Bob - Agreed on why staining is so common on commerical work.
THere are project pics to come... but I am working on a 'now works from home' desk for my wife. The material is all re-purposed from the trim work discarded in a reno of the law office (a Phil Soper NCWW special giveaway from a few years ago). Anyways material used to be baseboards. It was all stained, I presume for the reason you give, to provide color consistency. But sanded back, there is huge color variation from piece to piece. I chose what I chose for the table top (desk top) and it has various stripes. I hope I don't tire of it over the years. I am considering a light dye to even up the colors - although I haven't made it to the finishing process on this piece yet.
THere are project pics to come... but I am working on a 'now works from home' desk for my wife. The material is all re-purposed from the trim work discarded in a reno of the law office (a Phil Soper NCWW special giveaway from a few years ago). Anyways material used to be baseboards. It was all stained, I presume for the reason you give, to provide color consistency. But sanded back, there is huge color variation from piece to piece. I chose what I chose for the table top (desk top) and it has various stripes. I hope I don't tire of it over the years. I am considering a light dye to even up the colors - although I haven't made it to the finishing process on this piece yet.