Refinishing a wood table: need advice.

I would sand it and just oil it not stain it...I am not a wood expert but it looks like Teak to me

I'm quite lazy, not especially talented on finish work, so I use Watco oils. I favor the teak oil for water resistance, but they make fruitwood and various shades of walnut finish which will darken the wood.

If it's a solid hardwood, I would go ahead and sand out the design.

I don't recognize the wood. Hang on while I find a different site.

Cat-tails, cool. Too bad it's gone.

I'm kind of liking the idea of distressed/ furniture with history, though -- like putting a clear polyeurethane (sp?) or something on it, after cleaning it up. Something that would bring out the details, deepen the colors, and protect the surface.

You'll have to join and do an email confirmation, but this is a good site.

Ummm... roger? Did you forget the link?

Thank you!

I think it has to be solid hardwood - it is too dang heavy to not be. Plus, the construction of the table is pretty old school.

Teak, huh? Could be. My bookshelves are teak veneer and they don't look a whole lot like this. Of course, they are veneer and they are not so distressed. I'll take a closer look at the grain pattern!

Yeah, soz. Some of the old design is beautiful - there seems to be three different scenes in the different panels, mountains, a pond, a town. Unfortuanately someone has added a space ship and some other stuff which could be cool but it is not very well done.

The table definately needs some moisture! The wood looks pretty dehydrated (in my inexpert opinion)

I think I keep thinking "dark" stain because it appears that the table might have once had black lacquer on the base and surrounding areas. There isn't much "dark" left and it could be just grunge or something!

like I said Im no wood expert so it could be something else, I was just looking at the design of the table....also steel wool is good to use on it as well, it well help get off all the grungey bits.

Actually, you could very well be right. The grain is very similar to my shelves.

Is a lot of Asian style furniture made from teak?

Oh gosh! I remember my grandma and mom buying steel wool by the barrel when they went on refinishing sprees! I'll definately have to check in to getting some of that.

Thanks!

Teak, Mahogany and Cherry wood...but I think Cherry wood maybe lighter
in colour

The word "site" links it from my screen. Click it and see if it doesn't work.

Oh duh.

I must be color blind! I even looked for the blue.

Time to schedule an eye appointment.

Thanks for that too, Roger!

Actually KiwiChic, the table is pretty light colored. I think the first image is probably the closest but it might be even a bit lighter than that.

I have to think sanding and oil. I don't think I would stain the wood unless there's a reason for it.

I'd guess cherry, too. I don't know if this stuff is still available, but there used to be a product calle Formby's refinisher. You put it on with 000 steel wool and it took all of the old gunk off to reveal the woodgrain. Then you can use tung oil to seal it. I'll look around ad see if I can find a link.

Here 'tis.

That looks like great stuff!

Cherry, huh?

Mr. B sells a lot of South American cherry so I'll make him inspect it for type -- he might know -- he knows more about flooring than furniture though.

So it sounds like - sanding, Fromby's, Watco oil, is the prescription so far.

What does everyone have against stain? It sounds like a no-no.

Anyone care to elaborate?

Things in my house have to survive a lot of action. That is the main reason I'm buying used furniture (this table was $40 -- a good deal, I think (hope)). I want to make sure that whatever I do to it can stand up to our life.

sand with a wood block and dont start with too coarse a grit, maybe a 320 because it doesnt look that bad except for the cattails (I wont ask, Ive had kid art too).
The wood is hard to tell from here. The last one actually looks like oak or chestnut. Most teaks dont have much of a pronounced grain like this table, and cherry , maybe. I like the idea of just cleaning it up and Formbys oil then some tung oil if its gonna get some use. (Tung oil is what they use on basketball courts)
If you stain it dark, you almost never can get it back without a lye bleach, which screws up the wood fibres.
I love Formbys. They have all kinds of "stage kits" for all kinds of finishes and their instructions are quite easy to get familiar with.
Gotta agree with the Swimpster.

Oooh, pity about the spaceships.

I wrote mine when I thought nobody'd replied yet, I'm no expert. Swimpy and farmerman's seem to know what they're talking about (they often do...)

soz. YA know how you make good decisions in woodworking?

EXPERIENCE

Know how ya get experience?

YA MAKE A LOT OF BAD DECISIONS

I kinda like the cat tails and if you saw them in context you would probably like them too. The drawings are really quite nice.

The spaceships aren't even really that bad. They're kind of fun and funky.

I like kind of crazy stuff.

And it was just a $40 table.

But I really do think it is a pretty table. It has nice lines and a great presence. I don't really know if I want to go with fun and funky on what I think might end up actually being a nice piece of furniture.

I don't want to make BAD decisions and seeing how farmerman in posing (?) as Jesus elsewhere.....

Well.... I don't want him to show up all pissed about my table.