The letter P indicates that the material is poisonous
The treatment of shabby furniture depends upon it condition. If the surface is reasonably good it can be repolished as it is, but if the old polish has perished, or had become crazed, nothing short of stripping down and starting afresh will be of any use. The stripping depends on the job itself. If the surface is quite plain the quickest way is to scrape it. The advantage is that it takes out all scratches as well as removing all the polish. Work with a lot of detail such as carving, however, needs a stripper, and it is advisable to use a proprietary brand rather than one of a caustic nature, as the latter may darken the wood, and in any case may leave a deposit which will attack any finish subsequently applied. It is often a help to use wire wool on the softened polish as this shifts it more easily. The polish being removed it is a case of starting off from scratch again, filling in the grain, bodying, and finishing.
CLEANING. It may be, however, that the polish is sound and has merely gone dull. The first step is to clean it thoroughly. Mix equal quantitites of raw linseed oil and turps and rub over the surface. This will move most of the dirt, and it is as well to change the position of the rag cover frequently so that a clean part is applied to the work. Wipe dry afterwards, then rub over with a rag damped with water and soap. This should remove any dirt missed by the turps-oil mixture. Finally wipe over with vinegar and, when dry, go over with clear water, but avoid swilling it unnecessarily.
When completely dry rub lightly over the surface with warn Flour grade glass paper to get rid of any roughness, and begin bodying up with french polish. From this point on the work is much the same as normal french polishing. Some workers give a preliminary coat of spirit varnish thinned with spirits and applied with the rubber.
PATCHES. If there are any patches of new wood in the work due to repairs, it is first necessary to stain (in required) and fill in these. For mahogany the most usual stain is bichromate of potash crystals (P) steeped in water. The latter becomes a bright orange shade, which, however, has no connection with the tone it gives the wood as the action is purely chemical. The quantity used depends on the depth of colour required and is ascertained by experiment, It is applied with a rag and allowed to dry out. For oak the usual stain is Vandyke crystals dissolved in water. Strain the liquid through muslin to get rid of sediment and apply with brush or rag.
Which is used it should be fixed with a coat of french polish before the grain is filled in. The usual trade filler is plaster of paris. This is tinted with one of the powder colours to take off the extreme whiteness - burnt umber for oak, and rose pink for mahogany. Mix the plaster on a piece of waste wood or card, and, dipping a damp rag into it, rub over the surface. Wipe off the surplus, and when dry (this takes several hours) go over the whole with a rag soaked in raw linseed oil. This will kill the whiteness and enable the surplus filler to be wiped off as a thick scum. Leave for at least 24 hours to harden. These patches should be bodied up before the main repolishing is begun.
Faults
SCRATCHES. Deep scratches cannot be filled in successfully: the result looks worse than the scratches. Instead the surface should be scraped so that the scratches are cleaned out, and the work repolished. Slight scratches which do not penetrate through the polish can be corrected by rubbing down with fine glass-paper and bodying up afresh, but the rubbing generally takes out the colouring, and, as this has to be corrected, it is often quicker to scrape and repolish entirely. Wax can sometimes be rubbed into a scratch, but it invariably needs colouring. If it is done it should be given a coat of french polish afterwards before any oil is used.
BRUISES. The notes on scratches apply equally here. Scraping out is the best way. A damp rag placed over the bruise warmed with a hot iron will often cause the wood to swell and so avoid having to scrape in too deeply. This, however, cannot be done on veneered work, and the only plan is either to ignore it or to cut out and replace with a new piece of wood. If wax is used to fill in shallow bruises, the bottom of the bruise should be pricked and scratched to give a key. Otherwise the wax may drop out. It is, however, almost impossible to match the wax fillings so that they do not show. If invisible when viewed from one direction they generally show when seen from the other way.
Cracks or nail holes can be filled with wax or one of the special stoppings made for the purpose. The last named are made in various colours. The stopping is dropped into the crack by holding a hot pointed tool over the latter and holding the stopping against it.
WHITE HEAT MARKS. Caused by hot dishes, etc. Wipe over the place with a mixture of raw linseed oil and turps (half-and-half). Leave on the place for a while, then wipe dry and rub over with vinegar. Camphorated oil (P) can be used instead of linseed oil and turps.
In more difficult cases arrange the surface so that it is vertical. Sweep a rag soaked in methylated spirit over the area and set alight at the bottom. The mark, which is generally white is caused by moisture, and the heat releases this. The process dulls the area slightly but it can be restored with furniture wax or a proprietary restorer.
WATER MARKS. Caused by water being spilt on the surface. Treat as for white heat marks.
STAINS. If these cannot be corrected with oil-turps or camphorated oil (P) it is necessary to strip and repolish.
GLASS MARKS. if the damage is caused by spirits such as whisky and is fresh do not wipe immediately as this removes the shellac locally. Allow to harden, then lightly rub with fine glass-paper and repolish. If the polish has been removed, paint in with fresh polish to bring it up level. The colour will probably have been taken out and this should be corrected with a pencil brush lightly charged with polish tinted with a little powder colour. Apply in short strokes with the grain. Never follow the shape of the circle. Finish repolish.
REVIVING. If the surface is good and the polish has merely lost its brightness it can be restored with a reviver. This will remove the dirt and polish at the same time. There are many proprietary revivers, and the following are effective:
(1) Dissolve 1 oz. camphor (P) in 0.5 pint methylated spirits. Add 0.5 pint vinegar, 1 oz. butter of antimony (P).
Another reviver is:
(2) Dissolve a small cake of good quality soap in 1 pint distilled water.
Separately add 2 oz. beeswax and 2 oz. paraffin wax to 1 pint American turps or best quality turps substitute. Heat in a basin of hot water (not naked flame), and when the wax has been dissolved add to the soap-water mixture and allow to cool. Leave for twenty-four hours and stir before use.
Apply either reviver with a cloth, and turn a clean part to the work as it becomes dirty. When it fails to remove any more dirt leave for a few hours and polish vigorously with a dry cloth.
FURNITURE CREAM. Mix 4 oz. raw linseed oil, 2 oz. medicinal paraffin, 3 oz. acetic acid (P). Stir well together in a vessel heated over warm water, and add 0.5 oz. butter of antimony (P), and 3 oz. methylated spirits.
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