Refinishing an antique wood trunk and having problems
Aaron Chmbley
Hi there everyone! I have this old wood trunk that was actually my great
grandparents and they used it when they moved to this country from italy.
I inherited it when my grandmother died. It was all painted brown and my
plan was to strip off the brown paint (it was very scratched and dirty and
whatnot from being stored in a basement) and then put some kind of varnish
or something on it so that it would just have a bare wood look.
This is where I ran into a problem. I bought a paint stripping product
(can't remember the name of it right now) and that worked fine on the
brown paint. But it turns out there is another layer underneath that is
'BRIGHT' turquoise. I don't know what this stuff is but it does NOT come
off! I've tried a couple different stripping products that were
recommended to me by some store clerks and none have worked. I even used
a power sander and after almost an hour I was able to 'mostly' get down to
the bare wood in one small area. Whatever this stuff is...it's strong!
I was just wondering if anyone could recommend anything to me that might
be able to do this. I don't know if there is some industrial strength
remover that I could try. I just know that I really don't want to have to
sand the whole thing that much. It would take months.
Thanks a lot everyone!
-Aaron
Goedjn
> (can't remember the name of it right now) and that worked fine on the
> brown paint. But it turns out there is another layer underneath that is
> 'BRIGHT' turquoise. I don't know what this stuff is but it does NOT come
> off! I've tried a couple different stripping products that were
> recommended to me by some store clerks and none have worked. I even used
> a power sander and after almost an hour I was able to 'mostly' get down to
> the bare wood in one small area. Whatever this stuff is...it's strong!
If you ever find out what it was, let us know. Sometime
I might have a use for an indestructible finish...
db...@sprynet.com
chemical. ask around at the paint stores if they have anything to remove
latex paint. even sanding latex, it has a rubber base and does not
scratch off as easily as oil based paints.
RamblinOn
Aaron Chmbley wrote:
> Hi there everyone! I have this old wood trunk that was actually my great
> grandparents and they used it when they moved to this country from italy.
> I inherited it when my grandmother died. It was all painted brown and my
> plan was to strip off the brown paint (it was very scratched and dirty and
> whatnot from being stored in a basement) and then put some kind of varnish
> or something on it so that it would just have a bare wood look.
A lot of really old paints were milk paint. I read long ago that milk paint
can be removed with ammonia, but have never tried it and don't recall any
details. I'm surprised stripper won't touch it. I've never found a paint
that can't be removed with Stripeez. I have an old trunk which my
great-grandfather brought over from the "old country". It has his name, the
date (1854), the shipping line, and pretty decorative painting on a black
background. It's been around, but weighs a ton and is really solid. Have you
contacted a paint store for advice?
Aaron Chmbley
On Thu, 5 Jul 2001, db...@sprynet.com wrote:
> probably some latex paint. latex is hard to remove with a paint stripper
> chemical. ask around at the paint stores if they have anything to remove
> latex paint. even sanding latex, it has a rubber base and does not
> scratch off as easily as oil based paints.
Thanks for the tip!
-Aaron
RamblinOn
geulincx wrote:
> On 5 Jul 2001 12:43:37 PDT, aar...@pacifier.com (Aaron Chmbley) wrote:
>
> >Hi there everyone! I have this old wood trunk that was actually my great
> >grandparents and they used it when they moved to this country from italy.
> >I inherited it when my grandmother died. It was all painted brown and my
> >plan was to strip off the brown paint (it was very scratched and dirty and
> >whatnot from being stored in a basement) and then put some kind of varnish
> >or something on it so that it would just have a bare wood look.
Are you SURE you want to strip down to the bare wood? Aside from ruining the
antique value, you are changing an heirloom. If you don't like the turquoise
color, a dark glaze might change the appearance enough - or a thin coat of
paint in another color, with glaze, to look like wood grain. Milk painted wood
isn't that common any more.
frankly scarlett
RamblinOn <Ramb...@mindspring.com> wrote in message
news:3B44FD50...@mindspring.com...
I agree. If it's that hard to strip off, it's likely the first coat, on
bare wood. I'd leave it and if the colour really bothers you, just tone it
down. Have you shown it to an antique expert?
-- scarlett --
>
Jeff C
I would bet that it is milk paint. Ammonia does a fair job of
removing it but time/brain cell consuming (open lots of windows). I
tried to refinish an old door with milk paint. Spent hours and hours
scrubbing with ammonia and steel wool but I still can't get the trim
clean. There is a product out there that is supposed to remove it, I
can't remember the name. I am sure a search will find it. Good luck.
Al
"HYH" <n...@work.com> wrote in message news:3B451739...@work.com...
> RamblinOn wrote:
> >
> > I have an old trunk which my
> > great-grandfather brought over from the "old country". It has his name,
the
> > date (1854), the shipping line, and pretty decorative painting on a
black
> > background. It's been around, but weighs a ton and is really solid.
>
> so that's how they smuggled you in.. good thing they didn't have the dope
> smelling dogs at customs then.....
NOSPAMBOB
loads of indo as well as a very informative forum. Visit
http://www.homesteadfinishing.com/ and search for milk paint as he sells the
stuff also. Believe there is a FAQ there also. If nothing helps ask the
question on the forum. Please post what & how when the final steps are
successful.
In article <3B44EDAD...@mindspring.com>, RamblinOn
<Ramb...@mindspring.com> writes:
>A lot of really old paints were milk paint. I read long ago that milk paint
>can be removed with ammonia, but have never tried it and don't recall any
>details. I'm surprised stripper won't touch it.
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