How to finish a red oak table top
Hi there all I am redoing the world's ugliest table for one of my sisters. She asked me to cut down the legs and make a new top for it out of some red oak she had. The table is going to be used as a coffee table and I am wondering what would be a good finish for the top?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Try some kind of danish oil on scrap red oak
I have built lot of stuff from Red Oak - not too much lately since I prefer QSWO and cherry now, but I know I will use it again. Regardless - -
Tan is tough, but maybe you can use a maple stain or wiping stain. You will have to experiment. You may also be able to use an analine dye - like Woodworker's Supply sells on line. They sell many colors. Personally, I never get tired of using medium walnut Watco after or before filling up the pores like the others have suggested and then just putting many coats of poly or tung oil on it. One trick I learned is to use gloss for toughness and then use a satin poly for the final if I do not want a gloss finish.
You can always finish the bottom for an experiment and then flip it over to the top and finish it the way that works best.