making a new carriage look old

[KABAR2]

I haven't tried this and don't know what the results would be but take a scrap piece and drag it behind your vehicle down a gravel road.  Oak is hard enougn to hold up and you would get a more random effect.

He could drop it off a cliff too..... but either of these tend to give the look of abuse rather than use.....  How about staining it and sanding down areas of the stained wood to give the impression of wear? and also using a lighter stain is some areas.... that might do the trick...

Kabar,
 I like that idea.  I was thinking along those same lines.  Stain it, sand a little, stain it again.  Repeat if needed.
Zulu

What got me thinking along these lines is in the past I have done firearms restoration.... try matching up some curly maple for a patch on a 150 year old Pennsylvania rifle.... first have antique wood to work with grain on the newer stuff is not as tight, second use leather dyes to color the grain, third if there is a wear pattern follow it, thin out the finish/staining to match what has occurred with age.... I haven’t worked on this sort of stuff since the early 90's and you don't think about it when you are not doing it..... so it took the grey cells to bring up the old info....

I would try a couple of test pieces to see what gives the best results.
.
Allen <><

[projector]

Norm made a painted pub table look old by layering walnut stain, red paint and then black paint.  Then he brushed paint stripper in areas that would typically wear and sand blasted it to weather the finish.  There was a final finish but I don't remember what it was.  I think I have the steps right, there may be a New Yankee Workshop video of it somewhere.  It gets the coloring right but the wood still doesn't look worn.