Sticker stain

[LongWalker]

I'm working on a stock with a great deal of "grey stain" (like "sticker stain" but following the lines of the grain). I've tried bleaching it out with oxalic acid; it is lighter, but still there.

Stock is sanded, I mixed some Dangler's stain with water to raise the grain. The stain really makes the grey stain stand out. Any suggestions for dealing with it other than staining the wood black?

Back to the shop . . . .

 

[1950DAVE]

Plain wood or figured?

 

[NRFord]

doubt you'll be able to see it once stained, especially if you use AF

 

[appalichian hunter]

Perhaps a mineral streak in the tree the stock was cut from. Just a S.W,A.G. If this what it is just saying; even staining it black it will show.

 

[tenngun]

I’ve had several maple blanks that had a grey streak, but I couldn’t see it after staining

 

[LongWalker]

"Grey stain" is an enzymatic oxidative stain, not mineral streaks (though this stock has enough mineral streaks it looks like it stood in the corner next to a spittoon). As I wrote in the original post, the stain made the areas of grey stain more pronounced. Using ferric nitrate or some other dark stain to hide the grey stain might be an option, it just isn't to my taste.

1950Dave, the wood is a piece of plain red maple (a wood known for such problems).

 

[James Kibler]

Stain with iron nitrate. It will not be too dark and the streaks will be invisible. Generally dye stains look like dye stains. That is to say, without a lot of work, they can tend to not look appropriate for a longrifle. At least in the majority of cases.

 

[1950DAVE]

Did wood floors for more than 30yrs, stains such as you have were common in some grades of flooring. We referred to it as blue stain as opposed to mineral streak which tends toward black rather than gray. Most every oil stain used over blue stain tended to make it indistinguishable. Mineral streak is not as easily hidden.
I don't have a pic of the stain I tried on this blank but a med. brown hid the blue stain on the spalted maple.
Here it is wet with solvent.

 

[1950DAVE]

Here is blue stained Red Maple countertop, clear water base finish.