Caulking for Stained projects

[CManinLa]

My first project I tried as a new woodworker was a crown molding shelf. I bought the book from CompoundMiter.com, so to practice I thought that would be a good first project. I also used cheap knotty pine lumber. Got to use my sliding compound miter saw for the molding cuts & my router to dress up the boarding on the shelves. I am pleased with the way the shelf turned out. I filled the small holes from the nails with spackling & painted the shelf white. (I will try to post photos soon). All in all, came out pretty good.

To try & step up, I would like to make a 2nd shelf, this time using better grade white pine & stain grade crown molding. My question is, when I nail the crown molding to the shelf, what do I fill the nail holes with before I stain the shelf? I know you can buy clear caulking that can be painted, but can it be stained also?

Any advice from the group is appreciated.

[ragswl4]

My first project I tried as a new woodworker was a crown molding shelf. I bought the book from CompoundMiter.com, so to practice I thought that would be a good first project. I also used cheap knotty pine lumber. Got to use my sliding compound miter saw for the molding cuts & my router to dress up the boarding on the shelves. I am pleased with the way the shelf turned out. I filled the small holes from the nails with spackling & painted the shelf white. (I will try to post photos soon). All in all, came out pretty good.

To try & step up, I would like to make a 2nd shelf, this time using better grade white pine & stain grade crown molding. My question is, when I nail the crown molding to the shelf, what do I fill the nail holes with before I stain the shelf? I know you can buy clear caulking that can be painted, but can it be stained also?

Any advice from the group is appreciated.

Depending on the configuration there may be a way to attach the molding without nailing. I recently installed crown molding on the top of some cabinets by mounting a block on top of the cabinet. The block had one surface that was cut at 45 degrees and I glued the back of the molding to that surface. Blocks were 4" long and spaced every 12". Worked great, no nail holes.

[cabinetman]

For applications that you have to nail, there are a few ways to fix the holes. You could just use a wood putty that is the shade of the wood you are using. Or, stain the wood and use a putty that is the color of the stain, or stain and finish and then use a putty that fills the hole that's like a crayon that you just rub off.

What's important here is that everything you do to the wood will change it's look/color. IOW, if you put putty into a hole and then stain, the putty may look different than the surrounding wood. And likewise for applying a clear coat over stain, the colors may change. So, it's wise to try your alternatives on scrap to see how they will turn out.

Some wood putty in different colors may dry hard and can be sanded, drilled, and stained. Other putty is available in jars that may or not dry. And then you have the sticks or pencil type that don't really dry, but remain firm. The right combination can lead to a fix that is nearly undetectable.