This is how the originals were finished on the higher end finishes.
That would include the majority of the phonographs.
The oak refinish technique is as follows:
1) make a thin stain with the yellow ochre paste and apply to raw
unsealed wood. The idea is to get a
little to soak into the wood. The label recommends using mineral
spirits as a thinner. My inclination
is to use turpentine as I like the smell and when it no longer smells
the finish is totally dry.
2) 1 or 2 coats of very thin lemon yellow dewaxed shellac to seal surface.
3) fill wood pores with paste filler. Use some kind of patching or
casting plaster like plaster of paris or
modern equivalent (I use Art Plaster) and Burnt Umber artists oil paint
to color. Mix with a little
thinner (turpentine) and a dash of boiled linseed oil to make the paste
filler. Should be real dark
brown, almost black. Apply as per normal procedures. Let dry thoroughly.
4) sand through the leftover filler on the surface and through the seal
coats as usual. Should look
slightly yellow with filled pores looking dark brown to almost black.
5) 1 or 2 light coats of the dewaxed Lemon Yellow shellac
6) add Naptha to a little Asphaltum to get it thinned down to the
consistency of almost water and still
looking black in the container. You will not need a lot. Then wipe on
the surface to get a even coat.
Be careful of corners and crevices. Set aside to dry. The naptha will
vaporize and then the
asphaltum will dry, takes a couple of days.
7) should have a color of a brown green glaze on top of the light yellow
wood resulting in a deep looking
finish without any real surface yellow or orange.
8) finish the surface with any of the various shellacs to give the final
shade. A couple of coats should
do it.
Seed lac
Kusmi Seed lac
Ksumi Buttons
Button lac
Garnet
Orange
Lemon Yellow
Almost Blonde
Super Blonde
Platina
Pick the one that will give you the shade you want to match. If it is a
complete re do I would go for the
button lac and let the wax sink and work off of the top of the jar. I
like to use more coats of a lighter
cut as it flows out better and makes an easier job of it.
The purpose of the asphaltum glaze is to tone down the yellow and darken
the filler. After glazing you
should be real close to the right density of color only the shade needs
to be tuned up with the final
coats. The end result should look like the antique honey oak that is so
hard to reproduce with the
antique depth of color. This will reproduce the depth and make a good
shot at the patina. Coal ash
(well sifted) can be used to rub out the finish and it will look quite
original. Hard wood ash will not
work as well. Hard coal is what is required.
Most important to remember that this is a production finishing technique
not a precision task. If you
go find an original Edison grille you can see the filler and asphaltum
still in the as applied condition
on the edges and back. They only finished the side you can see. There
was minimal effort expended
in wiping excess filler and glaze off of the edges and back. Basically
they got the lumps off, most of
them.
Tom Jordan wrote:
Let me start me saying that this is a bit off of topic (I apologize in
advance), but I need some advice from the experts.
I am rebuilding and refinishing the case on an old machine for a friend.
Some of the wood is dry rotted and can't be salvaged. It will be a mix of
original pieces and new replacements.
The old finish was done in a way where the striations in the oak are very
dark compared to the rest of the wood. I have heard that this was done by
tenting the wood with ammonia to obtain those results. That sounds a bit
out there to me, but wondered if any of you have heard of this or know of a
safer and less dangerous method of obtaining those results?
Thanks,
Tom
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