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How do most people make their grayish walnut turn brown? I realize this is probably a rather simplistic question, but I haven't really nailed down what I want to do. I'm aware that it will become more brown with age, but I'd like it brown now, or at least not gray. Having not seen a lot of gray acoustic guitars made from walnut, I'm assuming most people just use a dye or a stain. Is that the case? If so, is there a really good one I should look for?

Thanks,
Dave

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David Morris

It will darken with the finish. Unless you are not planning to put a finish on it.The ones you have seen have probably been finished.Try putting your finish on a scrap piece an see it darken right up.That will be the color you'll get.

Show us a photo. If this is Walnut sapwood that has been turned gray by steaming, it will never "turn brown." Secondly, Walnut doesn't really darken with age, it lightens (at least it does with UV exposure.)

Dennis
p.s. Check out this thread by Glen DeRusha, and see if you like the color he achieved with a colored wood filler: The N&I Gold Thread.

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Dennis Leahy
Duluth, MN, USA
7th Sense Multimedia

To be honest, I never thought that might happen. I assumed people were at least tinting shellac or something. I'll try a test piece. Thanks.


Dennis - I'll check that out. I heard walnut gets lighter after many years, but I thought it got darker first. I don't know why I got confused. And it's just very normal looking black walnut. I don't think I have a picture on hand, but it's nothing out of the ordinary. Thanks for your response!

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David Morris

I mill alot of walnut and have noticed it is a purple color when freshly milled and turns brown as it seasons.And if kept out of the sun, it will get darker in time.I think the tannic acid in the wood does that and walnut has more than alot of other woods.

Mark, you're right, that's accurate with my experience too. As soon as the finish hits, it appears quite a bit darker. Even more if you use a penetrating oil. And unfinished Walnut does darken up if it is kept out of the sun - which I assume is oxidation rather than UV - but it is only "skin deep" and you'll be back to the lighter raw Walnut look when you cut into or sand the wood. I have seen Walnut antiques that are dark, but I'm not sure if I was really looking at stain or the fact that the furniture was always kept out of direct sunlight.

I should say too that not all Walnut heartwood starts out at the same level of darkness - some is literally twice as dark as others. (And the unsteamed stuff sometimes has purples, greens, reds, golds...)

If Dave left his guitar in the case a lot, the Walnut would stay pretty dark. But when Dave plays a lot in sunlit rooms, or leaves the guitar sitting in a guitar stand, then he will notice the Walnut color fades. It's all up to you, Dave!

Dennis

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Dennis Leahy
Duluth, MN, USA
7th Sense Multimedia

So it gets darker in the dark and brighter in the light? Natural camouflage! We'll call that a "special feature."

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David Morris

Walnut takes stains beautifully, too. It especially responds to a touch of warm color--for instance, light amber shellac as a seal coat. Varnishes warm it up. A touch of color in your lacquer will warm it up, too. There are lots of ways to turn it almost any shade of brown that you like. Walnut has a range of natural color, from sort of gray to dark stripes that are almost purple, and just about every shade of cool and warm brown in between. You just have to experiment on scraps of the stock that you have.