Types of stain for new maple shells?

YourMother

Junior Member
Hi, I just ordered Keller maple shells for a new kit I am building. I also have the Guerrilla Drum Making DVD and have watched it many times. It is very useful.

My question is, are oil-based stains appropriate to use on drums? In the DVD, it only mentions using Trans-Tint dyes and mixing them w/ water or alcohol, but I am wondering if I can use regular oil-based stain from Menards. Are the results different? Does it bring out the grain too much? Does it get on the bearing edges too easily? I am most likely going to do a blue color, if that helps.
 
YourMother---since you asked ! I built custom drums for years and when I first started I tried several brands and types of stains just to see which one suited my needs best. I wanted colors that would make the wood grain "pop" without losing the color I wanted and I needed primary and secondary colors to use alone or mix. And of course, I needed some to spray using a touchup brush to do bursts and fades with. The VERY best stains I found for all of the above was Behlen Solar-lux stains. You can get them at Woodcrafters and other top notch woodworking stores, but Google it to find a dealer close to you. There is NO MIXING of water or alcohol, simply spray or wipe on for beautiful results. Multiple coats will result in deeper colors. Test on a practice shell first, but they are fantastic colors. Once I located the blue, red, yellow, orange,etc that I wanted, I had to find a water clear topcoat to keep the colors sharp. Look for a polyurethane or polyacrylic but make sure there is NO amber tint to it. It should say "water clear" on the label, or you can tell by opening it if it is water clear or not. Hope this helps...look up the Behlen Solar Lux, and let me know which color you selected. Seriously, the best available. BTW...the Solar Lux comes in about 10-12 solid colors ( red, blue,yellow.orange,black,purple,etc) and about the same number of woodgrains (oak,mahogany,maple,walnut,etc). Keep us posted as to what you decide to do and we need pics! Good luck!
 

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Mother---when I was building I had a full sized spray booth so I used a high end clear that you may not be able to shoot, but for your needs, check out the water clear Deft brand of spray topcoats. You can find them at Lowe's or Homo Depot and they're only about $6 a can or so. Follow directions,,,multiple light coats instead of heavy wet coats that will just run and sag on you, and let dry as recommended before you spray additional coats. Pretty easy really, just follow directions. They come in Satin or Gloss finishes, so look for the one you prefer. Best of luck on your effort and if you need help let me know and I'll do what I can over the web...post here or pm me---dave
 

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