I'm building some raised panel doors and have the panels, rails, and stiles all shaped and are pretty much ready to assemble. I am using hard maple and a dark stain (stain and finishing schedule below). After the doors are assembled, I plan to route an edge profile around the outside perimiter of the doors. The panels are 3/4" thick and sit flush with the rails and stiles (I used a back cutter). I have heard that if you don't finish the panel first, you could get unstained portions of it showing. I'm afraid if I finish it first, I will have problems when I finish the frame and will marr the finish when I do the edge treatment. I thought about just staining the flat part of the panel (the part that mostly goes in the grooves of the frame, then assembling, and staining as I normally would. Any thoughts or experiences that may help me?
Here is my finishing schedule:
Sand to 180 Gr
Spray 50/50 Sealcoat/DNA
Spray (2) Coats WB Dye stain
Spray 50/50 Sealcoat/DNA
Wipe WB Stain
Spray (2) Coats WB Poly
Light sanding
Spray WB Poly
Thanks, Mike