3Rivers Alcohol Based Arrow Stain Review

As long as it is sealed up it has a very long shelf life.

Unfortunately since this is flammable we are not able to ship this product internationally.

A = Charcoal Grey D= Harvest Gold

No you do not have to.

no you do not.

Stain comes in 1 pint bottles (16oz).

It's enough to stain several dozen arowws

I can't say how many, but it will stain a lot of arrows!

I have used all different types of stains and sealers. I have found that the 3Rivers Alcohol stains work very well as they penetrate the wood and dry quickly. Alcohol and Water based stains are easier to clean up when finished. Oil based stains usually penetrate the wood better.

I think it's more of a personal preference but the oil and alcohol based stains penetrate better in harder wood shafts and retain better color. Oil based stains have a strong odor where water and alcohol based stains tend to be odorless when dry. Sent from my iPhone

Oil based stains penetrate and seal the wood much more than others. They provide a better barrier to moisture so they are good for dewy morning stump shooting. Alcohol based stains dry very quickly and don’t raise the grain of the wood as much as water based stains. Easy clean up using denatured ethanol or methanol. (flammable) Water based stain takes a while to dry, raises the grain slightly (slight sanding needed). On the other hand, it does not upset other people in the house with the smell. Must be sealed after staining. Another benefit of water based stain, other than environmental, it’s not sticky like oil stain so the dog hair which occupies my house doesn’t end up on my arrows.

The alcohol based stains dry much faster than other stains.

You can use a dip or spray system if you have something like that set up already. If not you can use a rag or sponge like you would for any other staining job.

alcohol based stain is best applied with a small rag , an old tshirt is perfect...only use small amounts as it evaporates rather quickly...for arrow shafts take a piece of clean cotton rag about 8 X8" and fold it in quarters...apply some stain to it until most of the rag is saturated...some protective gloves are a good idea since the stain wont come out of your hands easily...make sure you have dome your nock taper first so the color will be all the way onto the edge cut by your taper tool... one good coat is usually enough for cedar or doug fir...don't leave any extra on them after wiping...and place them vertical somewhere to dry...preferably in he sun or a warm area...they should be dry in about a half hour...they will appear dry sooner...but let them alone...do a test on a smaller piece of material with the next step finish , if you are using one, to make sure its dry and doesn't bleed at all...good luck...alcohol based stain is my favorite for cedar and douglas fir...I use the yellow to match up to my osage bows...

i am no expert , but this is what i do , cooton rag , rubber gloves ,another cotton rag, pour some of your stain in a disposable plastic bowl , dip  the cotton rag , wear your gloves , ring the rag slightly , then run the arrow shaft thru you hands and the rag, let the shaft stand for a few minutes then wipe it again with the clean rag ,removing excess stain. done

I used one of those sponge applicator pads they sell at the paint section of a big box hardware store. After applying some of the stain onto the pad, I then used the pad to wipe along the length of the shaft. I guess maybe even an old cotton t-shirt might work? But since I had the spongy applicator pads, I figured I'd try one of those. Afterwards, I hung the shaft to dry. It dries really fast - maybe 10-15 minutes. After the shaft dried, I then used some 000 steel wool to lightly sand it down some. I could've applied some more stain after using the steel wool, but chose not to. I then sealed it with some clear polyurethane wood sealant. I used the golden/yellow stain, and they turned out great.

I put on thin nitrile gloves and I use old cloth scraps to apply the stain. I wet the cloth with the stain and starting at one end I rub the stain onto the shaft.I have a block of wood with many holes for holding my arrows during the construction process. After the stain is applied I place the arrow in this block. After I put the last arrow of the batch in the block I get a clean piece of cloth and starting with the first arrow I rub down the shafts to get the excess stain off the shafts. The alcohol based stain dries quickly. I normally let the stain dry over nite before finishing the arrows, this is out of habit I am not sure it is necessary.

With a lint free cotton cloth. I used two coats. Just dab the cloth into the stsin and use two fingers inside the cloth to apply a little pressure and wipe it on

Yes, you could use these to stain laminations. You would want to make sure that they are stained and completely dry before laminating the bow together. The Alcohol based stains will be your best bet, but the water based stains should still work. You will just need to give them longer to dry. I recommend avoiding the oil based stains for this application.

The charcoal gray sounds like it will be closer to what you want. Use about 4 coats to get a nice deep black color.

The Black walnut DOES NOT create a dull pitch black. It creates a rich medium golden brown on most porous surfaces such as shafts. If you're looking for dark...go with gray or better BLACK dye!