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Ok, dining table
"There are no great men. Just great challenges which ordinary men,out of necessity, are forced by circumstance to meet."
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I don't think you'll get it with just a stain. My approach is multi step and is exceptional on quarter sawn white oak. But first I put a base color using a dye, in my case it's a dark oak color. the dye achieves a more uniform color across the wood. That dye needs to be sealed with shellac, then a light sanding to smooth things out. On top of the shellac you put the coloring that makes the grain pop. If you want a glass smooth surface, use a pore filler that's been colored with a gel stain. This is worked into the pores by applying it, then wiping it off across the grain. It make take a few tries to get the pores completely filled. Or, skip the filler and just use a gel stain (this stain should be darker than the dye, I use GF Mahogony) applied thickly with a brush and wiped off across the grain. Let it dry and top coat. There are 100 variations for doing this, and they are mostly (to my knowledge) still the same basics.
I started with absolutely nothing. Now, thanks to years of hard work, careful planning, and perseverance, I find I still have most of it left.
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The oak has deep pores. Those pores can fill with stain. If you rub the surface really hard you can get the stain out of the pores, or wipe it lightly and leave more in.
Briwax and Liberon produce liming wax which is applied after staining finishing and fills the pores with a white wax.
Liberon also makes dark waxes that work the same way:
https://www.woodworker.com/fullpres.asp?partnum=894-031
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