Should I use a wood sealer on my maple reelseat before I finish it? The wood seems to darken after I apply my lacquer finish.

Thanks,
Mike

Mike,
Any finish will darken maple to some degree, and lacquer darkens relatively very little, compared to tung or linseed oil, "Danish", varnishes, Tru-Oil, etc. Since sealers are mostly made of those things too, a sealer isn't going to result in less net darkening. The only popular finishes I know that darken less than lacquer (assuming you mean real solvent-based lacquer, either nitrocelulose or acrylic, thinned with the real toxic stuff containing xylol or acetone etc.) are some waterbased "lacquers", which are so clear they're almost blue. But these waterbased products were developed much more recently than lacquer or varnish, to meet stricter emissions codes; and they're not yet as good as real lacquers (OK, some new manufacturer can come after me for that!) they don't produce the same thin and fine coating, don't rub out as easily, but gosh they're easy to clean up! Suggest you take a scrap of flat maple, sand it smooth, then cut into smaller pieces and test several finishes, see what you like.