Thread: Please help

If no-one else want to suggest anything then I'll have a go...
Depends what your objective is I think. If you want a beautiful vintage piece then its probably not worth your time. If you want more of a 'user' then I suspect it will be fine with a bit of work. Looks like it would be hard to prize out those newly inserted nails at 90deg to each other without causing some damage. The other joints if already loose could probably be knocked apart to be reglued. As for restoring the finish I would try to find out what the old finish is by exploring with metho and fine steel wool to see if it's shellac. If it is then you can clean it all off...if not then maybe try sanding very carefully to remove the old finish.

Just a start I am sure more experienced restorers could add ideas

Hi thanks heaps for offering your advice, I don't think it's varnished but does seem flakey in spots. I will give the steel wool and metho a go this weekend. Is a rubber mallet the best to try knock the loose joins apart? I'm worried I'll break the little wooden noggings that join the wood together and is it just pva glue I would use?
Thanks heaps

I typed out a long reply to this and then the computer shat itself and I lost it. So i'll start again. By "the little wooden noggings" do you mean dowells?
If so then I wouldn't worry about breaking them as you can drill them out and replace them with new ones. In fact that is probably better as whatever the type of joint, you will have to clean off any old glue to get a raw wood surface for the fresh glue to bind to. If you are using a non-space filling adhesive such as PVA, this commonly means some fiddling to get the joints back to a tight fit again, by use of shims, to fill in the space left by the clean up (although this does not really apply in dowell joints). Or you can use a space filling adhesive like epoxy. An adhesive like this might be better than PVA for dowel joints as it may not need grain alignment for good strength. Outside my level of experience to make that call though.

I would be very careful to use softish wooden 'drifts' when attempting to knock the joints apart. By all means use a rubber/wooden mallet but be very careful to knock against a block to cushion the blow and aim for surfaces that are more hidden than others. Levers (pry bar, screwdrivers etc) are also useful but again be careful to avoid bruising the timber at the fulcrum and end of the lever.
It looks from the photo that the leg where the nails are is cracked. This may be a serious weak point which you would be in danger of damaging if attempting to re-open this joint. Still you could give it a try and then repair any faults afterwards. It may be possible if you undo all the other joints to to pry off the sides in line with the nails. I would have an explore and then maybe post for photos for better diagnosis on the forum.

If the nails are put in straight, e.g. not angled, you will have the easiest time removing them. As previously said, the gold plated solution is to cushion the timber from your rubber mallet, best way is with a rubber backed timber block, but a rubber mallet is pretty safe on its own.
Better yet is to pull it apart, but that is difficult to 'set up', however you may think about your available materials and if you can somehow 'pull' rather then 'bash'... ?

I often am able to bang things apart with my fist, I knocked the bed posts off a bed head with my fist on the weekend, as it was held together with 8 dowels only (3 had broken). If the nail is 'straight' into the upright and then the horizontal rail, then bless the bodgy repairer and see if you can pull or bang it apart.

Steam and water dissolve hide and pva glue, if it was glued with epoxy or x-linked pva, you will have a bugger of a time.
Keep us informed as you go....