cherry minwax polyshade. -I've used gloss olde maple minwax polyshade to refinish a set of KG4s that turned out quite well. -I'm even considering putting a coat on top of the vinyl on my cherry RB-81iis, for I'm confident that I can do a good job and not ruin them. Also, this way they will match the stands I build. (please someone stop me if this is completely stupid to consider) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willland Posted June 19, 2014 Author Share Posted June 19, 2014 -I'm even considering putting a coat on top of the vinyl on my cherry RB-81iis, for I'm confident that I can do a good job and not ruin them. Also, this way they will match the stands I build. (please someone stop me if this is completely stupid to consider) I am not sure whether that would be okay or completely ruin them. Just slap some new wood skins on the 81II's and stain them the same shade. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tk49 Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 (edited) Poplar, being a soft even grained wood, if sanded smooth like to 230 grit, will take a water or oil base stain well. I see your stands have both light and dark grain, the stain will mute that some but you will still see the difference. I haven't worked with the stain and poly all in one so I can't speak for it. If possible, I would test sample on the back. Edited June 19, 2014 by tk49 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willland Posted June 19, 2014 Author Share Posted June 19, 2014 If possible, I would test sample on the back. Definitely. I may just go back to HD tomorrow and have four more pieces cut add them to the existing stands for stability and aesthetics. I will test the stain on the inside of one of the boards. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 Be careful with the poly shades, it's kind of a solid color, what I mean is too many coats 3-4 and it can turn into a solid color. If that is what you want go for it. Do some testing like tk said, but on separate pieces to see what 1 or 2 or 3 coats look like. If you like the first coat, but just want some more glossy durability, then add a couple coats of glossy poly, with out the stain. Sent from my HTCONE using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pzannucci Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 Don't use the poly, use the oil. Make sure the boards are sanded very well. Apply the oil, let set 10/15 mins, wipe off. Do again to your liking. It is too easy to mess it up using the polyshades. Also, doing the oil, you can use #0000 steelwool which will make the finish on the wood ultra smooth if you buff it nicely during application. Top off with spray urethane, satin or whatever you like after a few days of the oil drying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Blacksmith Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 I am fairly new to working with wood but my personal view is that you will end up with cherry COLORED poplar. If that is what you are going for then by all means give it a try. I work with the wood I want the project to end up with from the start. Oak is Oak, Black walnut is used for Black walnut. In the big picture, yes the "real" wood costs more than the poplar route but the result will be much better if it is the wood color and grain that you are after. I am not a fan of stains at all but a lot of that stuff is sold every day so I guess I am a very small minority here. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willland Posted June 22, 2014 Author Share Posted June 22, 2014 I am fairly new to working with wood but my personal view is that you will end up with cherry COLORED poplar. If that is what you are going for then by all means give it a try. CB, I was going to order some of these from HD but decided to look in store and see if they had them in stock(they used to) just by chance. They didn't of course. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Sure-Wood-Forest-Products-1-x-6-x-8-American-Cherry-S4S-Premium-Hardwood-Board-326121/203667576?N=5yc1vZbqpgZ1z11vwe Found the poplar instead and decided to give it a try. Found this online and realized that poplar can be stained and poly'd to look like cherry. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WMcD Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 I'd like to say that we have the raw veneer and then some sort of dye or stain which is applied to it. There is a tremendous number of combinations. I had written in a thread about Belle's how raw cherry is bland and tan. Over some years it will turn to a rust color. It is not very red as mahogany is, usually stained.toward red. And it is not like walnut, which is more often stained toward brown. I assume that the photo of the speakers on stands may be Klipsch cherry. That must be some sort of stain or dye giving the color. Note how red. Then we have the photo with the yellow-handled brush applying a something to some wood and getting a shade which is being called cherry. It is just a little bit darker than what I got using a wipe-on varnish on raw solid cherry. There are no red tones So, compare the two photos. The finished wood in them are not nearly the same color even though both may be nominally "cherry." I often praise Solar-Lux dyes. Years ago I tried Watco