Furniture, Wood and Cabinetry Finishing - starting off

I picked up some nice old solid wood furniture. I do not know the species nor what kind of finish is on them. What is my next step to refinishing these pieces? Sand? Chemically strip? They are stained a dark brown colonial. Would like to possibly lighten them up a bit if possible. All suggestions appreciated. Thanks.

Chemical stripper is probably the most thorough, efficient way to remove the finish. This will remove any stain, if done completely, so that you can tell the true color of the wood.

Hope this helps.

Chris-Thanks.

Any recommendations on chemical strippers?

I use Klean Kut. I don't know that there is much difference among the major brands.

Methylene Chloride based strippers are your best bet ; which klean Kut is . if the label says Non Flammable , so much the better . this means that there is a very high percentage of MC ( Methylene Chloride is non flammable )in the blend , and not as much " filler " , such as acetone , toulene , etc.

stripping is messy and needs to be done perfect.
the more effort you expend in stripping the less sanding, therefore less chance of damaging the piece through sanding.

i use laquer thinner as my wash coat along with fine steel wool.

you need ventilation to do it this way.

if you stip the piece as well as you can, you usually will only need to sand with 220.

i use fans and i wear a halfmask when stripping. of course heavy duty black gloves. i try to stay up wind from the fumes, the fan to my back.

make sure you have all nails removed so you dont damage your gloves.

if you intend to do more refinishing, buy the best gloves from a safety supply store.