Painted Oak Cabinets With Grain Showing . Replace the old hardware with new hardware. Sand the primed cabinets by hand with a 320 grit sanding block. How To Paint Oak from www.newtoncustominteriors.com Then we apply the first coat of top coat. Fill in grain and other imperfections with a thin layer of drydex spackle using a putty knife. Perhaps because the grain pattern is so heavy and visually dominant on these woods, and because their stained color is so strong (usually some variation of dark orange), homeowners seem to be the most eager to either paint or replace these design offenders, to.