AMALGAMATING A FINISH
Bill Turner
disregard caps, visual problem
Bill Turner WA0ABI
1117 Pike Street
Saint Charles, MO 63301
636-949-2210
John Goller, K9UWA
dial...@webtv.net says...
USE A VERY FINE BRUSH.....MAKE ONLY ONE QUICK WET PASS OVER THE SURFACE.
TRY TO DO ONLY HORIZONTAL SURFACES.....IN OTHER WORDS....ONE FACE OF THE
RADIO TURNED UP AT A TIME.........
IT WORKS
JOHN K9UWA
genu...@my-deja.com
dial...@webtv.net (Bill Turner) wrote:
> I WANT TO TRY IT. WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE LIST THE ESSENTIALS.
>
> disregard caps, visual problem
> Bill Turner WA0ABI
> 1117 Pike Street
> Saint Charles, MO 63301
> 636-949-2210
>
>
"amalmagating a finish" means. I have just finished restoring a Sears
Silvertone consule-curved corners and mahogany veneer-and I have a 1930s
Crosley consule to do next. Getting the radios to work has been set
aside for a winter project. I'm in this group to get all the help I
can.
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Share what you know. Learn what you don't.
sc...@my-deja.com
dial...@webtv.net (Bill Turner) wrote:
> I WANT TO TRY IT. WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE LIST THE ESSENTIALS.
For the people in the group who don't know what this is, amalgamating
a finish is the process by which the original finish is re-liquified
and dried again to reflow it and erase the flaws.
Doug Houston is the expert on this having done it many times. I see he
hasn't replied so I'll jump in with my limited knowledge. Doug
recommends a 50/50 mix of laquer thinner and laquer retarder. Clean the
cabinet well with a waterless hand cleaner like GoJo and wipe clean
thoroughly. Apply the mix liberally with a brush on a level horizontal
surface. This prevents the mix from dissolving the finish and runnning
down the side. Let the old finish dissolve, reflow and dry. On radios
that don't have a flat surface be careful not to overwet such that the
finish runs off. I guess practice is the best instructor in this
process.
I have never done it myself but there are a few sets I have that I would
like to experiment on.
genu...@my-deja.com
dial...@webtv.net (Bill Turner) wrote:
> I WANT TO TRY IT. WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE LIST THE ESSENTIALS.
>
> Bill Turner WA0ABI
> 1117 Pike Street
> Saint Charles, MO 63301
> 636-949-2210
>
>
with the Silvertone consule with you.
I rubbed it with lacquer thinner and followed this with sanding using
afine sandpaper. I did this several times and did not completely remove
the finish. The only place I removed the finish completely was atthe
base which had a few dings that had to be repaired.
My major problem was a 1 by 12 inch strip of missing straight grain
veneer and worst of all a triangle of missing burled veneer about 1/2
of a 4 by 4 inch square at the bottom of one corner. I filled in these
areas with a mixture of marble dust, carpenters glue and artists oil
paint and sanded them smooth.
I am a retired art teacher and I used my small brushes and painted in
the grain.Not bragging,but I am very good at detail work. I have asked
at least 7 people to find the patched areas and no one has picked them
out yet. I took a "before" picture and will soon take an "after" picture
if anyone is interested.
Next I had to get the overall finish back to a consistent look. Since I
hadn't completely removed the old finish a stain could not soak into the
wood so I again used an oil painting technique.
In oil painting a glaze is defined as a thin transparent layer of paint
applied over other paint. Optically the underpaint shows through, but is
colored by the glaze. Think of a sheet of colored cellophane placed over
a picture.
I used Burnt Sienna oil paint -a red brown- thinned with Liquin and a
small amount of turpentine. Liquin is a synthetic oil paint medium
available in most art supply stores. Artists use it because it makes the
paint dry faster.
I applied it with a rag and smoothed it out. I did 2 coats and I am
thrilled with the results.
I'm sure some purists will think this is not the proper way to retore a
cabinet, but I say the result speaks for itself and can be used by
anyone when there is truly a difficult problem to overcome.
If anyone needs more info on this, don't hesitate to contact me.
Hagstar
>
>.....MAKE ONLY ONE QUICK WET PASS OVER THE SURFACE.
SOME PEOPLE WILL NEVER TRY THIS AGAIN IF YOU SAY "ONE QUICK WET PASS".
SOMETIMES I HAVE TO PUDDLE THE RETARDER ON THE SURFACE FOR MANY, MANY,
MANY MINUTES OF VIGOROUS BRUSHING TO EVEN BEGIN TO
SOFTEN THE TOUGHER OLD LACQUERS. THEN ROTARY SCRUBBING WITH FINE
SCOTCHBRITE IS OFTEN NEEDED TO FORCE THE IRON-LIKE FILM INTO SOLUTION-
A *TINY*, MAX. 1" X 2" WAD OF SCOTCHBRITE, NOT A BIG PIECE THAT WILL
JUST SOAK UP ALL THE FINISH. THEN QUICKLY SMOOTH AGAIN WITH THE BRUSH
YOU'VE LEFT SITTING IN RETARDER SO IT STAYS SOFT.
PEOPLE BRUSH ON THE SOLVENT AND EXPECT THE 70 YEAR OLD FINISH TO QUICKLY
DISSOLVE INTO A PAINT-LIKE MATERIAL. IT OFTEN DOESN'T DO SO VERY FAST-
ALTHOUGH THE QUICK ONCE-OVER WITH SOLVENT WILL HEAL MINOR CRACKING AND
OTHER BLEMISHES.
320-400 GRIT SANDING AND CLEAR LACQUERING COMPLETES THE PROCESS. A FEW
COATS OF THE APPROPRIATE TONER WILL BE NEEDED TO BUCK UP THE COLOR AFTER
THE TOUGH CASES HAVE BEEN REAMALGAMATED, AS THERE IS SOME INEVITABLE
COLOR LOSS.
JOHN H.