Tim,
The basic question is, "How 'anal' are you?, or want to be for THIS
project?". I don't do ANYTHING in the way of 'home projects' without a level
.. . . and it drives Joanne nuts !!

The CONCEPT of a stain & poly mix is great . . . the execution & application
is a little more dicey. I happen to like the look of a 'traditional'
Mahogany . . . that 'mile-deep' reddish-brownish look. The first time I used
the stuff, I carefully brushed it on, like the label said, and when dry it
was almost black . . . like some old Duncan Fife furniture my parents gave
us. 'Add additional coats' . . . you've got to be kidding!!

Since then I've used it MANY times . . . MY way.{ I later found out that
there is only a minimal darkening anyway, and I've used 'colors' as light as
'Fruitwood' - to imitate Teak}.
In fact I just finished some replacement trim. Sand lightly {220 or
finer}and dust off & vacuum clean. Apply stain/poly . . .I prefer a cheap
foam brush. {Here you have to experiment - brushing out well gives a thin,
even, rapid drying, coat. However, the color tends to be light }. Because
the result will NOT become 'deeper & richer' with a clearcoat - 'what you
see is what you get'. When dry, give a couple of coats of clearcoats - I use
their water-based Poly. VERY quick drying, and VERY hard. AFTER two coats,
lightly sand {400gr} to remove any nibs, and flow on a third coat. Total
time . . . 48 hours - half of which was waiting for the oil-based stain/poly
to dry. To ME . . . THIS is the advantage.

As far as Stain . . . and Poly . . . it allows more CONTROL. I prefer the
water-based stains. They go deeper into the wood and ARE 'additive' in color
depth. I mix my own from aniline dyes if it will be used under epoxy. I've
used the Minwax stuff and my only complaint is that some of the deeper
colors DO NOT in ANY WAY 'match' the colors of the wood they are supposed to
be. Also, with these type of stains, the 'true look' does NOT occur until
the finish {clear or 'Varnish Amber'} coats are applied.

Regards & Good Luck,
Ron Magen
Backyard Boatshop


"TimR" wrote in message
news:uODQg.533$tO5.325@fed1read10...
Can someone describe the basic pros/cons between minwax regular wood stain
and then applying polyurethane...stain with polyurethane included
(poly...and the new water based minwax stains ? I'll be staining some
wood
veneer and also casing/baseboard moldings.

Thanks TR