Expert: Greg Scholl - 12/5/2008

Question
Greg, i am trying to match the stain color of some schrock cabinets i recently bought/installed. i have bought a quart of the specific stain straight from the manufacturer, and have been able to stain some sample pieces that match perfectly. my only problem is that when i apply any type of poly(water based, oil based satin) to the sample pieces, i lose the color match. after applying the poly i the pieces become to orange or reddish and give the appearance of being wet. the cabinets themselves seem to have a clear coat that is much more flat than the flattest sheen poly i can find to use. once again, after just staining any piece of sample wood, i can match the color perfectly, but once the poly is applied, i lose the color match. any suggestions?? my next step is to contact the manufacturer to see what product they use as a poly, which im sure will help, but it seems to be a pain to contact them as they do not have a direct phone number i can call to talk to somebody. any suggestions on your part would be greatly appreciated. thanks for your help.

-mark

Answer
Hi Mark, I doubt they use poly at all, most likely a lacquer product,or a catalyzed urethane or aluminum oxide high tech finish, which do look different on the wood, but the real difference is probably that they don't use just the stain. Most factories will "tone" their finishes, meaning they use stain(s),then colored and/or other sealers and clear coats. They do this to minimize grain and color differences in the wood, and to blend the overall surface into a pleasing, more even finish. Some of these companies finishes can have 10-20 individual steps, and are all mostly applied by spray. They will fill grain and seal with a sanding sealer, and build up a multi step film that refracts light differently than a single coat of poly, and then topcoat with several possible toners and clears to build an even, uniform look. This is the nature of the tricks that professional finishers use, know and therefore can achieve. If it was really that easy, everyone could do it!....and it's not, many of these methods take a lot of technique and skill, and of course access and knowledge of the right materials. To really match what they've done you will need to know the finishing schedule, or be able to match it by knowing how to achieve the same look, and only experience can help with that....I certainly can't do that from here. Wish I could help more,it would be helpful to contact them for sure, post back if need be- regards- Greg