Furniture, Wood and Cabinetry Finishing - walk me through a solid oak table refinish

Hello all,

I recently inherited mother's kitchen table, solid oak with golden finish and have noticed it isn't what it used to be. Upon pulling out the leaf, we noticed the table itself it slightly damaged. It is riddled with numerous, uniform, raised cracks from what I would call 15 years of everyday wear and tear.

I would like to know how I go about sanding, smoothing, restaining a different color and resealing this piece. I am a true newbie to this business, but I have great patience and a perfectionist mindframe. I am clueless as to what tools for sanding and applying product, as well as specific product types to use and their popular associated brands. About all I'm confident in is my sanding WITH the grain knowledge.

Why don't we start with this and I'll post more questions as the responses pour in. I have great faith in you all and thank you!

Open the table and look closely at the surface where the edges come together. If the top surface is very thin (less than 1/32") you may have veneer going bad and you want to be real careful trying to sand it down. If it's too thin, you'll go right thru it.

If you have a digital camera that can take a closeup, email me a picture at [URL=http://Dave_D@sbcglobal.net[/URL] and I'll give you my opinion.

i dont have a digital camera....how else can i tell if its vaneer? im also positive its not though.

Ok, look at the edge of the leaf or the inside edges of the top (with it opened up). If you see any horizontal lines, you have a veneer. If you see multiple lines, the top is probably made of plywood and the top layer (veneer) is oak. The rest is other wood.

If you see one horizontal line just below the top surface, you have a veneer that was applied to a solid substrate.

In either case, you can sand it smooth but you'll need to work carefully. If you get too enthusiastic, you'll sand thru the veneer and expose the wood under the veneer and it won't finish right.

If there are no horizontal lines, the top is probably solid oak and you're home free. I would be surprised if it were solid oak, however, since most table tops are made of plywood with solid wood edges.

now this is good info!!!!

i will check shortly

Glad to help, but it's a little spooky not being able to see your problem. I'm doing a fair bit of guessing here and I hope I don't give you bum info. I'm game if you are. :D

alright, got the news from mom that it does have a vaneer top, which you probably already guessed, but i have not been home to check it out (horizontal line test)

If your mother says something, you're supposed to believe it, right? :D