Furniture, Wood and Cabinetry Finishing - refinish old table w/bad veneer
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08-13-00, 07:40 PM
I have a old table that was my grandparents. the veneer is in terrible shape. Water marks, scratches and I can chip it up with my fingernail. It is also very wobbly. Was it glued? Not sure what type of wood it is but the color now is very dark brown. Any help on refinishing would be wonderful. I would love to show it off! Thanks!
08-14-00, 07:26 PM
Quinn:
First, it sounds like you need to replace the veneer. If it's thin and worn enough you can pick it off with your fingernail, it would almost take a conservator to repair it properly. I'll list some sites below where you can pickup both the materials and the instructions for that operation.
Before that, though, you need to take a good look at the construction of the table. Your letter implies that you don't see any obvious hardware "is it glued?" There's a very good chance the piece was both nailed and glued, with the nails well hidden.
Before you try to pull it apart, which is the only way you're going to be able to reglue it and tighten it up, take a good close look around the joints. Typical use has a nail/brad coming in at right angles to a tenon in a mortise joint. The nail/brad may have been put there originally to hold the piece together while glue dried (a practice all to common today) or it may have been added as a 'fix-it' measure later.
Look close BEFORE you take it apart - you'll avoid a lot of damage and extra work.
Those sites I mentioned:
http://www.vandykes.com & htt://www.constantines.com
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George T.
[This message has been edited by George (edited August 14, 2000).]
First, it sounds like you need to replace the veneer. If it's thin and worn enough you can pick it off with your fingernail, it would almost take a conservator to repair it properly. I'll list some sites below where you can pickup both the materials and the instructions for that operation.
Before that, though, you need to take a good look at the construction of the table. Your letter implies that you don't see any obvious hardware "is it glued?" There's a very good chance the piece was both nailed and glued, with the nails well hidden.
Before you try to pull it apart, which is the only way you're going to be able to reglue it and tighten it up, take a good close look around the joints. Typical use has a nail/brad coming in at right angles to a tenon in a mortise joint. The nail/brad may have been put there originally to hold the piece together while glue dried (a practice all to common today) or it may have been added as a 'fix-it' measure later.
Look close BEFORE you take it apart - you'll avoid a lot of damage and extra work.
Those sites I mentioned:
http://www.vandykes.com & htt://www.constantines.com
--------------
George T.
[This message has been edited by George (edited August 14, 2000).]