Thread: A little cedar writing desk followed me home ...

I glued up the new drawer and the case runners today.
I also found some cedar scraps for the drawer bottom.

1.jpg2.jpg

The first coat of shellac on the frame.
Before, after and with the drawers installed to set the drawer stops.

3.jpg4.jpg5.jpg

I spent about an hour cleaning down the top. I managed to get a lot of the oil and ink out.
The paint within the grain is a bit more of a concern, I'll try to scrub it out with some stripper, but I may still have to scrape or plane it.
Before and after cleaning. If I can get the paint out, I'm fine with the light ink staining that's left.

6.jpg7.jpg

Looks like quite a lot of work on the top still needed to be done. Will continue to watch to see how it come up.

Originally Posted by Christos

Looks like quite a lot of work on the top still needed to be done.

Sigh

Urrgh I so know that feeling. Sometimes the paint seems to get really deep into the grain of cedar, which is a complete pain to get rid of, and yet other times for some reason there seems to be so little penetration into the grain, that it can be quite a doodle to clean up. Weird hey !

I suspect Christos is about right, that is unless you are keen on planeing the top. And of course the risk is that in doing so loose patina. The colour will come up just fine once sorted.

Originally Posted by Horsecroft88

Urrgh I so know that feeling. Sometimes the paint seems to get really deep into the grain of cedar, which is a complete pain to get rid of, and yet other times for some reason there seems to be so little penetration into the grain, that it can be quite a doodle to clean up. Weird hey !

I suspect Christos is about right, that is unless you are keen on planeing the top. And of course the risk is that in doing so loose patina. The colour will come up just fine once sorted.

I know what you mean.

I don't know if I feel like spending hours hunched over the top picking paint out of the grain.
I'm going to give it one more go at cleaning, but I'll plane it if need be.

I've set the drawer stops and started polishing the drawer fronts. I want to finish this before gluing in the knobs and fixing in the drawer bottoms.

1.jpg2.jpg

I sat down this morning to try and clean the rest of the paint out of the top. I was getting nowhere fast. The paint was too deep and I was damaging the top by picking at it.

3.jpg

Out came the number 3 and the scraper. There's still a fair bit of paint to pick out, but I got about 80% of it out.

4.jpg5.jpg

This is the result after about half an hour of picking paint out. About a third of the way there. The top still has some character as you can see.

6.jpg

I finished cleaning the top now. I'm happy with how it came up.
Next job is to cut some plugs for the nail holes and glue them in.

Enjoying this restoration.

Excellent work, and very informative.


cheers,

ajw

Will the plugs be contrasting or the same type of wood?

Originally Posted by Christos

Will the plugs be contrasting or the same type of wood?

The plugs are to repair damage and are different shapes and sizes. I want them to blend in as much as possible so they'll be Cedar. I'll wash them over with dirty spirits to even out the colour.

After cutting out the damage, I shaped the plugs and pressed them into position ready for gluing (so I know where they go).

1.jpg2.jpg

The plugs are glued in now and drying. After they're dry, I'll plane/chisel them flush.
After a final wash down of the top, I can attach it and start the polishing process.
The desk frame has now had a few rubs with polish and is ready for the top.

Very nice work, and I like the idea of plugs, rather than simply using putty. Definitely the way to do this job well, and a good technique to be aware of.

Planing the top similarly I can see in the end was the most effective way of getting rid of the paint. A little patina perhaps lost but in overall terms a far better outcome.

Looking forward to seeing how this one comes together.

I've finished planing/chiseling the plugs.

WP_20140507_002.jpg

One more clean down, and the top is ready for attaching and polishing.
The desk should be finished in a week or so.

Stay tuned for the glamour shots.

Just picked up on this thread, looking really good. Just wondered if the "paint" in the grain of the top, was in fact paint or the old grain filler. The old filler was made from talc, turps and probably an umber to match the colour. If it was the old grain filler, then a wipe with some diluted stain may save you a lot of work, that is if it is not too late.
Jim

Originally Posted by powderpost

Just picked up on this thread, looking really good. Just wondered if the "paint" in the grain of the top, was in fact paint or the old grain filler. The old filler was made from talc, turps and probably an umber to match the colour. If it was the old grain filler, then a wipe with some diluted stain may save you a lot of work, that is if it is not too late.
Jim

Hi Jim,

I was definitely paint. Stripper softened it, and to a degree, spirits softened it.
The grain was quite open on the top, and the paint was deep.

I've seen a lot of the talc/plaster filler. You can get a lot out of the timber by using hot water and scrubbing. Even if there's a bit left, the amber colour of the shellac build seems to blend the surface sufficiently.
They were fond of that talc grain filler in the day

The drawer bottoms are nailed in and the knobs are glued in.

1.jpg

Before and after the first couple of coats of neat shellac.

2.jpg3.jpg

I've screwed the top on and started the polishing process. It's cold and damp in Canberra at the moment, so I'll complete polishing the top inside. Shellac can go cloudy if there's too much dampness in the air. Not long to go now. Build the polish, wax and Robert's your mother's brother. About a week I'd say.

4.jpg5.jpg