Hey Newsjeff, The base is Pacific Alder, right? That's a semi hardwood that will prolly take stain fairly well. A good technique is to get some dye stain like Transtint that Woodcraft sells, mix it with water and use a plant spray bottle to get an even coverage. You may want to try an application of tung oil and then dye or even dye the tung oil. But it's linseed oil that's used for an undercoat in the trade, not tung. Oil based stains like Minwax are just too iffy and almost always give a blotchy look. Don't be seduced by using alcohol as a solvent for the dye, either. It's tough to get even coverage. Stick with water, more forgiving. Good article on this in Fine Woodworking July/August 2003 by Jeff Jewett. See my website for more on dye stains and tung oil under the music stand pic, "Highlights": Merry Pranks Website There's also an exchange I had with Steve Culton on his Straight Eights in cherry veneer which will lead you thru some good stuff in the Bottlehead archives: