[Ron Ramirez]

Thanks, Steve Coming from a true pro such as yourself, that is a huge compliment indeed!

Glenn - Yes, my reason for starting this thread was two-fold: one, of course, to seek help for myself; and two, to hopefully help others out who would like to do this but are, as you pointed out so well, intimidated by the process (as I was).

I should mention at this point that I have discovered that the proper consistency for grain filler - at least for me, anyway - is more like a gel. A bit thicker than ketchup or mustard. Maybe like honey. Ketchup/mustard consistency, I think, is a bit too thin.

And here is the source of the trouble I was having earlier. I now believe I had my filler thinned too much. And if it is too thin, it won't fill the pores properly.

Today, I went out to the garage and opened up my can of grain filler. It had sat long enough that the mineral spirits were rising to the top, and the solids were settling to the bottom again. I poured some of the liquid off the top, stirred it back up, and found it was now the consistency of gel - or honey, if you will. Just like the filler mixture that Etech sent me.

I started a new project today - a 40-155T. I used Etech's filler on most of it, but used my filler on part of it. I have found that, if the filler mixture tends to run off the surface, it has been thinned too much. If it tends to stay in place on a vertical surface, it seems to be correct. At least, it is working for me now.

I brushed it on, rubbed it into the pores with a piece of an old T-shirt, scraped the excess off after 10-15 minutes. And it appears that this time, I succeeded. The cabinet looks good, and the pores appear to be filled.