I don’t want to be unduly alarmist, and I know there are galoots with more
experience than I in refinishing, but I’ve just read some of this thread, and
there are several assertions which, whilst being completely right, are also
completely wrong.

The correct answer is  ‘It depends’  - when did we last use that on this forum? 

It depends because the way the item was made, and what it’s made with, varies so
much.  Others have already mentioned damage to veneers and glues.  Be careful.
check exactly what it is you are dealing with.  Prolonged exposure of any water
based anything to hide glue will soften it.  Alcohol is the preferred way to
remove veneer that is hide glued on. - just get some alcohol into the glue line,
followed by an old, thin, reground table knife, and it just cracks away without
water damage.
Dip stripping - boiling up an item in a vat of nasty stuff, is great for
anything that will withstand it.  Used to be a trend over here years back to
take old pine doors and furniture and mistreat them this way.  Plenty of loose
joints as a result.

SO, - you are right not to use  a scraper. 
If the subject is veneered in place, and old, assume that water will damage it,
and prolonged alcohol will do so.
Work a small area at a time, cleaning up as you go, and washing off residue.
Rather than vigour with your brush, try and balance time for the resume to
soften with ‘gentle’ brushing to avoid grain damage.

Sometimes a commercial stripper is the best solution, sometimes a water based
one, sometimes a spirit based one. sometimes a bit of each on the same item.

Once it’s damaged, it’s damaged.  Once you remove any patina, its gone, and
replacing it takes ages  :- )


That’s my take on it

Richard Wilson
a Yorkshireman in Northumberland



> On 19 May 2015, at 06:14, Mark Jefferis  wrote:
> 
> I have just stripped a Montgomery Wards 1940's sewing machine cabinet with a
blond finish on it that showed the underlying mahogany wood grain through it.
> 
> The blond finish was almost like a see through paint. Ugly as snot.
> 
> Zip Strip with a denatured alcohol wash has successfully removed the finish
accept for what remains down in the grain of the mahogany. I am finding it to be
a challenge to remove necessitating aggressive brass brushing with the alcohol.
> 
> Am I on the right track with the use of additional Zip Strip and the brass
brush? I absolutely do not want to use a card scrapper and sand paper to get to
the bottom of the grain lines because the cabinet cover and side panels uses
thin mahogany veneer.
> 
> If anyone can suggest another faster method of finish removal from the grain,
I'd be very pleased.
> 
> Mark
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