# Refinishing oak table top.



## steve_c (6 Feb 2011)

I have just repaired an old oak drop leaf table which had splits in its top and one leaf. The varnish finish was also flaking so I have just stripped the top back to bare wood. However this has meant that the nice golden finish has been removed also. I would like to think that I could stain the oak to return some of the effect. I intend to use a urethane finish which is fairly colourless. What would forum members suggest? I doubt that there is a "golden oak" stain out there!


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## Shane (6 Feb 2011)

I normally use liberon dyes which I have always had good results with.

http://www.axminster.co.uk/liberon-libe ... prod22572/


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## houtslager (6 Feb 2011)

Try using Fiddes or simerler maker of stains and polishes - GOLDEN OAK [ oil based ]
and seal in with a shellac sanding sealer [ 2 - 3 coats] and then wax off with a nut brown wax.
This will give you a nice "mellow" colour for your table.

hth,

K


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## coille (6 Feb 2011)

I prefer the Liberon acrylic water based dyes. There is a good range of colours and you can mix them or dilute them with water. experiment until you get the right shade but you will need to put your varnish, sanding sealer or polish on top of the test area to get the full effect. water varnishes penetrate fiarly well into the wood and are quite good at resisting fading compared with some others.

For a quick job when there hasnt been time to muck about experimenting with colours and waiting for water stains to dry, I have also used a coloured shellac polish - there are proprietry ones made up out there, but I mix some spirit stain powder into garnet shellac and apply with a rubber, or maybe a brush for small areas / mouldings / carvings. Cant go too heavy with the colour though or you get a horrible load of streaks of colour. Bonus is that if you get it all wrong it comes off with a quick wipe of meths and you can start again straightaway. It is also fully reversible for future restorers which is always good practise. A few coats and if its already dark enough but still not polished enough, switch to transparent polish to build it up, then wire wool down and wax with a coloured wax which you can choose the colour of to further enhance the finished colour.

Pat


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## steve_c (9 Feb 2011)

Well I've actually dyed it with Colron Indian Rosewood! I was after Medium Oak but they'd run out so I got the next closest according to the samples. It works very well. The redness of the stain is hardly apparent, just enough to give some warmth to the wood. Not the 'golden glow' of the original finish but very satisfactry. I am appying three coats of urethane gloss to give some robustness to the surface and will cut back with wire wool and wax. Can anyone suggest a wax that doesn't smell too much. I usually use Bison wax on my turned items but my wife doesn't like the smell. This table has to be used quite soon so there won't be time for the smell to disperse.


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## steve_c (11 Feb 2011)

I've applied the first coat of urethane lacquer and it is taking an age to dry. The tin says leave overnight before recoating but it's been two days now and it's still not fully set (it will not sand to dust). The supplier says this is because the Colron dye I used has a naptha base and this is affecting the drying process. I've not heard of this before. I want to know how much longer to leave it before I have to decide to strip it all off!!


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## yellowbelly (11 Feb 2011)

Naptha is a very heavy oil based stain, very slow drying and I used to seal it with a first coat of shellac,
You stripped this table top back to bare wood did you neutralise the stripper before staining as this also can affect drying?


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## steve_c (11 Feb 2011)

I actually removed the original finish with a scrapper and sandpaper so no chemicals were used. I guess I should have rubbed over the 'dried' stain with a cloth to check before putting the finish on. I should have sealed it first also as you suggest. I had the bottle of sanding sealer close by. Oh well another lesson learnt.

I am assuming that I was told correctly that Colron dye is naptha based?

I presume that this urethane will go off eventually?


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## yellowbelly (12 Feb 2011)

even scraping and sanding could of left wax/silicon on the timber
no idea about Colron dye as I've always used commercial supplied stain
the urethane may go off eventually but the next coat could craze,crinkle or fish eye/ciss


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## [email protected] (13 Feb 2011)

how long did you let the stain dry? Not usually a good idea to use stain and topcoat of same solvent base as the topcoat will tend to drag the stain off....


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## Dodge (13 Feb 2011)

Steve - Pop in and see Mark at Classic Finishes on Oak Street in Norwich - Take a sample of the oak and he will colour match the stain for you. 

Rog


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## steve_c (14 Feb 2011)

Matt,
I reckon where I went wrong was not rubbing the table surface after the stain had dried to get rid of any surplus.
Rog,
It was Mark that sold me the (no.8) lacquer and he told me about the stain I'd used when the lacquer wouldn't go off.

5 days on and I reckon I can just about recoat. I'll give it another day. I can detect one or two small patches that still 'grab' when I push my fingers across it.

A lesson learnt.


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## [email protected] (19 Feb 2011)

steve_c":2ikyek8a said:


> I actually removed the original finish with a scrapper and sandpaper so no chemicals were used.



I'm having a guess but this could be where you've gone wrong. Not stripping the old finish will have left a residue and I'm guessing that the naphta stain has amalgamated with the remenants of the old finish. Natphta or other oil stains are ok to use with their main disadvantage only being that subsequent polish coats don't adhere very well and scratch off. Using an oil stain and a white spirt based (oil based) top coat is only tricky with regard to the top coat dragging the stain off as both are soluble in each other which is what I mentioned earlier prob giving the impression this is whats caused the problem...

finishes that don't go hard are usually down to 1) finishes being old stock 2) finishes not being stirred enough prior to use 3) reaction with old finishes in wood or unnetrualised strippers. 4) damp and cold working conditions. 5) stains that havnt been left to dry enough.

edit
I've added a few more


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