Your best finish on Baltic Birch

[stephenmarklay]

I use Tung Oil on BB. I never stain or dye it, because no matter how good a job it always looks like BB. If I want a speaker that looks like hardwood I make it out of hardwood if it's bookshelf size, veneer MDF if it's larger.

Is there a particular product you like?

[billfitzmaurice]

I've always used Formby's. I've seen some knock it, but it works for me. I've even gotten a full piano gloss finish with it. If you use enough coats you can wet sand, rub and polish it just like with varnish or shellac, and since you can apply four or five coats a day it doesn't take that long, especially with birch that has no grain to fill. I don't have any pics handy of speakers, but my rosewood bass is finished with Formby's:

[joeybutts]

[Pete Schumacher]

You always have an over the top example

No really that is simply stunning. How exactly is hat made. You have to laminate a lot of sheets together? That would be a very neat thing to be able to do.

Is that black accent line painted?

That black line is a 1/8" sheet of mass-loaded vinyl (constrained layer). And yes, that is many layers of stacked up plywood.

[---k---]

I've stained bb play on a couple projects. I've expermented with pre conditions and have never really found it to be beneficial. I just haven't had blotchy problems.

I usually sand to 120 to 180 before staining. The higher you go the less the stain will absorb and you can get dark rich colors. I think the can even says 120. Sand higher after you've put your clear coat on.

If you want to get fancy, you can play with using a water wipe on the surface to get some of the grain to pop more.

I've finished several projects with satin tung oil after staining. It gives a real old rich wood look and feel. Highly recommended.

Also watch the plywood faces. A lot of bb ply will have different grades of ply on the inside vs outside face. My old sub, I didn't pay attention to it and mixed them up. I got very different stained appearance on the front versus the sides.

I think bb ply can look great with minimal finishing effort.

[stephenmarklay]

That black line is a 1/8" sheet of mass-loaded vinyl (constrained layer). And yes, that is many layers of stacked up plywood.

Cool

[stephenmarklay]

Thank you all for the great replies.