Can I? Should I? refinish this table

October 1, 2016 6:14 AM

I need a coffee table. I like one I found on Craigslist. I think I could refinish it and it would be quite nice.

Coffee table in question is here.

I have some experience finishing wood, but I have never refinished furniture. It looks like solid wood to me that could be stripped, sanded and revarnished (or oiled, or whatever).

There do seem to be a few gouges (in pictures 3&4). Do you think these would give me trouble?

I would be doing this in a backyard space as I don't have access to any indoor spaces that are not my small apartment. I was planning on hand sanding after stripping. Is this an afternoon or two project or a bigger undertaking?

Any other guidance re: this project accepted and appreciated!

posted by geegollygosh to Grab Bag (24 answers total)

I'd totally do this. It isn't going to be perfect, but perfection is overrated and so is spending $1000 on this coffee table new. Gotta time this project with the weather. Also keep in mind that nobody looks underneath a coffee table.

Make sure that the table is sturdy though.
posted by oceanjesse at 6:27 AM on October 1, 2016 [2 favorites]

Get a good stain that you like, and some linseed oil. This should be just an afternoon project, I think.
posted by oceanjesse at 6:30 AM on October 1, 2016

You could also pretty easily paint it. I've been repainting the same $20 bookcase in new and exciting colors for 17 years. Right now it's bright shiny red.
posted by something something at 6:32 AM on October 1, 2016 [2 favorites]

The stand is probably solid wood, but it's a good bet that the top is veneer over plywood, with solid wood edging. You can still strip the top and scrape or sand out minor imperfections, but don't go at it with a belt sander.
posted by jon1270 at 6:35 AM on October 1, 2016 [7 favorites]

Do you have the time to refinish it? It's a sharp looking table and with a nice finish would look great, I think. It would be better if you could do it indoors, but hand-sanding after stripping, and then stain and a couple coats of polyurethane... You should be able to get it done before the snow flies, even just working one day a weekend, as long as you can bring it inside in between. I would expect three or four partial days of work. The day stripping and sanding might be a long one. After that, they're short days with lots of waiting for stain or poly to dry.
posted by DaveP at 6:37 AM on October 1, 2016 [3 favorites]

Also, I'd say it's worth doing despite the fact that it won't be perfect, and it will take more than an afternoon.
posted by jon1270 at 6:38 AM on October 1, 2016

Be careful if you decide to apply a shiny/protective top coat, like polyurethane, outside. Generally those need to be protected from dust while they dry.

You could potentially use some water-based polyurethanes and stains indoors, though (still have decent ventilation for sure)
posted by amtho at 6:57 AM on October 1, 2016

Alternatively, you could also use tung oil on the top. It soaks into the wood and actually hardens it a bit. I did that to a dresser over 30 years ago, and it still looks great!
posted by dbmcd at 7:01 AM on October 1, 2016 [6 favorites]

I just refinished a nightstand, dresser and chest of drawers this year and I had zero refinishing or woodworking experience and am generally not a handy person. I watched a Youtube video a guy I was dating recommended and that's how I learned. They came out nice (others verified). I think your coffee table is doable. That said:

If you want this to come out decent it is going to be more than a one afternoon job, more like two or three. I'm not sure you will need stripper to remove the current stain or if sanding will suffice, but be prepared to do A LOT of sanding either way. Stripping sucks bigtime BTW so be prepared if you have to use stripper.

Start sanding with rough grain and moving up to lighter grain (I think I did a round with 80 then 120ish then 220 - these are probably wrong grit #s but you get the idea). Then precondition your wood with preconditioner. Let sit a bit, then stain. I like Rustolem stain after using a shitty stain the first time around which looked awful and made me start from scratch on a piece :(

Coat with 3 coats of polyurethane clear coat - makes all the difference! But takes alot of time because there is significant waiting time between coats.

Regarding your table, I think the hardest part will be those slats down at the bottom. If they are removable that will make things easy.

I felt very accomplished after doing this so I say go for it! But have a space outside blocked off from wind when you stain and clearcoat cause grass and dust will stick to it while its drying and it is not easy to remedy that if it does.
posted by WinterSolstice at 7:07 AM on October 1, 2016

Sand in the direction of the grain and then wipe on Danish Oil. Don't bother chasing perfection- it'll look great.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 7:19 AM on October 1, 2016 [2 favorites]

If you end up not liking the wood look into chalk paint. It's a type of paint not the paint that you make chalk boards out of. Super forgiving and easy to use.
posted by wwax at 7:58 AM on October 1, 2016

I have a telephone table that I rubbed with a mixture of oil and vinegar and IT LOOKS PERFECT.

Occasionally I reapply the mixture. There maybe no need to refinish this!!

I own a lot of fancy wood refinishing products. The oil + vinegar trick really blew my mind. YMMV. Seriously, every imperfection melted away. Lasts for about a year, then you need to reapply. Google for the recipe, I don't remember the particulars.
posted by jbenben at 8:55 AM on October 1, 2016 [2 favorites]

A lot of mid-century furniture has a penetrating oil finish, and this piece looks like it does too. Because they're penetrating finishes, they don't strip like paint does, and since it's almost certainly veneer you won't want to sand the hell out of it (as others have said). If you can find a penetrating finish that matches, you could touch up the gouges with it & then put a coat overall. (Watco is the easiest brand to find, it comes in a handful of colors) It won't look like new but it will pass. The end product is a matt finish, and it not 100% impervious to water, you could put a coat or two of satin urethane over it to seal it.
posted by mr vino at 10:17 AM on October 1, 2016

Unless the table has been polyurethaned, which based on the picture seems unlikely, you do not need to strip this. In fact, the stripping-sanding process could damage the veneer.

