Staining question

[kalua pig]

Hey all,  

      I've been finishing a couple of bamboo backed bows and would really like to know how to get that nice fade in the stain,(from dark to light) like I've seen on some bows.  What's the trick to making the fade nice and even?    

              Thanks ,  Paul K.

[Bowjunkie]

Do as good a job as you can with the stain/dye, then use 0000 steel wool to 'brush or soften' the fading/blending of colors.

[Bowjunkie]

Even if I want the bow one solid color, I usually dye a shade darker than I want, then steel wool some of it back off. It lightens it a little, or a lot, depending on how much rubbing you do, but leaves the dye down in the grain and spring wood, which really brings the wood to life.

This seems to work a little better with aniline dyes than stains.

When I posted above, I was thinking you wanted to blend colors, but if all you want to do is 'fade' from dark to light and not 'blend' different colors, just dye it one dark color, then steel wool it to fade it to a lighter color.

Keep in mind, the more you rub, the lighter it's gonna get... so I usually do this thing where my strokes with the steel wool start small with moderate pressure and gradually get longer with less pressure.... which in the end will help fade light to dark.

Either way, steel wool is the ticket.

[Lost Arra]

I'm not exactly sure what you are looking for but you might check out JD's website on fiddleback staining. He makes beautiful bows.
http://groups.msn.com/Horseapplesbowpage/fiddlebackstainprocess.msnw

[kalua pig]

Lots of good info.  Thanks!