Refinish antique farm table

[Unregistered-drewp2]

Greetings,

I have a circa 1880 farm table. The top is made from 3 pine board: 2 14 inch sandwiching one 8 inch. The table top has tons of character…cigarette burns along the sides, and varying colors throughout. We were given the table as a gift from a prominent antiques dealer…cost about $1,600 8 years ago.

The table was dark stained with a hard finish. The wood is rough, and between the boards was wood filler. It WAS beautiful.

Today, the filler is chunking out, and the finish has completely worn away in spots. I want to bring this beauty back to life, without sanding down or stripping off the stuff that gives it character (like the cigarette burns).

I don’t have much experience with refinishing. Does anyone know if I can successfully stip off the old poly (or laquer, I don’t know what it is) and restain and finish, without bringing it down to bare wood? If so, what product and method is optimal.

Many thanks for your help with this…come over and enjoy a dinner on the table with us, anytime!

Cheers,
drew

[HenryinMI]

Yes, you can. There are a lot of issues to consider and some decisions that having a bit of experience would help with. You might start by doing some homework on wood finishing and refinishing. A book called Understanding Wood Finishing, by Bob Flexner, is the best around on these subjects. Your library probably has it or you can probably find it on sale on-line, new or used. When you have the basic language down, then you can reasonably consider sanding down the finish, not the wood, and shooting it with tone spray or stripping the finish on the top and refinishing just the top and what products to use for both. I can’t suggest a good book on refinishing but with the basic knowledge, you get a pretty good idea what you can do.

Henry in MI

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