I have different color raw cherry, will it darken the same?

[Jim Frank]

I have built many projects with cherry (bedroom set and various cabinets) and have always had rough lumber boards that are roughly the same color. I buy my lumber rough and plane it to size, but this time, when planing my raw cherry to size, I'm getting some significantly darker boards than others. The general color of the rough stock is as close to the same color as any other lot of boards I've worked with, so I'm a little confused.

My question is, will these boards darken to the same color over time? I'm building two Morris chairs (I know I should have used QSWO) and will finish them with several coats of BLO and satin lacquer spray. I don't want to have a finished project that has significantly different colors in it.

I'm a new member here and not sure if I outlined the problem correctly, please let me know if there are other details I need to provide. Thanks for you help!

[David Elsey]

If you want to make sure your boards are of the same color as they age, try ordering the boards from the same log - a bit more expensive, or use a stain to even out the color.

[Jim Becker]

Every board is going to be a different color in some way, even sometimes from the same tree. (Although that's less likely in the same tree section) Therefore, for best results, don't mix boards that vary significantly in color, especially on visible items like a table top when fresh milled as they WILL appear different over time. (DAMHIKT!) Always match for grain and color with the lumber in the same state...fresh milled in this case is going to provide the best clues.

David, because of cherry's significant darkening properties, it's very hard to use a dye to color match boards for the long haul. It's always best to do as I suggested above...do the match in the beginning. This is one of the reasons you always buy a lot more material than you actually need for a given project. Choosing the material is the first step in the finishing process.

[Al Wasser]

If you are "stuck" with the wood you have, try to put most of the light stuff in places where it does not show much. Perhaps use it for shelves or if the board is light on one side and dark the other, put the light side in. Use the best wood where it shows the most. Like Jim says, if you have two different color boards they will always be different. A stain will not make them the same color. You might have a chance if you can make a panel out of just light wood, you might be able to stain just it, but over time cherry will change a lot.

[Sam Yerardi]

You might try cherry gel stain on some sample pieces of each wood color. Cherry will darken over time (rather quickly) but sometimes as the others have mentioned here you can get very different boards. The advantage of the gel stain is it is very slow to get absorbed into the wood. If you use a typical off-the-shelf pigment stain like Minwax, you won't be able to guarantee that the stain will adhere evenly acorss the board because of the grain. Cherry is notorius for blotching (look at the cabinet I posted today and you'll see an example). Had I used a gel stain I may have been able to lay down an even coat of color without the blotching. This helps when you're trying to match woods as in your case. You will still need to wipe it off as you would liquid stain if you need to.

[Jim Frank]

Thanks for the replies so far. At the heart of the issue I guess, is that I hate to waste the wood. This particular wood is being used for the arms which is a prominent part of the Morris Chair. It is re-sawn to 3/8" and is suppose to be used in a bent lamination for bowed arms. I didn't really notice it until I was planing it to final thickness. It looks like I'll have to use it elsewhere.

Like I have said in my initial post, it is in two general colors, some very red and the rest the normal blond of freshly machined cherry. The very red is what I feel will cause me a problem by aging darker than the remainder of the chair. I wonder what caused this? Perhaps it's much older wood than I typically use and had darkened over time? I don't know.

[Sam Yerardi]

How deeply have you cut into the darker wood? Does the color go all the way through?

[Jim Frank]

Yes, I re-sawed the boards myself and it's all the way through. The outside of the board after planing is almost a maroon, the inside (after re-saw) is not as dark, but still much darker vs. what I know "standard" cherry to be.

FWIW, I bought about 250 board feet over the last three years from a farmer that had it in his barn for many years. I don't have a world of experience, but after several large projects completed with this cherry (dressers, bed, table, cabinets), this is the first I've come across this.

[Sam Yerardi]

I'm not Jon Arno or any kind of wood expert but I'm wondering if the coloring might have had something to do with the particular minerals, etc., in the soil that fed the tree in the location where it grew?

I guess if I were faced with this situation I would try a gel stain on the lighter boards to match them up with the current color of the darker boards. You know both boards will darken, so when the lighter (but gel-stained) board darkens, it should stay in line with the color of the darker boards as they change.

[Jim Becker]

Sam, there will always be variation in color. And there is no guarantee that wood purchased the way this load was from a farmer is all "black cherry". I've seen pin cherry in some small local sawyers piles, for example. But again, there will be differences even in the same tree sometimes and yes, mineral content can affect that as well as other factors. Our job as woodworkers and craftspeople is to choose the material carefully for best effect. You can actually use it all, but you need to use it wisely so that these variations are dealt with. Frankly, I've been using some of the lower quality cherry in my rack as secondary wood...stuff I wouldn't put on a visible face, but structurally sound and still a pleasure to work with. Some of the interior components on my current purpleheart and figured maple night stands are made with cherry that is "rejected" from the good stuff, but perfectly servicable for strong building techniques.

[Sam Yerardi]

Good point, Jim. I think we see the same issue with other species of wood that are sold as one type but are actually another. Pine & fir , etc. sold at Lowes or wherever is a good example. I know it happens with exotics. I have gotten cherry from several different local sources and I guess I never really thought about it much when I saw a major difference in color. Learned something today! Thanks!

[Jim Frank]

After taking time to compare the lighter/darker boards (in natural light)to already machined up legs and rails which I have made from "normal" cherry, it appears that the lighter boards are the exception, not the darker boards. Amazing what flouresent light does to us.

I'm guessing the light boards are from not only a different cherry tree, but perhaps not black cherry at all. Their grain matched that of cherry, but the color is very pale. I will let them sit and age and see if they eventually darken so I know for sure. I will do a Google search on Pin Cherry and see what I can find about the wood color, but it looks like they will be used for some hidden structural components down the line.

Last night, I machined up some cherry boards for the remainder of the arms that matched much better. I'll chalk it up to experience. I'd rather the color match naturally, then try to stain or adjust the color somehow only to regret it down the line. Thanks for all the help!