I've used it.  It was very difficult to avoid lap marks as I moved across the piece.  Before you attempt it, recommend you practice on a large piece of plywood, something with a big area.  The trick is to keep the entire surface equally wet before wiping of the excess.  Maybe it was just me but it was so much trouble that I won't use it again for anything.

Thanks for the feedback on the Minwax.  I have not used dyes before and thought the Minwax might offer a less intimidating solution.

I used Minwax water-based stain on my Chesapeake 17LT and had great results. I believe the key was using the Minwax conditioner first and then applying the stain as directed. The finish was even, rich and everything I hoped for. Look a few months back (mid-July) for pics I posted under "Completed Project". Good luck!

Beautiful boat - nice job!  Thanks for the tip on the conditioner.  I'll give it a try.

I too am planning to stain my shearwater. I've been practicing with different stains and have found the W.D. Lockwood stains to be my favorite so far. Their stains come in powder form that need to be reconstituted with water. They give a water to powder ratio but you can alter this to acheive the depth you want. They apply very easy and very even. The colors I chose are bright but also allow the beautiful wood grain to show through.

I was not able to find their products in Oregon and had to order direct from them out of NY. Their sales staff was very informative and helped me choose the right color and poduct for my boat. I ordered the stain on Thursday morning and it arrived on Monday.  

 I just used the Minwax wipe on stain today and had good results, well better than I expected. The wipe on doesn't require a conditioner and as long as I followed myself wiping it off had no problems with blotches or overlap marks. Nothing like oil based stain - you can't leave it alone.

 I'm building a WD12 and went with the Sapele. My only reservation is the contrast of the dark Sapele deck and the light Okume shear panels. After some playing around I found a base coat of the Minwax Walnut followed by a light coat of Mahogany to match the red in the Sapele worked well enough. Not sure if it's the overcast conditions or the camera angle but the colors do look better than in the picture. The picture is my shear strips on top of the Sapele with a piece of raw Okume.  Not a perfect match by any means but I think it will look good. Hope so...