Painting Wooden Stand

jawz

Member
Hey im currently gettin all materials for building my stand and was wondering what i would need to paint the stand.
What kind of sanding do i need to do?
Do i use a primer or stain? what type? what should i look for?
Any special kind of paint i need?
Brush or Spray paint?
This is probly alot already, but id appreciate the answers, thank you.
GF
 

broncofish

Active Member
I always sand the stand, or canopy just like it were any other piece of furniture in my house. Smooth as a babies but. I use stain, preferebly 4-5 coats, and then I go over the stain with a clear non-gloss polyeurathane spray. I spray a couple of coats, then drip a little bit of water on different spots around the stand when I'm done. If the water hits a spot where it does not bead up and run off, then I do another coat of poly. I might be obsessive, but my stand, and canopy don't warp at all:D
 

jawz

Member
i dunno if this changes things but i want it black, do they make black stain?
sorry may seem dumb question but u must be patient with my im 15 years old and building this on my own, slowly
 

broncofish

Active Member
Hey Jaws no sweat I refinished, a 1971 fender when I was 13, and got zero help so I know how you feel. Yes they make black stains, minowax has one they call ebony, and after a couple of coats it comes out jet black, and looks very professional. Apply it thin, and do more coats. Sand with finishing (350gritt an higher) in between first couple of coats, and have patience it will come out nice.
 

scotts

Active Member
Jawz,
Make sure to by paint grade wood for the outside covering. Wood comes in many grades and obviously the cheapest is the lowest grade. The stain grade is the smoothest and has the least amount of defects in the wood. Even if you are buying plywood there are several grades of plywood.
Hope this helps
Scott
 

jawz

Member
hmm thanx scott ill be sure to look for that, but what if i get a lower grade of wood? will i have to sand it out more, or will it ultimately not look as good?
 

scotts

Active Member
Jawz,
It all depends on the piece of wood that you buy. There is a grade of plywood (CSX) that is full of knot holes and rough wood. No matter how you sand it it will still look like s#$t. Paint grade is smoother, but may still contain some imperfections. Actually for black stain this may be good enough for you. However make sure to pick a piece of wood that you are happy with. One that is straight and that you are happy with.
Scott
 

dreeves

Active Member
Wood grades as mentioned are based on defects in the wood...be it knotts, blemishes, stains or whatever...clear wood is considered defect free...that is, an almost perfect piece of wood.
For constructing a cabinet for a tank which will be in easy view within your residence...then you should chose the clearest possible wood you can. Unless you want a specific look. My preference with wood is Red Oak. But my wife likes the knotty pine look. So the new cabinet I made for my 45 was out of a semi clear pine with knotts. I then stained it with Minwax Pastels, Winter White, and polyurethaned it with Helmsman Indoor/outdoor spar urethane. Two coats brushed on...sanded lightly between the two coats with 220 (wont use the the spar urethane for that sort of stuff anymore).
As for sanding between stain coats...that is a personal preferance. I do not do that. As for staining multiple levels of stain...you use more then one coat of stain to enrich the look of the piece you are working with. Using a darker stain like say Dark Red Mahogany..to get a really deep, dark finish, one would use a couple of coats.
As for top coating...some people use the spray on that was mentioned above. I do not. I believe you get better, even coverage with applying the poly with a brush. Apply your coats thin with a good quality brush. Sand very lightly with 220 grit or finer between the coats, and make sure you wipe the piece down and vacume it after each sanding. Want a lusterous (spelling?) glowing type of look...use semi-gloss or gloss polyurethane and after the final coat rub it down with steel wool (00), and then you could give it a hand wax rubdown. That's beauty there.
Back to the wood itself. They mentioned above to check for warping, splitting, whatever. Unless you have access to a properly equipped wood shop, then you must stick with very near perfect wood. Without a planer, planer/jointer, it is virtually impossible to correct a warp.
There is nothing finer then finishing your piece...wiping your hands and simply admiring the work you did. It is a wonderful and proud feeling.
 
We used Behr (Home Depot) indoor/ outdoor high gloss white latex paint. Seems fine so far. It was what we painted the wood trim in the room with, so we just opted to use the same on the stand.
 

scotts

Active Member
jAWZ,
I am tired of correcting that so I am going to leave it like that!!!!! I guess I forgot that you cannot read my mind over the incternet.
Since you are going with a black stain I would say that paint grade is fine for you. Like the dr. :D said aboove it may have a few more knots, or something than a stain grade, but the black will cover it up.
I personally like oak so I got a piece of oak plywood. However I did not like the top piece of plywood and I think I got the third of fourth down.
Scott
 

jawz

Member
hmm well i talked to the shop supervisor at my school and he said i could come in early in the mornings and at lunches and build it there. They are overstocked with matrials so he says i can take whatever cept some marked stuff.
 

jawz

Member
since im in there i shoulda probly make the matchin canopy too, do i make that outta plywood or like 1x6 wood?
 

jawz

Member
hey um anybody have an estimate for how much stain i need to do the stand and canopy?
and do i use a bristle or foam brush?
 
P

patrick g.

Guest

Originally posted by Jawz
hey um anybody have an estimate for how much stain i need to do the stand and canopy?
and do i use a bristle or foam brush?

I QT for me. I used a high quality bristle brush.
 

scotts

Active Member
Personally I would vote for plywood. You can get it in a thinner size and it will not weigh as much as 1x6. Also if you make it larger that 6" high you will not have any seams in the canopy.
If I may be so bold as to offer some advice. Sorry if it is too basic, I do not want to insult you. Make sure to draw out your plans first. Measure the wood you are going to use. A 2x4 is not 2" x 4". Maybe have your shop super. look over your plans. And of course the oldie but goodie, measure twice and cut once.
Scott
 

tigerhawk

New Member
Regarding plywood, the make different grades for each side, it is possible to get a "paint grade" on one side and not the other. It is cheaper this way and what they have done is correct the defects prior to sale on the one side, I think.
 
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