Thread: Roadside find

Excellent restoration.

That’s some major restoration work sundancewfs. It looks like it has many years of service left now and it's a nice looking piece put a another pic up when you have the fitting on.

Nice recovery, sundance. Looks better than new. And a good story to go with it.

Joe

I love roadside pickups. Great restoration.

NAH, couldn't have been found dilapidated - looks to good now for that

Originally Posted by sundancewfs

My wife picked this dresser up off the side of the road in Long Island, New York about 4 years ago. It had been left in the rain and was very beat up. The back off the carcass had been removed and the top had bowed. The draw supports had all sagged too. to the point where the middle of the dresser was about 1" lower than the ends. We used it in or bedroom and have moved about from apartment to apartment with it. Finally in the last move it kind of fell apart. The ogee feet split, one end of the carcass fell off and the top sprung two of its joints completely. So I have spent the last couple of months trying to make it look presentable again. It has early Chippendale style bail handles (yet to be put back on) and is now finished with a Tung oil finish. It is maple.

Thanks Fellas
My Dad always said "If its worth doing, its worth doing well..." Well this wasn't worth doing, but we needed the dresser Its a very rough job with everything so bowed and twisted by rain it was next to impossible to get anything flat and straight. Most of the surfaces are a bit wavy. I started by stripping all the old gunk off with a belt sander with 50 grit and slowly worked though 100, (on a 6x48 staionary belt sander for the draw fronts) 150, 220, 320 and 000 steelwool Its a functional piece, rustic and charming but not very pretty! The pic is taken after the application of the third coat of oil, proir to hitting it with the steelwool.

Hi Sundancewfs,

Like everyone else said, Great restoration job there. Well worth the effort! Quite a large chest of drawers, unusual configuration of drawers too.

Have to disagree with you mate about it not being very pretty. Simple, uncluttered lines, looks bloody terrific to me. Well done.

Cheers
Pops

Hi Sundancewfs,

Yes, an excellent restoration. I like the proportions a lot. It looks like a real keeper now!

Do you have any before pictures? Did you have to break it down entirely and rebuild it? How did you straighten the top?

Cheers, Fuzzie.

Beautiful and a fine job you have done there!

Nice

Well here it is complete. A final coat of wax, a buffing an into the house. The original handles were looking a bit tatty and one was missing. The peice is not that old, so we decided on these ones. They match the handles on a mahogany Demi-lune comode we picked up at a garage sale and I think they're nice and subtle. As far as a before pic goes... I don't think I have one. Hopefully now when we make the move back to Australia, it will stay together. As far as the extent of the damage... well the dresser is made out of boards edge glued for the sides top and draw fronts. No dowels, biscuits, floating tenons, just edge glued. So having been out in the rain most of the joints had slightly opened or failed completely. the top was in 3 peices, the sides in 2 and 3 and most of the draw fronts needed the joints cleaned, glued and clamped. most of the bending in the wood straightend itself out when it was disassembled and the weight was off it with the addition of some extra bracing internally and a 1/2" birch ply back it squared up kinda OK... I ran the top joints over a friends jointer to true them up and then doweled them back together. As I said this wasn't really worth the effort and the wood nearly ended up in the woodbin on more than one occasion. but all in all it turned out ok and we now have the storage again. (Now I can get all of the clothes out of the Wife's sewing room and back into the dresser, that should make her happy too She made the quilt on the bed)

It looks worth the effort to me! With all those drawers it also looks like a candidate for appropriation by the quilter to hold The Stash!

I'm currently trying to think up a design for something smallish to put the TV and stereo gear on at the moment and I had a passing thought that given the price of timber around here it might be worth buying a cheap chinese elm cabinet I've seen at the local discount furniture shop, breaking it down to rebuild into something more suitable to our need!

Hi Sundancewfs,

Sure looks well worth the effort now. Very speccie piece given its original condition. Well done.

Cheers
Pops

Do you have any pictures of the screws or nails that were in it or the hardware? Or some of the "behind the senses" workmanship. I'd be very curious as to it's possible age.