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Good source for quarter sawn oak veneer:
http://www.constantines.com/whiteoakqua ... lake1.aspx

Thanks for the link Curt. That does look like the stuff I need, but I don't need 24" x 48" worth, nor am I enthusiastic about paying $67 CAD for it especially when I'm only going to use a 12" x 12" piece. I'll keep it in mind though if none of this other wood works.

I did acquire a 12" x 96" roll of veneer from a wood supplier for $30 (also too much quantity, but the price is ok), and it says it's quarter cut white oak but to my eyes it still doesn't look quite right. It doesn't have the short vertical 'speckles' that the old stuff has. It's been bookmatched 3 times to get a 12" wide piece of veener; I guess there's no more big oak trees around to get a single 12" wide piece out of.

Have a look at the pics and compare to what I already posted. Good enough to use or keep looking?

Considering your machine's family history, the early type of machine and the fact that you have gone all out on restoring and re-nickleing the mechanics, I personally would look for the best piece of "flaky" quartersawn veneer as possible. However, since the turntable covers a major portion of the top, you might be OK with the piece shown in the 2nd pic and the right hand side of the veneer pictured is the best part of the piece. It all depends on how much is visible with the turntable installed... Just my opinion...

Also, it is obviously your choice and whether or not it suits you.

The "speckles" are known as "ray-flake" amongst wood lovers.


They are a hall-mark of old-growth quarter-sawn White Oak.


How much ray-flake is evident in the rest of the cabinet wood ?

Veneer thought -

If you cannot find a single sheet of veneer to your liking, but find pieces wide enough to do the two long side (grain parallel to the length of the rail - call them "sides"), you could piece it, using strips the length of the top, and wide enough to reach the inside edge where the motor-plate goes. Then ( hopefully ) find matching / harmonizing grain to go in between, on the "top" and "bottom" rails.

Would not be "factory original", but this technique was employed in that era, and would keep all the grain running in the same direction.

The other technique would be to piece the veneer with the grain parallel to the length of each rail, with 45* mitres at each corner. This is a far departure, as the grain would be perpendicular at each corner.


Just some thinking, in case you cannot find the full stuff.

I wonder if there are any sources for old-growth veneer ?

Here is a link to Hearne Hardwood's. You can see their quarter sawn red oak. They don't seem to stock this as a veneer, but might be worth calling. Don't know.
http://www.hearnehardwoods.com/hardwood ... _wood.html

Curt, there's a surprising amount of the lid visible even with the turntable on it. Looks like the turntable will mostly cover my fresh nickel plate, but not the wood judging by this image I found of a similar unit: I'm picky about matching this old veneer, but there's only a couple places left in this city I can visit to see if they have a better selection of veneer, so I'll see what happens there. I may just have to use this roll, but I'm hoping these last couple shops will either have it or know of a place where I can find it.

Just to be clear (because I can't find a good description online) are the "ray-flakes" the black-ish short vertical lines, or are they the lighter and thicker wobbity-woos that cut across the vertical lines on an angle? I see descriptions of oak veneers as having "Tiger Flake" and "Heavy Flake", and now Frank says "Ray-flake", but I'm not really sure what's-what and which term I should be using at the wood shops to aid my search.

Just a reminder, this is what it looks like now: And here's a side of the box that shows how much ray-flake the rest of it has: Frank; I like the cut of your jib. I had the same thought about piecing good sections of the veneer in the manner of which you speak. Unfortunately I haven't found large enough sections with the right grain pattern that would mostly match side-by-side to do this. Probably won't do the 45° cuts for this restoration, though it is a good idea.

I'm also thinking of using Hide Glue to attach this new veneer as well as patch bits of the box that are broken. Seems like it's what they would have used back in the day and has the benefit of being able to wipe off any squeeze-out with just water. My options for products are these:
http://www.titebond.com/product.aspx?id ... 7daa20f8ed
http://www.leevalley.com/en/hardware/pa ... 42965&ap=1
I was leaning towards the Titebond stuff since I can get it at home hardware. Anybody used this stuff before?

And since I'm getting close to the finishing stage, I'm contemplating which finish to go with. I'm headed for shellac in a can unless there's good reason not to go that route:
https://www.homehardware.ca/en/rec/inde ... tt=shellac
Shellac would have been the original finish, so I thought it'd try to score points for originality. Haven't used the stuff before, so my method will be to thin it out so that I have a longer work-time. Or should I spray it?
Or go with Varnish or Polyurethane?

So many questions...

I'm headed for shellac in a can unless there's good reason not to go that route:
https://www.homehardware.ca/en/rec/inde ... tt=shellac
Shellac would have been the original finish, so I thought it'd try to score points for originality. Haven't used the stuff before, so my method will be to thin it out so that I have a longer work-time. Or should I spray it?
Or go with Varnish or Polyurethane?

Adam... DO NOT GO WITH VARNISH OR POLYURETHANE!!!

Use Bullseye AMBER Shellac (it doesn't come in a spray can)... It's easy to use, I usually use a clean cloth dipped in the shellac and wipe it on, then wipe off any excess. It gives the wood a warm original look. Try it on a piece of scrap to get the total effect...

In regard to the flaking in quartersawn oak, the light/dark wavy striations are what is being referred to. Look for white oak, not red oak veneer and if you have a Woodcraft store nearby, they usually stock smaller pieces for projects. That being said, you may have to bite the bullet and purchase a larger piece, as it will be worth it. If possible, look at the pieces in person to get the best piece, since each piece varies quite a bit. The main thing is to not get anything that has straight, even graining...

Also, Titebond wood glue works well...

Adam,

In your photo of the top-frame with the veneer fragments, the chip to the left: the dark thin vertical, parallel lines are the grain, similar to your roll of veneer. The blondish streaks that cut across the grain diagonally from about 4 o'clock to 10 o'clock are the "ray-flakes". They somewhat resemble the stripes on a tiger. They are the medullary rays of the wood, which extend outwards from the center of the trunk in a radial direction.

Here is a pretty good description, with pictures:

http://workshopcompanion.com/KnowHow/De ... _Grain.htm

I believe I learned the term studying Arts & Crafts wood furniture, most likely Stickley. Might have even seen the term in one of their catalogs.

As for what to attach the veneer with, I would go with hide glue. If you ever want to remove the veneer, some moisture and heat will release the veneer from the frame.


Keep us posted.

Frank

One more suggestion... you might look for a junker machine or an old piece of furniture that has the quartersawn veneer that can be salvaged...