Question about moving from wiping stains to gel stains

I always thought wiping stains were best for a smooth finish. After dealing with streaks on a pine dresser, I tested a gel stain. The way it sits on the wood gave me much cleaner results. Now I'm leaning towards gels, but I want to know if others have issues with them being too thick for some projects.

3 comments

3 Comments

danielm481mo ago

Wait, gel stain worked on PINE?!

paigen521mo ago

Yeah, gels can be tricky with pine, but I once tried a water-based stain on oak and it turned out blotchy too. Had to sand it back and switch to an oil-based gel, which covered way better. What's the worst stain disaster you've had to fix?

mason.julia22d ago

Ugh, sanding back a whole project is the worst feeling. I still have nightmares about a red stain that went pink on maple.