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Woodworking question


Coytee

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Wife inherited an old swing leg table from her father.

 

Table is dull as dullsville.  She'd like to "pretty it up" but, can't yet articulate exactly what that means.

 

I've asked if she wants a glossy finish, satin....

 

Table seems to be mostly solid but I saw some telltale signs that the top might have a veneer on it.

 

She's thinking on buying some stain and putting some on it.  She says it's got some mildew on it.  

 

The table will be used in the (finished) basement so her niece (in a wheelchair) can roll up to it and the leaf can be pulled out.  The leaf can then be put back when she's gone.  Seems to work like a charm.

 

So in my opinion, one criteria would be some form of moisture protection for it since we can't guarantee everyone will use a coaster (even though she's had several of them strategically placed on it)

 

 

Thoughts?

 

 

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If it is truly an antique don't refinish it as it will diminish the value by about 80%. The antique people love that crappy, dull, scratched, scraped, warped, cracked finish. Otherwise sand it with 220, seal and stain it and apply finish.  You can apply about 12 coats of finish with sanding in between with 400 grit to get a glass look. You can buff out the final coats with a buffing wheel and ordinary liquid car polish. There are about a zillion different methods that are possible and you will get all of them on this thread. Remember also that staining is an art in itself so beware of too many lights and darks that don't look right. If it doesn't look right you will have to sand it all off and do it again. You can spend the rest of your life on this job.

It's a lot easier to send it out to a pro and have him do it.

JJK

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"She'd like to "pretty it up" but, can't yet articulate exactly what that means"

 

Well that is your problem, not the table.  Perhaps you're not listening?

 

Always to the point, aren't you!  :blush:

 

I did however, find out that it's not sentimental to her.  Turns out her father bought/stole it from an ex-girlfriend of his that didn't get along too well with the daughters in the family.  So it's just a table.

 

She's going to stain it and urethane it (as I currently understand)  She's already sanded it a bit.  Seems she's ok if it doesn't turn out perfect.  She's also not too concerned with any antique value.

 

Her real interest seems to simply be it's functionality for use when her niece (in wheelchair) is visiting as the table allows to be minimized when not in use.  She's setting it on the back side of the room in between the two (buried in wall) LaScalas.

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Eyeballing, and going by your measurements, they are not the same, but similar enough to get a knowledgeable opinion.  The bevel top is different for one thing.  A lot of furniture was custom back then it doesn't have to mean anything.  So check it out, you never know.  It is an awesome functional design no doubt about it.

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Coytee, I too have a drop leg table very similar to yours.   Mine is mahogany veneered still in good shape and on the list of things to do some day.  Mine has two leaves that can be inserted and can get pretty long.

 

If you decide to just get it in working condition one easy method is to use Minwax wipe on poly (satin or gloss).  I use this on my speaker projects most of the time.  Hard to screw it up.  Get your ole Harbor Freight terry cloth pads to apply it.  Sand with 220 and remove dust with tack cloth then apply thin coats sanding with 400 grit in between, remove dust repeat.  You can use the gloss version for first few coats if you like then switch to satin to tone down the shine.  No brush marks, durable finish, quick to do except for letting it dry about 4 hours depending on humidity between coats.  Good luck with the project and post pics of the finished project. 

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We have one of those as well, but the two wings are almost half circles. It may be at my daughter's house... Hmmmm.... Ours was painted black. I have seen them redone entirelly in black for the bottom with the top stained. They look really nice that way.

 

Bruce

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