Our stain-grade wood will naturally develop character over the years, with or without a finish coating. Nakamoto Forestry offers a variety of specially formulated yakisugi “shou sugi ban” finish options to match the specific needs of your project—from elegant black siding options to warm tones with exposed grain patterns and evolving patinas. Each finish is designed to accentuate the beauty of our wood for decades to come, while minimizing maintenance and maximizing longevity.
Unoiled
Charred to Last a Lifetime
Our unoiled yakisugi is the most natural and organic siding option we offer. Made from wood that is heat-treated using a traditional Japanese process that carbonizes the siding, making it highly resistant to pests, moisture, and fire. Yakisugi can be installed and enjoyed for a lifetime without ever applying a finish.
Unoiled yakisugi will gracefully age and patina in response to your local climate. Over time, the wood will gradually change color without stains or finishes—from reddish-brown to silver, depending on the specific local exposures to moisture and UV. To speed up this ageing process and achieve a more uniform silvered look sooner, we recommend using our specially formulated silver weathering stain (see below).
Considerations
- Unoiled yakisugi siding will fade and change color over time
- Each project will weather differently in response to its unique microclimate
- Yakisugi siding can also be stained or coated on site
- Blemishes and soot erosion will show over time on unoiled Suyaki; this the nature of this very traditional material
Tung Oil
Traditional, Natural and Authentic Yakisugi “Shou Sugi Ban”
Tung oil has been used for centuries in Japan to extend the longevity of yakisugi. Our unique tung oil blend was formulated specifically for exterior installations of our Suyaki products. This oil stain penetrates and stabilizes the delicate soot layer, making it easier to handle during installation.
Considerations
- Tung-oiled Suyaki is a user-friendly material with a leathery surface that will slowly patina as it ages
- Blemishes and soot erosion will happen over time and are the nature of this very traditional material
- This finish is easy to touch-up if scratched or scuffed
- Beware of options on the market with hard-shell coatings
Linseed Oil
Showcasing the Wood’s Natural Beauty
We use a proprietary blend of linseed oil stain formulated to perfectly accentuate the natural color and patterns of our wood. This semi-transparent finish absorbs into the wood, conditioning and protecting the surface while enhancing the inherent aesthetic qualities of the wood itself.
This finish will bring out richer tones while allowing the texture and beauty of the grain to show through. It provides the optimal balance between showcasing raw, natural splendor and promoting long-lasting color retention over time.
A single application of a linseed oil stain is an ideal choice for those who appreciate the way wood gracefully weathers and patinas into timeworn elegance. For those wishing to maintain a more consistent color, this stain can be reapplied as needed.
Considerations
- Of all exterior finish options, our linseed oil stains do the best job of showcasing the natural grain and color of the wood itself
- Options available to match most project aesthetics
- Fades and changes color over time without reapplication
Available Products
Alkyd Oil
Vibrant, Reliable Color
If you’re looking for an opaque yakisugi “shou sugi ban” color stain, our alkyd oil finish offers a semi-solid, permeable coating that protects the wood while allowing some of the natural texture to show through.
Our water-based alkyd oil stains are highly durable—resistant to both moisture and UV rays. Unlike more transparent finish options that showcase the beauty of a changing patina, alkyd oil stains are designed to maintain more consistent color over time. The oil permeates deep into the wood grains for reliable, long-lasting pigmentation that resists fading.
If you prefer the look of a vibrant, uniform wood finish that retains its color despite natural weathering, our alkyd oil stain is an excellent choice. The pigmented formula enriches the natural wood tones and provides reliable protection. It allows for customizable color intensities to suit your design vision.
Considerations
- Alkyd oil stains offer a natural coating with great color stability
- Our standard two coats of finish provide optimal color longevity for your siding
- For touchups, use a minimal amount of oil and immediately wipe off residue to prevent glossy spots
Acrylic
Time-Tested, Solid Durability
When it comes to reliable, long-lasting color retention, acrylic finishes are unmatched. Our high-adhesion formula deeply penetrates the wood’s surface to form a protective, high-build finish that resists cracking, peeling, and fading. This coating has proven its superior weather resistance through 60+ years of testing and field use. It even carries a limited manufacturer’s warranty of 25 years.
