Beginner needing staining advice

[mujaki6]

Hello all,
I have zero woodworking experience and this is my first time trying to do anything involving sanding and staining. Our dining table was extremely scratched up so instead of buying a new one I decided to try sanding it down and refinishing just the top. Because I was only wanting to do the top, I was hoping it would look pretty similar to what is existing on the side of the table and the legs. It didn't have to a be perfect match, just not super noticeable. I also do not know what the wood type is.

Anyways, I sanded the entire table down with a rotary sander, using 80, 120, and 220 grit. Before I stained the table itself, I tried out the stain on one of the two shelves. I used Minwax pre-stain conditioner, Minwax  stain, and finished with Minwax polyurethane.  As you can see from the side-by-side pictures, the color is an OK match and I could live with it, however, the "look" of the wood has totally changed. Does anyone know why this is or what I did wrong? I don't mind the new look but if that's what I get then I will end up having to sand the entire table and chairs because the look is too different from the original. One thought I had is maybe the original finish had a nice looking fake veneer on it that I sanded off and the real wood underneath is not high quality? Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Bill

[MikeBob]

If the one on the left is the original I would say they had a glazed finish on it. a glazed finish is where there in colorent in the finish or the fist few coats.

[jteneyck]

You may be right that you sanded off the veneer.  The piece on the right looks nothing like the one on the left.  Even a poor staining job wouldn't give you that look unless the underlying wood was different OR the original piece had some sort of faux finish on it.  I don't think you are ever going to get the new finish to look like what it did before unless you are up for veneering the top or you learn how to apply a faux finish. 

I almost never sand off a finish.  I use a chemical stripper to remove the old, damaged finish.  Stripper won't hurt veneer, sanding easily will and usually does.  Scratches in the finish will be removed when the stripper removes the finish.  Scratches that go deeper, into the wood, I leave unless it's a solid wood top.  Even then, I often leave them because sanding will remove the aging of the wood making it harder to refinish to look like the rest of the table. 

If we are right that you sanded through what was a veneer and are now down to some other wood, and you are not up for veneering the top or applying a faux finish, you might want to think about giving the top a completely different look.  Paint it a solid color, for example.  Lots of options to make it more attractive than it is now. 

John

[MikeBob]

I dont think you sanded of the layer of veneer if was veneered, you would have noticed the glue layer.

[Paul K. Murphy]

I'm not sure if I'm looking at two pieces of wood that are the same species.
That aside...
Left example, plainsawn. Right example, quartersawn. (Think, one is steak, the other is filet.)
When you simply "stain" wood, you should not expect to hide things. Staining can hide things but remember, in Science class we stained slides to be able to see things in the microscope we might otherwise have been unable to see.
To hide things, blend things, change things to a desired result, you probably need to use the methods of glazing and/or toning. Those are advanced techniques.

[cputnam]

Not an expert at all, but could be that by sanding down to bare wood, you left finish in the pores. A stripper might get that out. Ignore this if there was veneer involved.

[Sawdustd]

Bill -  First, welcome to Woodnet.  This forum is a mile wide and a mile deep in terms of  "experienced based"  member knowledge.  I agree with John that you're best bet is to paint the surface.  1) You've sanded thru the finish.  2) You won't be able to regain the original look unless you are into to glazing and toning which is advanced technique as Paul said. 
        Another alternative is to build a new top and then match the color.   If you choose this option, pose your questions about stains and dyes first.   
        In any event, chalk this up as a learning experienced and profit from your mistake.  Hey, mistakes are a great teacher.    
        Finishing is the big bug-a-boo to woodworkers.  Woodworkers tend to concentrate dimensions, joinery, assembly etc.  Then when it comes to finishing, it like the dog that caught the train, "Whata I do now"!!  Finishing a a whole different world.   Read up then fling your questions to us.

Dave

[professore]

Yes, welcome to the forum.

Much of the feedback you've received in the forum is spot on.  Finishing is bug-a-boo for me too but it's very satisfying when it goes right.  Another possibility with your table is that the finish had the color suspended in it.  Thus, it laid on top of the wood like paint but was slightly transparent; think "colored varnish".  Unless it was a very expensive piece the manufacturer would be more interested in getting it out the door with a one step finish.

Frank S in IA

[mujaki6]

Thanks for all the advice people. It turns out the wood that the drawers were made of were a much lower quality than the tabletop. You can see my finished results below. It's not perfect but it's pretty decent for my first try. You can see some areas where I sanded too hard. If you look at it from an angle in the light, you can also see some tiny "bubbles" from the polyurethane and swirl marks from the last coat. (I put the last coat on with a rag instead of a foam brush as I read that could get rid of the bubbles.)

[MikeBob]

Looks pretty good, get some Johnson paste wax  and 0000 steel wool, lube up the steel wool with the wax rub/buff LIGHTLY, then buff off with a cotton rag. T shirt not Terry clothe.