| Project by Rev_John | posted 782 days ago | 376 views | 0 times favorited | 11 comments |  |
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This summer we took a trip to North Carolina for a family reunion. We were staying at my wife’s Aunt’s house. It’s a great place on a lake. Several years ago her daughter spilled fingernail polish remover on one end of her dining room table. She has been meaning to take it to a refinishes for years but she lives alone and has had a very serious auto accident, breaking her back. She experiences some pain, but at 81 she is doing great!
We were their a week and so I went down to the local stores and purchased the items I needed to refinish the top {the 3 leafs are a future project). She got the table as a family hand-down. She thinks it is about 100 years old, but her cousin that she got it from used it to store motor oil etc. It still had sings of the old oil stains. Some time ago her husband had washed it and put lacquer on it with a brush.
I looked for a cabinet scraper everywhere, but in a small town! So I went to more manual way of stripping and preparing the wood. The center is mahogany with a 8 inch band of walnut around the edges. I spray coated it with three coats of Lacquer.
While the rest of the family played games and talked, I took the table to the lakeside screened porch and did my thing. Except for the 104 temp, I really enjoyed this trip.
-- John from Jackson, Michigan
11 comments so far
CharlieM1958
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7666 posts in 1115 days
posted 782 days ago
That’s what I call a nice shop with a view!
Excellent job on the table top. It looks like an heirloom that has been handled with kid gloves for years.
-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"
TomFran
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2515 posts in 891 days
posted 782 days ago
Nice job! I’ll bet she appreciated your labors.
-- Tom, Surfside Beach, SC - Romans 8:28
Bill
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2561 posts in 1058 days
posted 782 days ago
Nice work John. What a great place to work as well.
-- Bill, Turlock California, http://www.brookswoodworks.com
MsDebbieP
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14162 posts in 1058 days
posted 782 days ago
beautiful table; beautiful work. beautiful vacation!! :)
-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)
Dadoo
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1723 posts in 887 days
posted 782 days ago
Interesting combination of wood, and the way the grain pattern runs, I wonder if this was made in a home shop by some great-great family member? Either way you look at it, I’ll bet she’s really thrilled to have it renewed. Great job!
-- Bob Vila would be so proud of you!
kjwoodworking
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202 posts in 784 days
posted 782 days ago
Looks good! I like the contrasting woods.
-- Kirk H. -- http://www.kjwoodworking.com
Karson
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25803 posts in 1298 days
posted 782 days ago
John. A great restoration. Even without cabinet scrapers it looks like you got the finish down quite well.
-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †
DAN
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6454 posts in 880 days
posted 782 days ago
really nice work John ! great save
-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever
cajunpen
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5968 posts in 963 days
posted 782 days ago
Great save and a very generous act on your part. I really enjoy hearing stories about help for the elderly. I bet that she was really thrilled to have her table looking like new again. And like everyone else said – the view ain’t bad at all. Thanks for your kindness and for sharing your story.
-- Bill - "Suit yourself and let the rest be pleased." http://www.cajunpen.com/
herbr
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138 posts in 966 days
posted 782 days ago
Reallly great restoration!
-- Spread love with our work
jembo
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105 posts in 911 days
posted 782 days ago
Well done, great save
-- James - Geneva, Switzerland