Raised grain on water based stain

[capohk]

I've done quite a nice hand-rubbed sunburst with water based stain. The grain has raised up quite a bit and I'd normally sand to 320 before sealing and lacqering. Any suggestions before I undo all my good work

Merry Christmas.

[mirwa]

I'll usually do 3 sessions of raising the grain with a damp cloth and resanding before any grain sealing

Steve

[redir]

Me too. It usually takes 3 sessions to finally get the grain to stop popping out. I'm not sure what you can do at this point. I guess depending on how tall it is raised and what type of finish you plan on using you might get away with just finishing it as is. Then again sanding a hand rubbed burst might give it a good effect too IDK.

[Sam VanLaningham]

Hi. I've not raised grain before bursting, only because I forget. I've had some raised grain after bursting and recall finding SOME success using 0000 steel wool. However I also recall pressing too hard and it smearing the burst right off. I'd say using very little pressure can't hurt. Unlike sandpaper, the steel wool will take off the burst slow enough that you'd catch it before it's too late. Proceed with caution! Hehe, good luck. I also wouldn't hesitate to leave it and let the grain sit in sanding sealer and finish.

[LouieAtienza]

Barring doing the work over, you can build a few coats of sealer up, then do a light leveling, then touch up, before finish. But you may inadvertently make the finish too thick in the process.