Re-varnishing saloon table

[Concerto]

Thank you all for your kind suggestions.
I must confess I am slightly bewildered as different people seem to prefer differing methods And I have no way of judging their merits.
Scraping and sanding back to bare wood (or veneer, which is likely) frightens me. I am worried I might make deeper scratches than the ones which bother me now. And the thought of putting on a multitude of layers of varnish or lacquer does not appeal either, I am not confident I am going to like the end result.

Using the cabinet scrapper and tools I recommended will give you the best control and is very difficult not to get a clean finish. The amount removed is very very thin as shown in slide 58 of my presntation. The lacquer is mixed at the ratio of 9:1, so you can mix small quantities if required. The pot life of the mixture is about 36 hours, but once applied it dries in about an hour to hour and a half, and can be recoated 3 or 4 times in one day. So no waiting for each coat to dry like varnish. Morrells recommend 3 spray coats, but brushed coats are thicker. As we are talking about a marine environment, there is no harm if thicker coats are applied. They do also recommend good ventilation, so have your hatches open on a day with a gentle breeze. If you decide to go this route then do some test panels on either woodwork elsewhere on the boat or on some old furniture. There is nothing technically difficult to refinishing wood. The only advice you should follow is only brush along the grain, never across. So give it a go.

 

[Graham376]

I must confess I am slightly bewildered as different people seem to prefer differing methods And I have no way of judging their merits.

Youtube could be your friend. Lots of furniture restorers there, search something like "restore antique table" here's atypical one -

Having just watched that video, I'm not so sure about the effect acetone would have on veneer adhesive, he was working on a solid top. Plenty more videos out there.

 

[rszemeti]

I've had wood items as in nameboards etc. that have had 30 or 40 wipes before fit for final.

The secret is that thinned varnish and repeated sanding to create the ultra smooth and constant look.

Very difficult to reproduce a Factory finish.

I very much doubt that the original finish was 40 odd layers of hand applied varnish ... more than likely it was two layers of spray lacquer or something similar. These were production boats after all.

 

[lw395]

Thank you all for your kind suggestions.
I must confess I am slightly bewildered as different people seem to prefer differing methods And I have no way of judging their merits.
Scraping and sanding back to bare wood (or veneer, which is likely) frightens me. I am worried I might make deeper scratches than the ones which bother me now. And the thought of putting on a multitude of layers of varnish or lacquer does not appeal either, I am not confident I am going to like the end result.

Practise on something less important or less conspicuous.

I don't think you are wrong to be cautious. Factory finishes are often very hard. And veneers are sometimes very thin.

 

[Refueler]

I very much doubt that the original finish was 40 odd layers of hand applied varnish ... more than likely it was two layers of spray lacquer or something similar. These were production boats after all.

I never said the factory finish was 40 layers ........... I said MY finish was that ...

Most factory items are in fact machine sprayed and then 'cured'

 

[sarabande]

It would be worth looking at some of the 3M Scochbrite products available as sheets and pads. They have a full range of grits right down to v v fine.

https://multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/119555O/scotch-britetm-hand-finishing-systems-brochure-pdf.pdf

Don't be tempted to use steel wool; there are always tiny fragments left over in the interstices of the joints.


Our floorboard fitters use scotchbrite to finish parquet floors. Large pads underneath a standard floor polishing eccentric machine.



By coincidence, I was consulting yesterday with another forumite on his new oak door. We both agree that Tonk is the stuff to use. He only has another twenty or so coats to go before he achieves the finish he wants

 

[ip485]

It depends what finish you are seeking to achieve and how perfect you want it.

The best finish will be achieved by sanding back to wood. If you dont, the old varnish will give a patchy result. Also you may not know what varnish was used before and so when you add new varnish on top they may be not compatible.

You should then think about colour. When sanded back, the wood may be much lighter and you may not find the grain is sufficiently brought out. Consider using a stain.

To achieve a really good varnish finish lots of coats are needed, and unless you are really good at brush work, spraying is the answer. It is a long process.

There is a short cut.

I have used Rustins flowcoat and there are other similiar products. You can poor a film that is equivalent to multi layers of varnish, produces a superb finish and is very hard wearing. It is pretty easy to use as well.

The flowcoat accepts a final 2K spray coat if you wish and the 2K rattle cans work very well. Use a mask and spray outside! You will achieve a spectacular finish that is very hard wearing.

Alternatively spray or paint varnish until you have the finish you want, rubbing down well between the first few coats.

The only parts worth shortcutting are the layers of varnish.

For the very very best finish you may want to cut the final finish with a cutting compound to bring it to a mirror gloss, but as I say, it depends how far you are going with it.

 

[Rafiki]

Like in post #4 I too have used Sadolins PV67 on woodwork in my Westerly with great success. Any difference between this product ( satin version) and the original lacquer used is almost imperceptible. The instructions say to only use on bare wood, but I found it was fine on top of old lacquer that had been sanded down by hand. It is a 2 part varnish so needs to be mixed ( syringes from ebay are ideal for mixing small quantities. It dries very quickly and can be overcoated in 3-4 hours. It's always best to do the preparation of doors, tables etc in the garage and the varnishing in the spare ( heated) room.

 

[doug748]

Thank you all for your kind suggestions.
I must confess I am slightly bewildered as different people seem to prefer differing methods And I have no way of judging their merits.
Scraping and sanding back to bare wood (or veneer, which is likely) frightens me. I am worried I might make deeper scratches than the ones which bother me now. And the thought of putting on a multitude of layers of varnish or lacquer does not appeal either, I am not confident I am going to like the end result.

You are right to be wary, once you sand through you are committed to taking the lot off and it is not easy to do well.

If the original finish is still intact give it a light tickle and try a coat on top - can't lose. I might suggest well thinned traditional varnish like Blackfryer or Rustins; or even Woodskin or Sikkins applied with a rag.

If it goes badly you are only likely to be back where you started.

 

[ip485]

I forgot to say if there are fiddles then it becomes a pain cleaning back to wood. You really do need to take them off. Also a proper belt sander makes a world of difference and will clean off the old varnish in no time BUT you do need a little care not to go through the veneer - not that this is really a problem. If the veneer is in porr shape you are better off applying new veneer - it really isnt that difficult and very good teak veneer is available on eBay and other sources. Stick it down with West epoxy and it will come up stunning!

However, as other have said it does all depend what you are aiming for. This is the route back to new or better. Anything else will fall short, but will inevitably save you quite a bit of work. Horses for courses and all that.