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Cleaning Oiled Walnut Finish


Charles218

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I am close to completing the restoration on my 3A's and I'm seeking advise on how to get rid of a few small blemishes on the oiled walnut finish. When I purchased the speakers there were three or four small pieces of strapping tape on the finish, evidently it had been there for many years as it was all dried out. I carefully peeled it off and it left a light residue on the finish. The majority of the cabinets are in very good condition, I don't think that a complete refinish is in order. I would like to clean up the few spots and then finish with a combination of tung oil, linseed oil, and turpentine in a formula recommenced by Carl in a previous post. What suggestions do members have for cleaning in preparation for the final finish?

Charles

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Recommend you use Formby's conditioning Furniture Refinisher applied with a rough cloth or #0000 steel wool (keep away from drivers). It will strip off that dried adhesive and remove old wax and oil finish. Do each entire cabinet starting at the bottom so you get a feel for using it. Pour 1/8 cup of Formby's in a glass dish for dipping the applicator in. Use a rubbing motion in the direction of the grain. When you complete this process you'll see the rich color of the veneer appear. Let the veneer dry completely 1-2 days before applying the oils.

It's all about the music

Carl

Carl's Custom Loudspeakers

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Guest matty g

Question - Do you think that solution will help for slight water staining? I just lucked into a nice pair of 2ax's but they have very slight water staining on the tops. I don't think I need to take them all the way down and re-stain, but I'm wondering if anyone has a method for dealing with that common problem. WHY do people insist on putting plants on these things???

Matt

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I'm sure you'll get lots of free advice on this one. Even the woodworker chat sites have much debate on this one. I know, I've been there researching the answer to that very question.

The best success I've had with both dark and light water stains is to simply sand down the entire top surface and restain.

It's all about the music

Carl

Carl's Custom Loudspeakers

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Charles,

WD40 will remove a wide variety of gunky residue.

I've used WD40 to remove old, sticky tape residue from metal, painted, and plastic surfaces, but I've NOT tried it on an oiled wood finish.

I'd suggest first trying WD40 on a concealed surface of the speaker, or some other oiled finish furniture.

Moisten a cloth or paper towel with the WD40, then rub the spots, turning over new portions of the towel.

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I use lighter fluid to remove any gummy residue from tape, stickers, glue ect. An excellent product for light refinishing is Howard Restor-a-finish. Wipe on/wipe off. I apply with 0000 steel wool and wipe off any remaining product with a soft towel. Covers all minor scratches and water rings.

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That Formby's refinisher is supposed to be for water marks, but ymmv.

I agree that Watco Danish is the way to go. If you ever desire a slightly "harder" finish with a slight sheen, try Minwax Antique Oil. I use that on some radios. But for speakers, the Watco is probably your best bet.

Bear in mind that although AR, KLH et al recommended periodic touch-up with BOILED linseed oil, products like Watco were just not available 40 years ago.

Stay away from Tung Oil--it contains shellac (or so I'm told) and will not look authentic.

NEVER NEVER NEVER use polyurethane varnish! (just my opinion, but absolutely right ;-) )

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>That Formby's refinisher is supposed to be for water marks,

>but ymmv.

The Formby's is not just for water marks. It's for restoring old finishes on fine wood, either solid or veneer. It easily removes old adhesives, paint marks and other surface crud. I haven't had much succes with it as a stain remover.

>I agree that Watco Danish is the way to go. If you ever desire

>a slightly "harder" finish with a slight sheen, try

>Minwax Antique Oil. I use that on some radios. But for

>speakers, the Watco is probably your best bet.

>Bear in mind that although AR, KLH et al recommended periodic

>touch-up with BOILED linseed oil, products like Watco were

>just not available 40 years ago.

>Stay away from Tung Oil--it contains shellac (or so I'm told)

>and will not look authentic.

Tung oil is fine if used in moderation in a blend with linseed oil and terpentine to aid penetration. The key is to not let it dry without first wiping it down about 10 minutes after application. Doing this will yield a rich, lustrous finish that shows off the wonderful colors and grain of the veneer. It also helps seal the pores slightly against future water penetration. Follow this up with a couple of coats of hand rubbed paste wax designed for wood.

>NEVER NEVER NEVER use polyurethane varnish! (just my opinion,

>but absolutely right ;-) )

It's all about the music

Carl

Carl's Custom Loudspeakers

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>The Formby's is not just for water marks. It's for restoring

>old finishes on fine wood, either solid or veneer. It easily

>removes old adhesives, paint marks and other surface crud.

Thanks Carl. Of course you're right. I was responding to the question of whether something could be used for water spots. Guess my answer was unclear.

>Tung oil is fine if used in moderation in a blend with linseed

>oil and terpentine to aid penetration. The key is to not let

>it dry without first wiping it down about 10 minutes after

>application. Doing this will yield a rich, lustrous finish

>that shows off the wonderful colors and grain of the veneer.

>It also helps seal the pores slightly against future water

>penetration. Follow this up with a couple of coats of hand

>rubbed paste wax designed for wood.

Good tip. Have not tried Tung with linseed & turpentine--may give it a try. Sounds like the result is very similar to the Minwax Antique Oil I mentioned. Just a reminder--always use BOILED linseed oil, or it will never dry.

Kent

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Thanks to everyone that joined in to help on this thread. I am using Carl's suggestion and purchased a can of the Formby's Conditioning Furniture Refinisher. It's vapors are really quite strong so I took my project out to the garage which meant that I had to clean and organize my bench so that I had a suitable work area. Last night I cleaned one side of one speaker, the Formby's appears to do an excellent job. Thanks again for the assistance.

Charles

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  • 1 month later...

Thought I'd resurrect this, because I found a product that works VERY well. First let me say that I do NOT like the Formby's Furniture Refinisher. It claims that it does not strip off the old finish, but it does--just not very well! The chemical fumes are so strong you can only use it outside and even then you should wear a mask. I've tried it a couple of times and would never use it again.

OTOH: A product called Howard's Restor-A-Finish is GREAT IMHO. It comes in a walnut color and you can wipe it on if the finish is not too bad, or rub it in with steel wool. I does soften the old finish a bit so I don't know how it is on varnish, but on vintage speakers and radios, or veneered cabinets on audio components, it works great. It evens out the finish, disguises scratches, and leaves a nice oil finish. You cannot use varnish, shellac, poly, etc over it but I have used oil over it and it works fine. It really brings the old cabinets back to life, and there is no danger of sanding through the veneer!

I have even used it after patching veneer with either small veneer pieces or Plastic Wood and it works well. On my monster KLH 12s, I had used a chemical stripper but there was still some residue of the finish. After cleaning off all the old stripper with mineral spirits and letting it dry, I used the Howard's. Worked great! Gave the same effect as wiping with walnut-color Watco Oil, but it also softened and evened the remnants of the old finish.

Charles--I bet it would work for your tape residue. Apply with steel wool. It is also recommended for water marks.

Try it!

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