Assembly/Finishing Help

[Don Foley]

I'm in the process of building an oriental-inspired coffee table similar to the picture below and would like some opinions from other woodworkers.

My question relates to the top.  Would you stain/dye the pieces separately, and then assemble prior to the final finish?  Or, assemble first and use painter's tape to cover one while staining/dyeing the other?

The center piece gets two coats of a red stain, followed by a sanding sealer, and then a black dye.  The outer pieces get stained using two coats of an ebony stain.

Thanks in advance,
Don

P.S. You can see the unstained base in the thread "What have you built this summer?"

[Rita B.]

Great looking table and I viewed what you have done thus far,  good job!   As far as your question, I am sure there are others much more qualified and experienced than I am but I would think that stain prior might interfere with the glue up.   So plenty of tape if you go that route.   I did do a Oak table with a maple trim.  I knew that the maple would be hard to stain so I wanted to keep it in its natural state with a cover of clear poly.  I taped the maple with the sealing painters tape that was suppose to help guard against bleed thru.  I then rolled the tape with a veneer roller to add what I hoped to be a better seal around the edges.    It was successful with only one spot of a bit bleed that is barely noticeable.  I see it because I know it is there.   Hope to see your finished product and let us know how the staining process went.  Great to be able to have a successful stain with the look of a exotic wood.

[James P. Cottingham]

I always have better luck staining first, assembling second, then finishing my pieces. (Don't stain any part that you are going to glue, though.) That way, when the wood moves due to temp, humidity, etc., unstained wood won't show up.