I've refinished a fair amount of furniture in my time and I would start with Formby's Refinisher (or a similar "generic" refinisher). This will dissolve the existing finish, which should remove most/all of the flaws visible in the picture. (I can't tell for sure, but the "gouges" in the picture may be in the finish, not in the wood.) Follow this with a light sanding, if necessary, i.e., since you haven't stripped the wood, you may not need to sand anything. Further, you will not have removed the stain, so unless you want to change the color, you just need a finish coat. I would go with boiled linseed oil (similar to Tung oil, but dries faster—tung oil takes forever to cure; "danish oil" can mean many things).

A polyurethane finish is more durable, however, it's a relative pain in the ass to apply, e.g., it requires multiple thin coats—thicker coats tend to bubble and bubbles must be sanded out. Also, if the finish is damaged, it can't be spot repaired, and it requires a chemical stripper to remove/refinish any damage.

As long as you don't use polyurethan, it's an afternoon project
posted by she's not there at 10:30 AM on October 1, 2016 [1 favorite]

After reading mr vino's comment, came back to add that I believe there is more than just on oil finish on the table, which the refinisher will remove. Watco would be in lieu of the boiled linseed oil step—I've used it and it's an excellent product.

If you must go with a final coat, look for an oil-based wiping urethane, which is a thinner product and easier to apply than those that are brushed on.
posted by she's not there at 10:51 AM on October 1, 2016

Upon further thought, not an "afternoon", but a weekend project. An afternoon to remove the finish, but more time needed to allow the finishing coats to dry.
posted by she's not there at 10:58 AM on October 1, 2016

I'd attempt this in a hot minute! You could even try a restoration product (like Howard Restor-a-finish) and 0000 super fine steel wool could be enough to restore the finish before you add a final protective layer (like tung or linseed or other finishing oil or oil/wax combo). Please don't paint this!
posted by quince at 11:12 AM on October 1, 2016

Inspired, I just decided to touch up a mid century credenza I have that looks to be the same color and finish as that table. The top has some sizable scuffs and one large spot where melted wax removed the finish entirely, I've tried markers and refinishing fluids over the years with no real or lasting success, color matching was hard...

2:1 ratio of olive oil to white vinegar + food coloring 1:1 red to green. Dip a rag in the oil vinegar, pick up some color from the food coloring mixed in a seperate container = MAGIC. Let it set a minute and then buff the scratches and scuffs out. out. Wipe down the whole surface. Color is buildable on the scratches and scuffs.

Thanks! I was getting ready to re-polish the telephone stand, your table persuaded me to finally fix the credenza!

So much easier than totally refinishing the whole piece. Works wonders on scuffs and scratches, I would sand rough spots very gently with a super fine piece of sand paper if the surface was really bad, then rub down the entire piece building color and buffing out stains and scratches with zero shame. You could clear wax and buff afterwards, I bet.

Good luck.
posted by jbenben at 12:00 PM on October 1, 2016 [3 favorites]

I'd buy and it not do a full refinish. The top is veneer and that can be tricky.

I'd clean it with oil soap, use a finish touch up pen on the worn spots (tap and wipe, tap and wipe), then I'd hit it with a few coats of polish and buff, buff, buff.

It'll look great.
posted by 26.2 at 12:14 PM on October 1, 2016

Point of clarification, oil furniture finishes (boiled linseed oil, tung oil, etc) harden as they cure, i.e., they aren't like vegetable oil. It sounds like the olive oil+vinegar method will take care of some issues without damaging the existing finish, but it's not going to repair a damaged finish. Also, it's not the same thing as "oiling" furniture, i.e., wiping down furniture with a light coat of finishing oil about once/year to maintain an oil finish.
posted by she's not there at 12:26 PM on October 1, 2016

Never tried it myself, but I've read that edible oils (olive, vegetable, etc) applied to wood can go rancid, and that it's best to stick to mineral, tung or boiled linseed.
posted by kate4914 at 1:26 PM on October 1, 2016

Confirm what kind of wood it is.

If it's a rather soft wood, might not be worthwhile/harder (sanding errors stand out more). If it's something like oak - GO FOR IT!

The arcs are really nice and hand-sanding makes sense. There might be places near you that rent power tools, ie., for the larger flat surfaces.

Agree with the oil finishes - knowing what the base wood is will further inform you as to which oil would achieve the effect that you desire. I really like good tung oil finishes (many applications) that's matted with ultra fine steel wool; looks like the current trend around me for hardwood floor finishes.
posted by porpoise at 7:51 PM on October 1, 2016

Looking at the photos I'll say the top is veneered, with 99.99% certainty. I'll also say that it was likely originally finished with Danish oil or similar.

As someone who sometimes makes furniture for money I'd clean it thoroughly and sand lightly. You won't get the full depth of the dents out of the top without going through the veneer so just get it feeling good and looking as best you can. Clean up the frame to remove the damage you can see in a more aggressive fashion then re finish with Danish oil as others have suggested. I would strongly discourage anything like polyurethane, they are harder to apply and you are departing from the original look for more work. Straight oil finishes are likely to be problematic as you are unlikely to be able to completely strip the original finish, you could well end up with blotches.
posted by deadwax at 3:55 AM on October 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

It's $50 and you like it? Do it in a heartbeat. And if you don't like what you come out with, you can always paint it.
posted by fiercecupcake at 8:29 AM on October 3, 2016