It sounds beautiful. What you have is "quarter cut" or "quarter sawn" oak which exposes irregular stipes running across the grain. These stripes will always be lighter than the more porous straight grain surrounding them. "Tiger" is usually used in referring to a characteristic stipe pattern found on maple, ie. "Tiger Maple". If it is the original finish, it would be a shame to strip it and it probably can be restored with Wood Elixir applied with steel wool...rub it in and wipe it off. --Previous Message-- : Help, I have a 100 year old Queen Anne it has : tiger oak trim not sure of the finish..the : trim over the years has darkened so bad : you can not see the beauty of it....will : your product work on this.I have 6 : beautiful fireplaces and pocket doors and : trim....I am afraid to strip it, but I : would love to see her back to her original : condition...all suggestions : welcome...Diana :