My pain in the blog

Table with lid open

-- Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati

I would use gel stains on a piece like this. It always seems to work better. I also never use so many coats. Have you been wiping off excess stain? What kind of stain are you using?

-- making sawdust....

By the way, why “Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati”? Do you really think that they are bored?

-- making sawdust....

I like the cabinet. But to the stain…............. Have you wiped the stain off each piece before staining the next? And why so many coats? If I get it too dark, I apply a little more stain and wipe harder to lighten it up. If too light, I apply more and wait a few more minutes before wiping. Seems to work for me.

-- Jerry--A man can never have enough tools or clamps

The Stain General Finishes (Water Based) I have tried wiping, looks worse and a very light coat with a foam brush. #0000 steel wool also. Maybe I’m not wiping hard enough?

-- Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati

When all else fails play dead
As for the #1 Google search I don’t think they are.

-- Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati

motthunter
mine is the red green version #2 on google
See sign on door at link below
http://www.redgreen.com/

-- Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati

I have never used 6 coats of stain on anything, and I stained for my fathers cabinet shop for years. It’s not the staining that’s driving you nuts, but the quest for perfection…..which doesn’t exist. I’ve seen work that was perfect before, and it looked weird.
What you may be having problems with is the wood itself. You can have imperfection in the wood itself, a place that just a little harder or softer than the other wood, and the color will vary. Stains are made to change the color of wood, not change the nature of wood.
Your table looks good, but you have too much stain on it now, from the looks of the picture. I would try to take off some of the stain, and let the wood be what it is. There is no such thing as a craftsman who doesn’t see imperfections in his or her work, or they aren’t much of a craftsman….....................yoda