The Elixer of Life for old wood

[classiccaprice]

Hey Fellas,

I'm trying this on the tv cabinet and thought I would share. It's a great way to revitalize old varnish/shellac. I'll be attaching pictures in the next posts.

http://www.needlebar.org/main/restoration/index3.html

 

[classiccaprice]

the door on the right has been revitalized using this method, the door on the left is still original.

 

[toggleswitch2]

Viagra?

ooh goody. I have grandma's old Singer brand foot-treadle sewing machine and the cabinet does need some love....

rub rub rub until it shines!

 

[classiccaprice]

Now it is not as dark as it would have been in 1953 (back of the un-elixered door compared to the front of the elixered door), however it's a great improvement over where it was and it preserves the original finish.

Thoughts anyone?

 

[oldhouseman]

Wow that's quiet

a nice restoration on the machine cover. That part he called a "fad" is called a "rubber" here in the states. Made the same way pretty much but called a rubber because, of course, you rub the finish on. I put a french polish on a sideboard once. It took a couple of months and over a hundred coats but the results were well worth it.

Will, what's your next step with this one? By the way give a call if you need help with the wood finish. I have lots of experience with mahogany furniture restoration.

 

[iheartmaytag]

At first I thought this was SPAM for Viagra

I am so relieved, I have been looking for something like this to use in my house. The house is 73 years old and the Mahagony (sp) woodwork needs some, not a lot, but some beauty treatment.

I was looking for Old Gold this weekend, but no one seems to carry it any longer.

 

[sudsmaster]

Cool. I have an old oak Victrola that could use some industrial smoothing.

 

[classiccaprice]

Well, I just finished elixer-ing the piece... you be the judge

First a before:

 

[classiccaprice]

now an after (I put the doors back on AND the record player in for these shots... just for you guys

It may get another coat later to try and even out those doors...

 

[classiccaprice]

inside before

 

[classiccaprice]

inside after... I used the laptop camera for these shots, but for some reason it reverses the image.... oh well

 

[classiccaprice]

The next steps:

I'm waiting on an idler wheel and a needle to come through the mail, after that the cobramatic should be complete... (cross your fingers!)

I'm saving up for:

a grille cloth... Someone found this link for me, it's the wrong material, but the pattern is so close I plan on using it.

capacitors... I've got several radios to replace them in, but at the moment I'm focusing on the 62 Philco console, then I will replace the ones in the Zenith... It's going to be fun figuring them out.

re-coning the speaker... when whoever ripped out the original grille cloth (grr) did it they tore a hole in the speaker.

I probably will refinish the top of the unit, but the sides all came out well with the elixer. Thanks for the help Greg, I may be in touch when I get to that point.

Sorry for the confusion ab viagra out, wasn't intended...

http://www.interiormall.com/cat/nsample.asp?ID=99832&t=179

 

[classiccaprice]

oh, I forgot, I've got to get some new veneer for that spot on the door!

 

[oldhouseman]

Good job there

Will, it looks great. You can very easily put a finish on it to make it look showroom new. Keep us posted on your progress.

Greg/oldhouseman

 

[classiccaprice]

Couple of things:

I forgot to site that I got the Elixer from Dave (volvoguy87) and our friend, Wes (who may or may not be a member)... Now you can hound Dave on why he didn't post it earlier as he hounded me for not citing him...

Also, if you use this, make sure you follow the directions to the "T" I do suggest the "those who dare" version... just make sure you wipe it up quickly!

 

[perc-o-prince]

Hey,

It does look great, but we've been using Howard's products for about 10 years now, and they seem to do about the same job with much less work. No stripping involved! It's almost as though they re-imalgamate the finish. We've tried it on cracked and crazed finishes as well as lightly stained wood. I'll have to find a piece to show a demo on.

Chuck

 

[perc-o-prince]

This isn't the best example of the near miracles that Howard's can do, but it's what I saw handy. BTW, this is not to in any way take away from the great work Will's elixer is doing. It's just to show an alternate method.

Before:

 

[perc-o-prince]

I used Howard's Restore-a-Finish with 0000 steel wool, then wiped it off. The towel was black with grime. So, I did it again. Better. The Howard's seems to blend imperfections in the wood, such as the light streaks in the back left of the before photo, and highlight the true grain. The front center is actually a crack that hasn't been repaired. There are also a few tiny paint dots that are more visible in the after photo (I didn't do any detail work at all). Total time: about 4 minutes. And, I would have normally gone over it with Feed-N-Wax, but I couldn't find it right away.

For those who dont have a lot of time or the space do dedicate to refinishing, these products really are a great (small) investment!

Chuck

 

[classiccaprice]

its a nice alternative... thanks for the input.

 

[oldhouseman]

Will did you

rub some red mahogany stain back into the wood?

It may need some to put the deep color back in.

There were production issues when this cabinet was crafted that caused the manufacturer to have to speed up the process for getting that finished polished look that presented so well and wonderful in the showroom. And it lasted for decades.

We can't replicate that sped up finish (unless you have a factory) but I can tell you how to put on the traditional finish on mahogany to get that French Polished look (actually how to do the French Polish).

I have some 18th century mahogany pieces of furniture with the original finish. Doing the finish right from the start makes a great difference for the life of the piece.

 

[classiccaprice]

I haven't yet... sounds like a good idea... I'll write you soon for some more advice.

Thanks Greg.