Our acrylic finish is an excellent choice for commercial and institutional buildings. It completely blocks UV rays while providing long-term protection from moisture damage.
If your project calls for a stable, vivid black finish that stands up to heavy weathering without fading or peeling, our specialized acrylic coating delivers durability and peace of mind.
Considerations
- A great option for applications requiring the best possible coating performance, such as institutional projects
- Offers an architectural-grade coating that has been field tested for generations
- Some soot residue, caking, and erosion is unavoidable; be careful to separate planks to avoid blocking
Polyurethane
Shows and Protects the Wood’s True Color
Our water-based, non-toxic polyurethane coatings form a durable shield to accentuate beautiful interior installations. The hard, abrasion-resistant finish protects against dirt buildup, discoloration, and daily wear and tear. Unlike some polyurethanes with strong solvent odors and toxic ingredients, our low-VOC, water-based formula offers a studio-friendly, environmentally responsible alternative.
Our clear polyurethane finish allows the depth, variation, and richness of Pika-Pika’s natural hue and grain to take center stage while enhancing luster and providing reliable protection from scrapes, scuffs, and scratches. Our black polyurethane coating for interior Suyaki installations includes a pigment to ensure an even color while protecting the delicate soot layer from erosion and damage.
Considerations
- Offers a non-toxic polyurethane finish with a satin sheen
- Clean to the touch
- (Clear) Dramatically showcases the opulent, natural wood grain of Pika-Pika
- (Black) Ensures an even black color while resisting surface abrasions on Suyaki
Weathering Stain
Classic, Distinguished Patina
Designed for exterior applications only, our silver weathering stain helps siding quickly achieve the classic “Cape Cod gray” aesthetic. It offers a maintenance-free option, helping the wood develop a bleached coastal look. It has the fastest patina rate out of any of our finish options.
The stain has two main components: one is a silver pigment without a binder that will wash off within the first year. The second is a mineral that reacts with the tannic acid in the wood to accelerate and accentuate the natural silver color of aged siding.
Considerations
- Speeds up the development of a natural weathered patina
- Designed to patina from pigmented silver to faded silver over time
- Factory silver stain can be blotchy; weathering generally evens out the overall tone over time
Available Products
Nakamoto Forestry Finish Options FAQs
I didn’t realize yakisugi “shou sugi ban” was ever coated, yet you have so many options. Why is that?
In Japan, yakisugi was seldom coated or recoated with oil stains until the 1980s, when various colored oil options became widely accessible. Uncoated yakisugi offers optimal value and excellent durability. Our carefully curated palette of coating options is designed to cater to a diverse range of customer preferences and designs.
Yakisugi “shou sugi ban” is black and will always stay black without maintenance, right?
Without oil finishes, only our Suyaki products are black. Gendai and Pika-Pika products are brown until a black oil stain has been applied. It is important to differentiate between wood durability and color longevity. Patina is frequently misinterpreted as a sign of reduced durability, but high-grade wood typically is coated with oil finishes over paints, leading to a natural change in color over time. Resistance to rot is primarily determined by the wood species and the quality of installation, rather than being influenced significantly by stains or paints.
To the best of our knowledge, yakisugi is the most weather-resistant stain-grade softwood siding. It is important to define durability in terms of rot-resistance rather than abrasion-resistance. Interior wood should be hard and resistant to abrasion, while exterior softwood benefits from being lightweight and porous for increased longevity. In the realm of siding, durability is defined by how long it lasts, rather than its hardness. Therefore, any softwood siding intended for long-term use is inherently soft and will naturally develop a patina from daily use.
What is the difference between the various coating types you offer?
Each surface type we offer is available with a variety of factory coating options. For interior applications, polyurethanes, alkyd oils, and acrylic coatings can be specified. For exterior applications, tung oil, linseed oils, alkyd oils, acrylics, and a weathering stain are all available. Tung and linseed oils are semi-transparent traditional oil finishes crafted to highlight the color and depth of the wood underneath, available exclusively in one-coat options. Alkyd oils are semi-solid finishes that reveal some wood color with a single coat and conceal the wood color with two coats. Acrylic coatings, on the other hand, are solid finishes that completely encase the wood in multiple protective layers, resulting in the best coating longevity.