cherry on birch versus a Solar-Lux dye. No contest. The Watco was murky and the dye was transparent, clear, and more dramatic. This is in keeping with the physical fact that stains are thinned out paint. Dyes are transparent colors. Here is a link. http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2007234/24092/behlen-solarlux-stain-cherry-pint.aspx You can watch a video there which might be a bit commercial but still true. Back to the subject. If you want to do something to the stands to match the "cherry" speakers you might want to consider a redish stain. Something like Solar-Lux light mahogany will probably be a closer match than "cherry" stain. WMcD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanm84 Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 Might want to consider a stain sealer before staining. Poplar can be blotchy when applying stain. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanm84 Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 http://woodworking.about.com/od/typesofwood/p/Poplar.htm I always practice staining on scraps before committing to my wood project. Nothing worse than having to try to fix a staining error right out of the chute. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Blacksmith Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 Give this a try. http://localmarket.thewoodwhisperer.com/Hardwood_Lumber_Kissimmee_FL-p1545825-Kissimmee_FL.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scrappydue Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 im not a fan of the stain and poly in one can. i used it for a recent project and was hard to get even coating. my dad told me regular stain and poly takes longer but it way easier in the grand scheme of things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pzannucci Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 im not a fan of the stain and poly in one can. i used it for a recent project and was hard to get even coating. my dad told me regular stain and poly takes longer but it way easier in the grand scheme of things. And you can control how much stain you put down based on wood penetration. Poly w/stain is much harder to work with and everything needs to be super clean to even come close to a nice finish. That said you can actually wipe on the poly and wipe it off but you need to be very careful and not let it start to set up. I have done that with oak ply and it did a real nice job sealing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 I am going to try something this weekend if I get a chance, mainly for cost, time and results. I have a friend who recommend lacquer over poly, and products more on the commercial side, or at least purchased from a supplier rather then big box store. His claim is, price might be the same, or a little more. But time will be cut down, and results will be much better. If Bill gets then done before this test of mine, then I will start another post. But I might see if I can give this a try this weekend. I know to each is their own, and what works best for each individual. But have tried some things in the past with Minwax, the stain hasn't been that bad but the poly is what most of my issues have been. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shepjk01 Posted June 24, 2014 Share Posted June 24, 2014 I have been woodworking for a while as a hobby(thanks dad) and continue to learn new things along the way. First off the polyshades by miniwax is junk. Some might not agree but the results are always less than you get doing it the longer way. If I was staining popular in cherry I would 1. pick like boards that are free from the green or greyish color then make the project 2. sand smooth with 220 grit sandpaper 3. use a prestain conditioner as without you will get blotches in popular when staining 4. pick a stain that is a natural cherry color stain and apply 5. after the stain dries apply some sort of sealer I like minwax sanding sealer dries quick(do not use if using lacquer) this steep is not necessary since your staining the wood but when using ploy I always get better results 6. I like polyurethane even though its harder to work with. I let each coat dry for a day and sand in between with a 600-800 grit sandpaper. I'm not a fan of steel wool or a high gloss poly. I usually always use satin poly. The key to poly is to have a dust free zone( I have a section of the shop quarantined for the purpose and if applying in a garage or a place where you cannot control the humidity only apply on low relative humidity days It seems like a lot of steeps when they make polys with stains, but the results will be a lot better. You can be the best woodworker in the world but if the finish looks bad the whole project looks bad. I have had a few projects were I wasn't happy with the finish and totally redid it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eth2 Posted June 24, 2014 Share Posted June 24, 2014 Might want to consider a stain sealer before staining. Poplar can be blotchy when applying stain. I agree! I stained my La Scalas without using sealer and got very uneven results. However, I used the sealer on my Heresys, along with the same stain, and got excellent results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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