Thread: Removing Excess Stain

Finishing and restoration both demand a high degree of skill and knowledge .

However, one demands excellence, cunning, extreme skill, a knowledge of all things timber, the ability to recreate the original finish, look, feel and patina of a piece without devaluing it.

The other is called finishing and sadly in these modern times depends more on what can be squirted out of a gun than anything else.

Personally I think restoring is a far greater challenge than finishing, as it requires you to call on all of your skills especially if it is to be done well. I have seen brilliant work ruined by finishers. Even had some of my own ruined by so called finishers who had no idea how to go about putting a fine finish onto really expensive work.

There is a massive difference between finishing here in Australia and finishing in the US or Europe. Here we mainly have to make do with what little we have at our disposal. Compared to what is available in the US and Europe we really do have a limited arsenal to work with. This is where cunning and know how come into play.

Whatever anyones feelings are I feel it's time to put an end to this mine's better than yours slanging matches. There is no definitive or completely correct way of finishing and anyone who isn't prepared to listen to others and learn will never grow as a finisher or restorer.

The final word:
Just because someone doesn't agree with your methods doesn't make them wrong, just different.... Maybe even innovative.

Neil

Your book Neil mentions the complexity of colouring timber and that so many skills in doing it have passed with their owners.

I've restored some Australian red cedar pieces and agree that restoration is way more complicated than finishing new work. You can strip a piece of the more or less opaque tinted shellac and can find all sorts of different colours in the wood. So there was a reason for trying to make it look like rosewood.

I don't think many of you really understand what "fine finishing" is all about.

Fine finishing not only can do all kinds of restorations.

Fine finishing takes in all kinds of other finishes, thee include factory finishes, fancy faux finishes, gold and silver gilding, patinated chemical finishes, crackle and aging finishes, textured finishes, decorative finishes. I could go on and on what fine finishers have to know.

I will end by saying, that fine finishers can do every thing that restorers can do, but all restorers cannot do all the things that fine finishers can do.

Cheers,

MacS

Guys please, retire to respective corners and agree to disagree.

Macs, you raise valid points but do them from a commercial/industrial/production point of veiw, whereas astrid also raises valid points but from a far more practical level for the occasional finisher/restorer.

Both sides are valid and both work just not practical for all applications.

Keep it nice please, really do learn from every viewpoint.

Well I'm glad MacS is here to teach us

Mac - Contrary to popular belief, we actually do understand FINE Finishing, although we rarely get to see much of it here.

You seem to have somehow missed the point here. This isn't about fine finishing it's about Robin trying to get a bit of colour and finish onto a cupboard. It has nothing what so ever to do with Fine Finishing if it did I'm sure it would have been sent to a Fine Finisher and paid a lot of money to get it done.

It should also have nothing to do with personal attacks on other members of the forums. Just because someone elses ways aren't your ways doesn't make them wrong nor should they be attacked for it. Not everyone who does a bit of restoration or finishing in their back yard aspires to be the next George Franks. Some do it for fun and relaxation some because they can't afford to have it done for them and for some it's therapy.

Only a very minute number will aspire to fine finishing and get into scumbling, marbling, graining, gilding or any of the other faux or fine finishes. Most won't even have a go at French polishing.

Here most people just want to get a good finish with what they have at hand and what they have at hand may not be much. As I said before what's available here and what's available in the US and Europe are completely different.

In many ways we are miles ahead of the rest of the world with our finishes as we are with many other things. It's just that they don't let you know in the US just how much better we really are for fear you'll all defect to Australia (not that we wouldn't welcome you with open arms).

You have expertise and are well known for your articles on finishing of which I have on occasions helped you out. I'm sure that a number of people have benefited from your expertise in this forum over the last few weeks since your return. However I think it's either time you lightened up a bit or took that break you were talking about.

Cheers - Neil

Thread definitely this time!

Robin I hope you got what you wanted from this. If not please try again and hopefully all will stick to the subject at hand.