Best "quick and dirty" option for minor scuffs, etc.?
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- This topic has 2 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 9 years, 8 months ago by keithm.
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11 August 2014 at 5:15 pm #60237
Hi all,
I’m not much of a woodworker (yet), and recently literally intercepted a few chairs on the way to a landfill. I’ve re-webbed them with jute and burlap cloth, and send out the cushions for re-upholstering, and now I’m wondering what I can do to help make the wood look a little less battered.
I’m already way, way, way over budget for this “project”, given that the original idea was just to keep a couple of nice chairs from going to the dump. I don’t think I’m up for dozens of hours of stripping and sealing and etc., so I’m wondering what the best low-impact way of moving these chairs from mildly bashed-around to okay-looking is.
The issues seem to be mostly things like scratches and what looks like water spots or other bits of water staining. Here are some photos:
[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/hBMxPka.jpg[/IMG]
A scratch in the wood.[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/ieHiEiv.jpg[/IMG]
Scuffing on the side of the arm.[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/xWTUMQj.jpg[/IMG]
What looks like water damage on another arm.I know there are best practices for this sort of thing, but given that this is something I’m tackling in my office during 15 minutes of lunch every day, I’m looking for your best ideas for a “pretty good” solution that will get these chairs looking good-at-a-glance, not to a state of absolute perfection. Thanks for your thoughts!
Welcome, if it were me, I would look at either tung oil or Danish oil, saturate a small cloth and soak the affected areas, then polish away excess after a short while ( forget what can says) – depending on how badly you want water stains gone there are other methods, but that would be my start. Available in fairly small quantities too, just be sure and dispose or rags appropriately if your choose to proceed that way.
BrianFirst clean off accumulated dirt, body oil, wax, etc. with dish detergent and water, then mineral spirits or naphtha (the latter just evaporating a bit faster). Let dry. Most of the superficial stuff will go away with a light coat of finish. The most likely finish on there now, if it’s a factory-finished place, is lacquer. So using lacquer will “burn in” to the under layers rather than sitting on top and risk peeling off. You can easily apply lacquer (or shellac) with an aerosol can. If the piece has ever had a furniture polish containing silicone oil (e.g., Pledge), then shellac will work better as it won’t fish-eye. If you find the need to use shellac, you can put lacquer over the shellac if the shellac is too shiny for you.
If there is color loss in some areas, you can either leave them, or you can get colored lacquers, known as toners, from places that cater to the touch up trade. In USA, the larger ones are Mohawk Finishing, Guardsman, and Wood Finisher’s Depot. Sometimes you can find a local Mohawk retailer, but all do internet sales.
IF you do an internet search on “Saving the Finish Jeff Jewitt” you will find an article that he’s written on the subject, including finishes beyond repair (which yours does not appear to be from the photos). He prefers shellac or wax at the end, but I think he’s more oriented toward antique restoration, or he may be in the wax vs. no-wax camp (he sells the waxes 🙂
HTH
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