I'm working on repairing an "heirloom" desk -- it's not really valuable but
has great sentimental value for our family. It's clear that in some areas
the best technique is to completely recover it with a new veneer and that's
what I'm doing for the entire top. But other, smaller, and more highly
shaped areas wouldn't be easy to veneer and I don't want to change the
entire appearance anyway.
One possibility is to completely sand the previous finish off, putty the
damage, and then re-stain the whole piece. This is more labor than I'd
really like to do SO ... it seems that the best technique for filling in
scratches, gouges, and dents is a combination of putty for deep repair plus
burn-in sticks for the surface. So far my trials (on the top which is going
to be recovered anyway) are very disheartening and I need to get much
smarter on using the burn-in sticks.
From what I've done so far, it looks like large areas are relatively easy to
handle but the small dings and scratches are beyond my skill. Does anyone
know of any books or on-line resources that contain detailed descriptions of
the process with good information on (a) protecting the surrounding area and
(b) getting the repair really level?
Thanks
Norm
What a great name for a woodworker... Norm.
The real trick to using burn sticks from my perspective is controling
the heat on a putty knife or other smoothing element. This might be
harder on rounded surfaces to get an appropriate shape.
Heat up the smoother hot enough to generate drips from the stick when
you press them together and over fill your area. Then get the smoother
rto the exact right temperature and smooth out the mounded drips while
they are still cooling.
The trick is to get the smoother as hot as possible without it being
hot enough to blister the surrounding finish. Not too easy. Trial and
error.
BW
Norm Dresner wrote:
> I'm working on repairing an "heirloom" desk -- it's not really valuable but
> has great sentimental value for our family. It's clear that in some areas
> the best technique is to completely recover it with a new veneer and that's
> what I'm doing for the entire top. But other, smaller, and more highly
> shaped areas wouldn't be easy to veneer and I don't want to change the
> entire appearance anyway.
>
> One possibility is to completely sand the previous finish off, putty the
> damage, and then re-stain the whole piece. This is more labor than I'd
> really like to do SO ... it seems that the best technique for filling in
> scratches, gouges, and dents is a combination of putty for deep repair plus
> burn-in sticks for the surface. So far my trials (on the top which is going
> to be recovered anyway) are very disheartening and I need to get much
> smarter on using the burn-in sticks.
>
> From what I've done so far, it looks like large areas are relatively easy to
> handle but the small dings and scratches are beyond my skill. Does anyone
> know of any books or on-line resources that contain detailed descriptions of
> the process with good information on (a) protecting the surrounding area and
> (b) getting the repair really level?
>
> Thanks
> Norm
Norm Dresner wrote:
> I'm working on repairing an "heirloom" desk -- it's not really valuable but
> has great sentimental value for our family.
http://www.mohawk-finishing.com/images/Mohawk_Touch_Up_clip.wmv
Buy this:
http://www.mohawk-finishing.com/training_dvd.asp
Or find one here:
http://www.mohawk-finishing.com/dist_lookup.asp
Anybody that's any good at this, and isn't colour blind, can make a
wonderful living. Insurance companies, manyfacturers [sic], importers
of furniture etc., will pay good money to rescue valuable pieces.
Norm Dresner wrote:
> I'm working on repairing an "heirloom" desk -- it's not really valuable but
> has great sentimental value for our family. It's clear that in some areas
> the best technique is to completely recover it with a new veneer and that's
> what I'm doing for the entire top. But other, smaller, and more highly
> shaped areas wouldn't be easy to veneer and I don't want to change the
> entire appearance anyway.
>
> One possibility is to completely sand the previous finish off, putty the
> damage, and then re-stain the whole piece. This is more labor than I'd
> really like to do SO ... it seems that the best technique for filling in
> scratches, gouges, and dents is a combination of putty for deep repair plus
> burn-in sticks for the surface. So far my trials (on the top which is going
> to be recovered anyway) are very disheartening and I need to get much
> smarter on using the burn-in sticks.
>
> From what I've done so far, it looks like large areas are relatively easy to
> handle but the small dings and scratches are beyond my skill. Does anyone
> know of any books or on-line resources that contain detailed descriptions of
> the process with good information on (a) protecting the surrounding area and
> (b) getting the repair really level?
>
> Thanks
> Norm
>
http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/Luthier/Technique/Finish/StickShellac/sticklac1.html