Staining MDF Veneer.

[spokeshave]

I'm making a medium size bookcase for the SIL which will combine solid tassie oak and veneer MDF. It will have the veneer on the sides and shelves with a solid timber face frame and backing.

The plan is to stain the whole thing to a color of her liking, that color being of the darker variety. More than likely a Dark Oak or Walnut.

I've done a quick search on the forum on staining veneer covered MDF with little success. I'm concerned about the effects of the stain soaking through the veneer and into the the MDF.

I know that consensus is to finish veneer as you would solid timber, but is that for ply and chip board covered veneer only or MDF aswell?
I dont want to spoil the thing with blotchy absorption of stain or any other long term effects.

Should i seal then stain? Does it matter if you use oil or water based stain?

I am not a fan of those all-in-one stain/varnish finishes either. I would prefer to stain then varnish.

Sorry for all the questions but i've never stained MDF covered veneer, only varnished.

Thanks. Steven

[preeng2]

I've been running a job of 18" x 18" x 1/2" MDF core Sapele veneer wall tiles. Probably have done close to 2500 of them and we stain them with a solvent base pigment stain. No problems. I have also experimented with a water base dye stain with excellent results, except that it does raise the grain and needs to be sanded after a sealer coat. I would say that the type of wood that is used for the veneer will make or break the blotchy problems. Experiment on some dropoffs to see how the veneer looks after stain of your choice. But don't worry about compability, you should be able to use any kind of stain you want without worry of the stain reacting with the MDF.

[spokeshave]

I've been running a job of 18" x 18" x 1/2" MDF core Sapele veneer wall tiles. Probably have done close to 2500 of them and we stain them with a solvent base pigment stain. No problems.

Thanks for your reply preeng2. Sounds like a big job your doing.

I will try some on a piece of scrap when i get the chance.
My main concern was for problems in the long term, such as the MDF swelling, particularly with water based stains.

Thanks again.
Steven.