I just finished making a different type of knife block out of hard maple. I applied a Minwax Pre-Stain Wood Conditioner to prevent blotching. After allowing 15 minutes to absorb & then wiping off the excess, & drying for several hours I applied Minwax Classic Gray stain. This was left on for ~ 15 minutes to soak & then the excess was lightly wiped off. Unfortunately, it mostly came off with no absorbtion into the wood. Instead it was lightly streaked & smudged. I've stained hard maple before, but haven't had this problem. Looks like I may have to paint it instead.
Any thoughts?