How to finish birdseye maple. It has a delicate. Birdseye maple is captivating lmi has a reputation among woodworkers of being hard to find and miserable to work with. Ive not had any birdseye maple to finish but with the live edge tables i do ive had some really nice quilted maple to work with in many ways the two are similar. In this video career fine furniture maker tom mclaughlin will describe step by step techniques for finishing curly maple.
More on our blog. After with 3 coats of dewaxed shellac. How to restore a birds eye maple veneer cabinet. A natural look with oil and a topcoat.
Birds eye maple veneer is an exclusive product used in conjunction with plywood for building cabinets or other projects. You want variations in how deep the finish will penetrate throughout different areas of the figure ive found that this can be best accomplished by sanding the raw wood up to at least 400g before. Sounds like a fun project. Learn about making figured curly maple come to life in woodworking projects with a beautiful finish either clearnatural or with dye stain in this no nonsense video tutorial.
Since birdseye maple is not a distinct species the written information below is for hard maple acer saccharum though the endgrain images show a sample with birdseye figure for reference. See the article on hardwood anatomy for definitions of endgrain features. Teri masaschi a professional finisher shares three ways to finish this exquisitely figured wood. There are few woods that yield as contrasting appearances as birds eye maple.
The term fiddle back maple came from this industry as properly matched boards would be used to make the large back panels of guitars and fiddles. If you have some time on your hands try a natural watco oil let it dry up for a few days and proceed with your finish schedule either a post pre 2k cv etc. And an antique look from dye stain and shellac. Birds eye maple finish.
Something else to consider would be to leave it natural. Before curly maple board sanded to 220 grit just before being finished with dewaxed shellac. There is a lot of beauty in birdseye maple all by itself. Use dewaxed shellac for your best clear finish on curly maple.
The first will be how to apply a natural varnish finish and the second. Actually birdsevc is readily available in staggering varieties.