Prusa i3: Graber edition: staining

Once the plywood arrived, I started to stain it.  This isn't purely cosmetic - I think it's an important step when building anything out of wood.

Untreated wood will swell and warp over time - especially plywood.  Because I had so many small pieces to be lasercut, I decided to stain first.

Underneath the panels is a non-skid pad for carpet.

Staining:

• Get everything ready.
• Gloves!
• stain
• stirrer
• opener
• trim tray
• brush - I like the foam ones
• paper towels
• wood!
• Put on your gloves, open the stain
• Spread stain on thin and quick - you want full coverage.
• Wait 5 mins - or just do three panels in sequence
• You'll need one and a half panels per printer.
• Wipe off excess stain with the paper towels - you want the wood grain to show through.
• Move panels off to the side, let dry 3 hours.
• When dry, rub with fine steel wool
• Apply a second coat.
• Now do the other side.

When you're done with a side, you can grab the foam part of the brush with your glove, and then take the glove off over the brush - sealing the wet paint inside and saving it for the next coat.

The red is called gunstock - I really love this color.  The black shows the panels after one coat, and then standing up to finish drying before lasercutting.