What would be a modern matching stain color for this VV 8-9?

[Bruce_Van_Note]

I am restoring a Victrola VV 8-9 and I want to veneer the top of the lid. Victor labeled the stain they used as a "baronial" finish. The veneer I plan to use is red oak but what would be the modern equivalent of Victor's "baronial" finish? I'm including a photo of the VV 8-9, a work in progress. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[EarlH]

"Baronial Oak" actually was a dark stain in any of the old books I have on wood finishing. I have one of those machines as well, and I've puzzled for the last 5-6 years on how to refinish it and I don't even think I can go by what's under the lid, because the whole thing looks faded to me. It makes me think that they used coal tar dye or some other pigment that was unstable, or at least unstable on oak because of the acids in the wood or something. And trying to stain new oak to match that old oak will be a challenge. Are you using 2-ply veneer or what are you using to re-veneer to top with? I worked the oak veneer off a junked out XIV cabinet this summer and laid it out in my garage to dry out slowly. I can look at it tomorrow and see if it settled down well enough to use for something like that if you want. It's probably 10 years older than your machine, but it might work out better than a new piece. I also have some old quarter sawn oak veneer from a piano factory that's aged, so it's not stark white anymore. You'd have to tape it up, but you may be looking at doing that anyway. Most of the modern veneers are so thin they don't take stain all that well. At least that's been my experience.

After that, you'll have to do some experimenting to figure out what looks best to you. That nearly white grain filler puzzles me and that's the other thing that makes me think the stain the used was unstable color wise. I've had grain filler turn white like that as well. I had one cabinet do that three times to me and I finally just bought some brown (soap coloring pigment because it's quite coarse) pigment and make my own grain filler. I was about ready to put that thing on the burn pile. Orange or a mixture of orange and button shellac will probably get you pretty close to color though. They are nice machines, but that whole "baronial oak" color is a mystery to me. It looks more like silver oak or a silver grey oak under the lid on my machine. Seeburg used a color like that on some of their coin operated pianos. And I've seen those and I really have a hard time believing Victor would have stained a whole run of machines that color as it really wouldn't match anything most normal people would have had in their homes in those days. Good luck with that project now, Earl