Can you describe the coating options you have in terms of aesthetic range between wabi-sabi patina on one extreme, and best coating durability on the other?
Our highest patina options include unoiled wood and those treated with a weathering stain. Linseed oil finishes also fall within the patina side of the range, while one-coat alkyd options lean more toward coating durability. For increased durability, two coats of alkyd are recommended, followed by two and three coats of acrylic, representing the most durable coating options available.
Which oil finish should we choose for our project?
Each project comes with unique design parameters, and it’s the responsibility of the build team to determine the product and coating option that best suits the specific project requirements. We encourage you to thoroughly review our spec sheets, blog posts, images, and samples to make an informed decision. Our coating options are standard finishes commonly used for stain-grade wood. Contractors are typically familiar with these coating types, and there is ample information available on the characteristics of oil finishes on the internet for additional reference.
Can I buy extra touchup oil to paint some adjacent wood to match the yakisugi I am buying from you?
It is typical for locally sourced wood trim adjacent to our yakisugi scope to be painted, either to complement or contrast with our siding. We can provide extra oil stain for this purpose, as long as it is part of a single transaction and shipped together with your lumber package. It’s important to note that, even with multiple coats of oil, locally sourced wood products may not perfectly match the color and tone of our yakisugi products.
What exactly is an alkyd oil finish?
The alkyd oil finishes we utilize are derived from vegetable oil that undergoes chemical polymerization, subsequently dissolved into a water base. Alkyds exhibit high elasticity similar to traditional oil-based finishes. As they dry, the cross-linking molecules bond, forming a durable coating on the wood surface. These finishes are typically more opaque and provide enhanced UV protection compared to traditional oils, thanks to their higher pigment content.
Tell me about the tung oil used in Nakamoto Forestry's Suyaki product. Can it be specified for other products?
The tung oil utilized in our Suyaki product is a key element for its durability and toughness in exterior exposure. While many high-grade traditional oil finishes include tung oil, we exclusively offer the tung oil base on our Suyaki product due to compatibility reasons. This robust tung oil coating transforms Suyaki’s soot layer into a resilient and user-friendly leathery surface. Currently, this specific tung oil treatment is unique to the Suyaki product and cannot be specified for our other offerings.
We have some old samples marked “interior oil” on the labels but no longer see this option on your website. Is it still available?
We have discontinued the oil-based interior coating options due to a limited market and inconsistent tone lot-to-lot. Our current offerings for interior applications include alkyd oil, acrylic, and polyurethane coating options.
Could you please tell us a little more about your silver weathering stain?
Our weathering stain is intentionally designed to transition from a factory silver color to a naturally bleached silver hue over time as the wood weathers. The stain incorporates a silver pigment blend, contributing to the initial factory silver color that gradually washes off during the first few months of exposure. The blotchiness of the silver pigment is a natural characteristic, as the stain lacks chemical emulsifiers or binders. Ferrous sulphate is the other key component in weathering stains. It reacts with atmospheric moisture and tannic acid in the wood, facilitating the bleaching process that results in an overall silver color. The weathering stain imparts a living patina finish akin to our unoiled Gendai yakisugi product.
Can we specify your Gendai or Sugi silver weathering stain on a soffit application?
Technically, yes, weathering stains can be applied to soffit surfaces, but they are generally not considered suitable for such applications. Soffits are shielded from direct exposure to wind, moisture, and sunlight. The weathering process, integral to these stains, relies on the interaction of the wood with these elements, washing off the pigment and allowing ferrous sulphate to react and bleach the wood to its silver color. In soffit applications, where weather exposure is limited, the intended effect will likely not be achieved.
Can we use the silver weathering stain on an interior?
The weathering stain is exclusively formulated for exterior weather exposure and is not suitable for interior applications. It features a silver pigment applied to the surface without a binder, resulting in a soft residue on the surface. For interior applications, we recommend choosing Gendai Alkyd Light Gray coating option or staining unoiled Sugi on-site to match with our exterior-grade Weathering Stain Silver.