Wanna Posted June 20, 2019 Report Share Posted June 20, 2019 Hi, looking for advice and found this forum. I have a sheesham wood dining table (according to the invoice) that the Mr's decided she wanted to change its colour and tried sanding it by hand. To be honest she's not really took much of it, other than making the surface duller than before, you couldn't tell. I'm now wanting to reinstate the shine it previously had , hopefully without having to go to town on it and sand it all the way back. Its a mine field with all the different options. I thought I'd settled on just applying a couple of Coats of a good bees wax with a little wire wool rub in between, but then stumbled on this forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark J Posted June 20, 2019 Report Share Posted June 20, 2019 I can give you this much info while we wait for more experienced finishers. Wax has very little hardness so any wax surface coating will not remain shinny for a long time, particularly if handled. Moreover, most film forming surface coatings will not adhere to wax. So once wax is applied you're sorta stuck. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanna Posted June 20, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2019 40 minutes ago, Mark J said: I can give you this much info while we wait for more experienced finishers. Wax has very little hardness so any wax surface coating will not remain shinny for a long time, particularly if handled. Moreover, most film forming surface coatings will not adhere to wax. So once wax is applied you're sorta stuck. That's a great start and saved me a job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted June 20, 2019 Report Share Posted June 20, 2019 Like i said in another thread about the same thing. Your best bet is to find a professional. It's going to be the most painless way to get this figured out. The best way to fix this is HVLP and spray on a coat of dewaxed shellac and then a couple fresh topcoats. It's possible to do by hand but not having a lot of experience your results are probably going to be unsatisfactory, no offense, It takes woodworkers years to master finishing and a lot of them learn to hate it along the way. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanna Posted June 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2019 13 hours ago, Chestnut said: Like i said in another thread about the same thing. Your best bet is to find a professional. It's going to be the most painless way to get this figured out. The best way to fix this is HVLP and spray on a coat of dewaxed shellac and then a couple fresh topcoats. It's possible to do by hand but not having a lot of experience your results are probably going to be unsatisfactory, no offense, It takes woodworkers years to master finishing and a lot of them learn to hate it along the way. It's becoming apparent that this is the case. Thankyou. What kind of money am I looking at for a professional (French polisher?) to do the necessities? Difficult I know without seeing the table! But it's not in a bad condition, just looking dull. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted June 21, 2019 Report Share Posted June 21, 2019 The biggest problem in cases like this is that you don't really know what type of finish is already there. Clues may lead you to the assumption that it is a spray lacquer, but that is still a broad category. To restore the original appearance, there is a strong chance the old finish must be completely removed, and new finish applied. Not an easy job to do well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted June 21, 2019 Report Share Posted June 21, 2019 8 hours ago, Wanna said: It's becoming apparent that this is the case. Thankyou. What kind of money am I looking at for a professional (French polisher?) to do the necessities? Difficult I know without seeing the table! But it's not in a bad condition, just looking dull. French polish is a very old technique and if the table is new probably isn't the best way to approach this. If you find someone that is willing to do a french polish it's going to be expensive. Beings that you said Sheesham and invoice i assume the table is on the newer side in which case the finish is most likely lacquer or some sort. As i said above if i were fixing this table I'd hit it with a couple coats of dewaxed shellac and then a lacquer or waterborne poly topcoat. There are alcohol soluble dyes that can tint shellac to many different colors allowing you to change the color slightly as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.