Stripping Varnish

[Wiley25]

Hey all!

I've spent the past 2 weeks making a treasure chest for my girlfriend for Christmas, it's to store all her art supplies.

I've used pine and I've finished it with ronseal antique pine varnish.

It looks TERRIBLE. I've done about 3 coats, was hoping it would balance out.

What is the fastest/best way to strip it all off so I can try an alternative, I want to get it looking as much like the original colour as possible.

Here is the chest BEFORE i ruined it



Thanks in advance.

 

[Wiley25]

With varnish:

 

[billbo]

looks more like a cats coffin

 

[marcros]

what is it that you don't like about the finish- I can't see the detail from the pictures.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I can't read the word "Ronseal" without remembering the letter in a old "Viz" where the guy was complaining that it didn't say on the tin that the stuff was going to leave his front door looking like an African elephant had wiped its arrse on it.
If you strip the varnish with a stripper, you may find you have to stain/dye it to cover any remaining messy colouring and then varnish over the top. I've always found it better when using coloured varnishes to stain the wood first, as it gives better depth of colour and also doesn't show scuffs and scratches quite so badly. A tip - try your finish on a bit of scrap before a major project (yes, I know 20 - 20 hindsight is easy). Good luck with it.

 

[Wiley25]

@Marcros: It's just really patchy and generally doens't look very good.

@Phil: I actually did test a bit, and it looked fine on the 2x1 i did it on....

I'm not sure if to try and use varnish stripper or sand it? Or strip majority off and then sand it?

 

[marcros]

i wonder whether you could (coloured) wax it over the top, and save having to strip it. I hardly ever use varnish, so don't have much knowledge on it.

 

[inkyblue]

Hi. I would sand it off, and to make it look like antique pine, would use Morells medium oak stain, then P7 briwax (which is tinted). Gives the most authentic antique look I've found to date.

 

[RogerS]

Sand it off. Stripper will take forever and a day with all those panelly bits.,..getting it in and out of the cracks.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Yer ... but ... You've still got to sand around all those panelly bits. Six of one , half a dozen of the other.

 

[rafezetter]

No... but ... sanding off will make the sandpaper all claggy and take forever. Heat gun it off without scorching get a nice sharp scraper at the panelly bits edges, then sand / scrape off any residue.

Then dye it to try and even it all out, and topcoat.

 

[mrpercysnodgrass]

It looks to me as though you have a residue of PVA glue on the pine which has caused the patchiness. You will need to strip off the varnish with a paint stripper and number 2 or 3 wire wool then give it a good sanding, starting with 150 grit and finish with 240 grit. if you want it to remain a natural colour use a clear varnish but if you want an amber pine look you would be best to stain ( liberon antique pine water stain is very good ) then use a clear varnish over the top of that. A good half days work I'm afraid.

 

[Richard S]

I think we are all missing the point that this kind of soft wood blotches like a bitch. It is without doubt a real challenge to get a nice finish on. With regards stripping back I think you will need a combination of chemical stripping, sanding and scraping. I don't know if the op is familiar with cabinet scrapers, if not on a project this size you will find you can get good results scraping with a utility knife blade, run the edge of a fresh blade across the shaft of a screw driver or large drill bit to turn the edge. I don't think a heat gun will help with a water based finish (I assume that's what it is).
I've had reasonable success staining pine with General Finishes gel stain, it stays workable on the surface long enough to manipulate, you can also leave more stain around corners and details if you are trying to achieve a more aged look.
Personally I really like old pine but unfortunately the only thing that looks like old pine is old pine. Fortunately I also like painted pine, might you consider painting the piece, it's no disgrace, all the old stripped pine you see today was nearly all painted back in the day!
You could also try sealing the wood first (once it's back to its bare state) this helps even out the absorbency of the wood and reduce the blotching effect. A weak solution of shellac (French polish) is probably best.
Looks a tidy box, I'm sure whatever happens she will be delighted with it.

 

[swede54]

I made the same mistake and sanded it all off. I then clear waxed it and within a couple of years it naturally turned a nice even antique colour.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

" ... this helps even out the absorbency of the wood and reduce the botching effect... "
No need to be so blunt. Sorry. Seriously, that's a good point about the uneven colouring - it is notorious. The OP could do some research on scumble and paint it.

 

[Richard S]

Doh!!!

 

[Wiley25]

Thanks for all the advice. I should really have read up on how difficult pine is to stain before doing it, that'll teach me. Anyhow, 5 hours of sanding later and we are in a good place. I have some satin varnish on a test piece now, if I'm happy with it I just have some fin grain sanding to do and I think the project will be saved! Next step is to try and make some shelves that pop out as you open the lid! I think o might buy a cheap vanity box and see how those hinges work, just upscale the measurements!

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Ahem ... it usually pays to sort these bits out first ...