Restoration and refinishing of a unique record cabinet

[Duchesne]

Well, it's been many months since I provided an update on this project. It is coming along well, even after having had my frustrations over it.

I needed to strip several times to get the blotches out of the wood. I also gave it a an good sanding. I needed to fill a few dings and minimize a scrape on one side panel ...
Dings.png

I've settled on it being a pine, as seen in this reclaimed lumber page.
https://oldfloridalumber.com/our-wood-1

I looked at many youtube channels and settled on this product to inhibit blotching.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfCYMdrP8rM
https://charlesneilwoodworking.3dcartst ... redirect=1

I used a medium brown water based dye stain from General Finishes, as recommended above. I do not have a sprayer, so I wiped it on. It's very dry in Tucson and it dried faster than I could work. This was my frustration. I was able to use an airbrush to get the color even.

Now the carved panels needed planning. That's were I will leave this update. I'm not ready for the unveiling yet. Here's a tease of the stained wood with the unstained carving. You'll see my vision for it taped to the wall. The stain will be applied with the airbrush and some fine brush work.
Panel plan.JPG

James.

PS: I finished both panels and they look very close to my plan.

Wow James,

Yeah, what you chose for stain looks super. I was looking at these photos of the wood - Pine or Fir for a Chinoiserie-styled record stand. My guess it was meant to imitate black lacquered furniture of that period. Your enthusiasm and perseverance has paid off though. I wondered how you were going to fix those warps and cracks, and the blochy wood from the stripping and other stains. As I read along I could see you weren't too bothered and stuck with it to this point. I thought I had the patience of Job, but I think you win on that one

I will look forward to seeing the final pics.
Cheers, JJ

[Jerry B.]

Very impressive!

Jerry B.

[Roaring20s]

Yeah, what you chose for stain looks super. ... My guess it was meant to imitate black lacquered furniture of that period. ... As I read along I could see you weren't too bothered and stuck with it to this point. ...

I will look forward to seeing the final pics.
Cheers, JJ

JJ, I am an amateur with creative skills. No fancy tools, just the basics for the home. I knew that I could make it better than it was. The best part ... my wife loves it!

I agree that the person who made it was after the black lacquered look.

The color is close to the Edison Standard I plan to put on it.

James.

[Duchesne]

Yeah, what you chose for stain looks super. ... My guess it was meant to imitate black lacquered furniture of that period. ... As I read along I could see you weren't too bothered and stuck with it to this point. ...

I will look forward to seeing the final pics.
Cheers, JJ

JJ, I am an amateur with creative skills. No fancy tools, just the basics for the home. I knew that I could make it better than it was. The best part ... my wife loves it!

I agree that the person who made it was after the black lacquered look.

The color is close to the Edison Standard I plan to put on it.

James.

Even better James! I too am not a professional, a lot of my experience is research and hard physical labour by trial and error, but I'm mechanically inclined so some things break apart easier. It's a plus when your spouse loves it. I am not permitted to purchase any more player pianos. 2 is more than enough I'm told - They do take up a lot of room. I can get away with a few more gramophones though.
I will wait for your photos.
JJ

[Roaring20s]

After many side-tracks and the summer heat, it is as done as it is going to be!
(I was getting tired of pushing it around and seeing it as a reminder of what I still needed to do).

I also made four cardboard trays to hold cylinders. The trays and the drawer holds 90 records.

My next project is to supe-up my Edison Standard B and place it on top. I have all the parts needed to upgrade it with a Cygnet Horn, using a horizontal carriage and a variety of reproducers.
We'll see how long that takes.
(The horn has been ready and in a closet since Jan. 2020)
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=43424&p=255794

[Jerry B.]

Very impressive. Looks like you've gone the extra mile and done a terrific job.

Jerry B.

[JeffR1]

That's quite the piece.
I see Fir in there for sure, the claw feet looks like a type of mahogany, hard to say for sure though just from the photos.

The only time I've seen that sort of weird damage to the finish was from smoke damage, our picker bought a bunch of stuff that looked just liked that, and it was in a fire.

[phonogfp]

It looks very nice James - - a real eye-catcher! Congratulations!

George P.

[martinola]

Really, Really, Really nice!

[alang]

Looks awesome! You're really done it justice. Some things just take time to be done well.

Andreas