Pre - Stain Sealer & Newspaper

[Mtnman]

Today in the shop I was perparing to stain a small pine spice cabnet. I always use a pre - stain conditioner when staining pine to prevent the blotching (uneven penetration) that occurs when working with soft pine.

I'm rather messy, so to protect my bench top I first put down a sheet of newspaper to catch the spills and splatter.

NOT A GOOD IDEA! The pre - stain conditioner will dissolve the ink in the newspaper and cause black marks where ever it touches your wood.

I am now using a white (non - printed) paper towel to catch the excess and protect the bench top. Works great, and no ink stains.

Hope this tip will help someone keep out of trouble! Save the newspaper to wrap the garbage and start fires.

 

[DavidF]

And wrap fish and chips:lol:

 

[DaveO]

Thanks for that tip. If I had a bench worth protecting I would grap old newspaper first, now I'll go a different route.
Dave

 

[McRabbet]

I use a roll of butcher paper that I bought for cheap at Sam's several years ago -- still got hundred's of feet on the 12" wide roll. Works great for bench protection and even making layout patterns. Don't know if they still carry it, but I'll check the next time I'm there...

 

[mshel]

FWIW, you can buy rolls of heavy craft paper at Lowe's or HD which is great for putting down on the bench or other places to keep the drool off everything. Lol I have seen where some folks mount the roll at the end of their bench an just pull out a new piece as needed. I bought a roll a couple of years ago and still have about half of it left. So from that statement, you can ascertain that I don't use it a lot. :lol: Anyway, from one user to y'all. Try it, you'll like it.

Mike

 

[Splinter]

Ditto what Mshel said on the kraft paper. :-D

 

[Joe Scharle]

I use freezer wrap.
Joe

 

[Travis Porter]

I bought a roll of it with the intention of mounting it to the end of the bench, but I have hence lost it and don't know where I put it.:BangHead: Good tip on the newspaper, I hadn't thought about that and don't need to screw up my bench anymore than I already have.

 

[Steve D]

I've got the kraft paper on a dwoell mounted under the end of the bench and roll it out as needed. It works great.

 

[Gofor]

Thanks for the tip!! I used plastic for my last one and didn't care for everything sliding around. Its okay for the floor but not on the table top. As I had planned to use newspaper for the next project, you just saved me some major headache!!

Thanks again!:-D
Go

 

[D L Ames]

Actually, I taped plastic down to protect the surface of my unlaminated out feed table then place kraft paper down to absorb any drips and spills. Like the others, I picked up a 36" wide roll and a 12" wide roll at the BORG. The small roll comes in handy for small projects.

D L

 

[cskipper]

Thanks for the heads-up about the newspaper.

 

[MarkW]

Nice tip, I'd have never thought of it until it was too late. The craft paper on a roll attached to the bench sounds like a really good idea also.

 

[cskipper]

Where in Lowe's or HD do you find the craft paper?

 

[Steve D]

They usually have two kinds and they try and keep them where nobody in their right mind would look. The "rosin" paper is over in lumber, IIRC, near the roofing materials. The brown kraft paper I believe is in flooring. I've used both and prefer the brown, the rosin paper is reddish and seems to tear more easily.

 

[D L Ames]

Cathy, I have also found it in the paint department. They usually have different sizes there.

D L

 

[Canuck]

You are right D.L.

After seeing the advice in this post, I picked up a roll at Lowes in the with the painting supplies. The roll I got is 30" wide (I forget how many yards long.) Sure beats wax paper :BangHead: that I was using. Not as slippery either!

Wayne

 

[NCPete]

Many auto-body supply shops may also have the resin-paper. Not sure how prices would compare as it has been a long time since I spent much time in one, but that is an alternative source for those that don't have a BORG nearby.