Furniture, Wood and Cabinetry Finishing - Refinishing the cabinet--can't get stain out

I actually posted my message in the Woodworking Project area before I found this area, which is probably a better place for this thread (I'm new to this forum).

I am in the process of refinishing the cabinet, which is/was covered with American Walnut stain and then with white paint. I've stripped the frame and one of the doors. Upon stripping the door with KS-3 Premium Stripper, the stain came off quite easily with a wash solution of 50% lacquer remover and 50% denatured alcohol. However, I'm having an extremely difficult time removing the stain on the frame of the cabinet. The frame appears much darker than the door. Is it because the stripper was applied to the frame vertically and therefore was less effective as compared to the door, which was removed and stripped horizontally?

The cabinet appears to be constructed of ash and the original stain was probably American Walnut.

Am I stuck with sanding the cabinet, which I won't really mind provided that I learn the proper technique?

Thanks very much in advance for your suggestions.

Assuming you used the same stripper and rinse on both cabinet frame and the door - you're probably going to have to sand to get the stain out.

Everyone will tell you to sand with the grain - all that means is sanding with the long dimension of the board. If the frame is rail and stile construction, the vertical members will run from top to bottom separated by the horizontal pieces. Sand the horizontal pieces first - the areas where you over-ran into the vertical pieces can be smoothed out when you sand them.

Start with rougher paper and work to progressively finer. On ash, I wouldn't use anything rougher than 120 grit - I prefer aluminum oxide production paper.

Use a sanding block - either bought or home made. NEVER sand with just paper and your hand - you'll leave a trough. - the exception to this edict is sanding moulding - sometimes you just gotta. For most curved surfaces (concave)I'll wrp paper around a section of wood dowel that's approximately the right diameter and use that as a sanding block.

If I can confuse you further, come on back...

George,

Thanks very much for your helpful advice. I've since found that if I wash the wood for a longer period of time with the rinse solution using #3 steel pad, I can get most, but not all, of the stain out. Do you recommend I do this prior to sanding or should I avoid it to prevent possible wood gorging?

How do I know when to stop sanding with the 120 grit paper and switch to finer paper? Until I see that all the stain has disappeared? I'm concerned about sanding one particular area too much or applying unequal pressure or should this be a nonissue with the sanding block?

Lastly, what's your opinion about using an orbital sander? (I don't own one though.)

Rob

Use the steel wool and rinse to remove as much stain as oyu can. Sand the rest. Do NOT sand just the areas with stain. Sand the entire piece uniformly. You change grades of paper when the stain is gone and you need to smooth the wood down.

The rougher the sandpaper used just prior to staining, the darker the stain will be - a rougher surface absorbs more of the stain.

I use an orbital sander for broad flat areas. Carvings, trim, rails and stiles I generall sand by hand.

BTW - the sanding block I use most of the time is a piece of 1X4 four inches long. It readily accomodates a 1/4 sheet of whatever paper I'm using with enough left over for me to hold it in place with my fingertips as I sand.

Wipe the piece down thoroughly when you change grades of paper. This will remove any of the larger grit (from the sandpaper) that may be left on the surface.

George,

One of the doors I stripped contains a thin, deep groove spanning 8 inches in the middle. The groove was already present before I stripped the door; whatever was filling it dissolved upon washing with the rinse solution and #3 steel wool. The groove is much too deep to sand the door down to its level so I'm assuming I'll have to fill it with a natural-color wood filler. I wish to finish the cabinet in the natural ash color (no stain). Is there a better alternative to using wood filler?

I think I'll use a varnish for finishing the cabinet. Is there a product that you recommend? Would it be appropriate to apply a coat of shellac before applying the varnish to shorten the drying time?

Rob

Bite the bullet and use a wood filler. Pay particular attention to the color selected. Wet the raw wood down with paint thinner to get a look at the color you'll have once a finish is applied - this will guide you to the proper selection of filler.

If you're talking standard varnish as a finish (not polyurethane) I really don't have a preference. I've used several and have been satisfied with them all.

Shellac will provide a good sealer coat under STANDARD varnish - you can't use it under polyurethane. Shellac was used by the "old-timers" for the very reason you mentioned. It's great as a sealer coat, and dries within an hour to recoat.