Clear finish, low darkening, avoid rosewood bleeding pink

[Bob Howell]

I have completed my OM sound box and am choosing a finish. I have sealed it with shellac at several stages to protect the top and sides from stain and glue.

I am cleaning it up and have removed most of that but no all.
I used Honduran rosewood for bindings, which bleeds badly so must deal with that. This has me looking beyond shellac, my finish of choice over the years. Danish Oils were next.

In similar cases I have turned to tung oil for low darkening but hear it is a no ,no, on guitars.

I have a can of Belins Rock Hard Table top finish for another project but read here it is no longer formulated for guitars.

I live 15 min. from Highland Woodworking, so would like to use one of their products. Like a General Finishes products.

I did test the effects of paint thinner on the rosewood and it did bleed some.

Is shellac going to be as good as anything else?

[David King]

If the Hondo rosewood (which often a trade name for morado /pau-ferro and therefore not a true rosewood) is bleeding onto paint thinner then it's possibly going to bleed into oil based finishes as well and will probably upset their drying or hardening capabilities.
There used to be a McFadden's rosewood sealer that may have been taken up by Seagreaves. That might be the stuff to use.
There was also a vinyl sanding sealer around for a while that could merge certain finishes with nitro lacquer.

[Bob Howell]

Hondurian Rosewood is a best guess. It is a beautiful burgundy with black grain. very dense. A great wood that bleeds. I have 4 turning sqs. of pau-ferro.

I have a lot of it and must learn how to work with it. I plan to make fret boards with matching bindings. May have to drop it for bindings if it causes problems. I was going for the contrast with maple and spruce. It also bends like a dream.

[David King]

Could it be kingwood?

[David King]

This is a product I've seen in many a luthier's booth. It should work if you can mist it on a few times to build it up slowly without wetting the surface.
https://www.amazon.com/Behlen-Vinyl-Sea ... B003CMONTW

[Bob Howell]

Could it be kingwood?

I have kingwood also but it is different. I got it 20 years ago from some guys who also did not know just what it was . They dubbed it BEAUTIFUL rosewood.

[Bob Howell]

This is a product I've seen in many a luthier's booth. It should work if you can mist it on a few times to build it up slowly without wetting the surface.
https://www.amazon.com/Behlen-Vinyl-Sea ... B003CMONTW

I have looked at the can version of this. How does it like shellac? Will it go over it?

[Bob Howell]

I now recall that misting on several coats of other types finish is a way to slowly seal off bleeding woods. In addition to vinyl sealer, spray can of shellac will also work. Also any compatiable spray applied sparingly. I have odd spray cans of several finishes sitting around that might prove still usable.

I now remember someone saying they dabbed on shellac with small wipes, changing frequently, as another way to slowly build up finish and seal off bleeding wood. Bits of information from the past slowly come to mind as I discuss this.

[David King]

I think your rosewood is also sold as "rosul", it's quite reddish in color and is a true rosewood.
Presumably compatibility between those products is the name of the game. A preval sprayer with 2# cut shellac (dewaxed) would do the same thing for you. I'm pretty sure Zinsser sells their shellac sanding sealer in a rattle can. Google claims that HomeDepot sells it.

[Bob Howell]

I dabbed shellac on the rosewood Bindings with pads and had little bleeding. Next day another coat of shellac dabbed on then a day later I brushed on a coat over the whole body. Minimal bleeding. Sanded smooth and Now three coats and looking good. I'm going to rub out finish with wax and oooo steel wool. Spray coat would have done the same but this saved a trip to store. It is my first and has many flaws. I don't want to obsess. It goes to a younger brother and he is waiting. Got to move on.