Dyeing/staining blanks before or after turning?

[DaveT63]

I'm making some PSI Cat Pen kits for family this year. My wife wants the material to resemble the cat that each family member has. Our son has a striped orange cat with very distinct striping. The closest blanks I've found so far are a stabilized curly maple dyed orange. Unfortunately, the best ones I can find are out of stock. Most I see available online don't have a really nice defined striped figure that shows up well in the dye.

I have some BEAUTIFULLY figured curly maple blanks myself, but they are raw wood. I've considered staining or dyeing, but I'm not sure I could get it to fully penetrate into the blank. Is it possible to glue in the tube and turn the piece to finished size for the pen, and then stain or dye it? Or will the CA glue possibly hinder the color penetration?

I'm hoping someone here has experience with this sort of thing and can provide their thoughts. Even it that thought is just to wait until a good one is back in stock online.

Thanks,

Dave

 

[Chriscb]

Afternoon Dave,
Yep the CA will create a seal that will prevent the dye from getting anywhere near the wood. Complete the turning of pen (but don't assemble it) and then dye the wood.
Chriscb

 

[flexi]

As above, I use spirit dyes after turning to shape....let dry fully....then finish

 

[DuncSuss]

I have 2 suggestions:

1. try any method you are considering on a piece of wood BEFORE you drill/glue/turn it. That way, you haven't invested too much time in the experiment if it goes bad.

2. using a small piece of the curly maple - sand it to the grit you normally would use for a pen barrel, then wipe it with the dye you're hoping to use. Let it dry. Sand it again because with the highest grit you already used. This takes care of raised grain (from wetting it with dye) and also reveals more curl, because the dye penetrates different amounts in the "peaks and valleys" of the curl. Let it dry - use a hair dryer to speed it along if you want - then give it a wipe over with your normal finish (sounds like you use CA).

IF it's a success - drill, tube, turn, sand, dye, sand again, CA finish, assemble.

Hope this helps.

 

[DaveT63]

Thanks for the great suggestions! I'm getting some Spirit dye, and then going follow DuncSuss's recommendation.