Oil Pigment Stains

¶ In this group we have stains which are made by thinning a good grade of tinting colors ground in oil with linseed oil, turpentine, benzine or benzole. There are many jobs about houses and other buildings upon which these stains are used, especially for soft woods. The furniture finisher, however, does not recognize pigment stains as stains at all. His contention is that they do not really color the wood but simply fill and cover it with a thin layer of color pigment, allowing some of the natural characteristics of the wood to show through. From his viewpoint what the house painter calls pigment oil stains are really thin paints. His ideal is to really color the wood fibre to be as nearly as possible like woods colored by nature (redwood and gumwood) and not to hide the grain figure or natural color shad-ings of the wood in the least. To gain his ideal, therefore, the furniture finisher must use absolutely transparent stains. That is why the aniline water stains are his preference.

¶ On hard woods like maple and birch the oil pigment stains do not produce such dark effects as upon soft woods like soft pine, poplar, fir, etc. They are, however, convenient to mix in the shop or on the job; they are permanent as to color in strong light and very useful for repair jobs and cheap work.

¶ The oil pigment stains have very definite limitations. No bright colors are commonly mixed in this group. The dull reds, browns and yellows made from earth pigments like the siennas, umbers, Venetian red, etc., are mostly used. And even when high quality pigments are used, which are very finely ground, this kind of stain hides the natural beauty of fine woods in cabinets and furniture too much to be useful for such work. But these objections have little weight when it comes to staining soft woods for ordinary work.

¶ As to penetration the oil pigment stains do pretty well, as well as any oil stains, but do not, of course, penetrate as deeply as water stains. The penetration can be greatly increased, especially on hard, close-grain woods by the addition of benzole, 90 degree, in place of one-half of the turpentine.

¶ The better grade of tinting colors, called decorators' colors, are much better than the ordinary tinting colors used for paints. The cheaper colors are apt to be less transparent and coarser ground. They are likely to make a muddy or cloudy stain. Only the semi-transparent colors are suitable for stains,raw and burnt sienna, raw and burnt umber, chrome green Prussian blue, ultramarine blue, Vandyke brown, Dutch pink, rose pink, verdigris green, drop black, etc.- Chrome yellow, yellow ochre, lamp black, etc., are not suitable because they are opaque and hide the surface completely. Raw umber and ultramarine blue mixed make a good transparent black.

¶ Pigment stains should be mixed the same as paint, being careful to thoroughly mix and strain all pigments.

¶ The soft woods which may have very porous streaks sometimes take the stain very dark in places and quite light in others. To overcome this some finishers spread on a very thin coat of shellac,about 2 pounds of shellac gum to a gallon of denatured alcohol. Others prefer to spread on a thin coat of oil mixed,½ boiled linseed oil and ½ turpentine. This oil coat should be brushed on and allowed to dry before staining the wood. It will then eliminate the mottled, uneven coloring of the wood.

¶ As a rule it is well to brush on an oil stain, let it soak in half an hour or less, and then wipe off all excess of stain on the surface. For a lighter color effect, wipe off sooner. And if the room is warm and well ventilated it is necessary to wipe off sooner. An oil stain should be allowed to dry thoroughly before shellac, varnish or filler coats are put on over it. This stain does not raise the grain of the wood, is very easy to apply and it will cover about 600 square feet per gallon, one coat.

¶ For Any Color.

¶ 1 pound color pigment ground in oil,
10 ounces japan drier,
6 pints boiled linseed oil,
12 ounces turpentine or mineral spirits,
12 ounces benzole, 90 degree.
Produces about 1 gallon of stain.

¶ The amount of color needed varies with kind and quality and with the kind of wood, but from 1 to 3 pounds covers the range with the quantities of liquids indicated.

Light Oak

1 ½ pounds raw sienna,
½ pound raw umber,
8 ounces japan drier,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole, 90 degree,
3 pints boiled linseed oil.
Produces about 1 gallon of stain.

Dark Oak

1 pound raw sienna,
½ pound burnt sienna,
½ pound burnt umber,
½ pint japan drier,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole, 90 degree,
3 pints boiled linseed oil.
Produces about 1 gallon of stain.

Walnut

1 pound Vandyke brown,
1 pound burnt umber,
1 ounce rose pink,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole, 90 degree,
3 pints boiled linseed oil.
Produces about 1 gallon of stain.

Mahogany Red

1 ¾ pounds burnt sienna,
¼ pound maroon lake or rose pink,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole, 90 degree,
3 pints boiled linseed oil.
Produces about 1½ gallons.

Mahogany Brown

12 ounces burnt sienna, Italian,
4 ounces rose pink or maroon lake,
4 ounces Vandyke brown,
4 ounces burnt umber,
½ pint japan drier,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole, 90 degree,
3 pints boiled linseed oil.
Produces about 1½ gallons of stain.

Gray Stain

1 ¾ pounds raw umber,
¼ pound drop black,
1 ounce Prussian blue,
½ pint japan drier,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole, 90 degree.
Produces 1 1/8 gallons of stain.

Green Oak Stain

½ pound raw umber,
½ pound raw sienna,
1 pound Prussian blue,
½ pint japan drier,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole, 90 degree,
3 pints boiled linseed oil.
Produces about 1 gallon of stain.

Black Oak

1 pound Vandyke brown
1 pound drop black,
½ pint japan drier,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole, 90 degree,
3 pints boiled linseed oil.
Produces about 1 gallon of stain.

Cherry Stain

1 7/8 pounds burnt sienna,
l/8 pound crimson lake,
½ pint japan drier,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole,
3 pints boiled linseed oil.
Produces about 1 gallon of stain.

Rosewood

1 ¼ pounds burnt sienna,
¼ pound rose pink,
¼ pound drop black,
½ pint japan drier,
1 quart turpentine,
1 quart benzole, 90 degree,
3 pints boiled linseed oil.
Produces about 1 gallon of stain.
While the stain is wet and flowing draw some black streaks in it, using a small soft blender brush or a feather from which some of the fibre web has been cut so the feather will trace several black streaks at a stroke.

Stain Colors from Asphaltum Varnish (Black Japan)

¶ Many light, medium and dark .brown stains are commonly made simply by thinning asphaltum varnish with benzine. The colors are permanent in strong light and are more transparent than pigment stains. The mission and weathered oak stains are produced with this kind of stain to which a little drop black is added. The drop black should be that which is ground in oil. A great many other colors are produced by mixing one or more pigment colors with asphaltum varnish. Oil-soluble anilines are also used to color asphaltum stains.

Next Page: Wood Varnish Stains.