Sideboard that was butchered somewhere along the way

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I got this in a few weeks ago and found angle iron embedded in one of the legs and nasty varnish brushed on and heavy brush strokes left.

All repairs were made including replacements of veneers to legs and edging, w the leg was reshaped and 1" dowel inserted. Sealed with shellac, 5 coats of lacquer sealer and 5 coats of Clear Lacquer the polished buffed with comet/3M supper fine pad and waxed.
 

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Nice work Dave, one heck of a save for sure!

I often wonder why some people even bother trying to save these pieces, but from the looks of your end result, I guess it can be worth it. :thumb:
 
I got this in a few weeks ago and found angle iron embedded in one of the legs and nasty varnish brushed on and heavy brush strokes left.

All repairs were made including replacements of veneers to legs and edging, w the leg was reshaped and 1" dowel inserted. Sealed with shellac, 5 coats of lacquer sealer and 5 coats of Clear Lacquer the polished buffed with comet/3M supper fine pad and waxed.

is every piece built out of fine lumber savable?

is it just that if a piece is so in need of work, the price to save it would stop people, or is it you that just says, nope, cant do it for any amount of money.
sorry for being nosy in your business, but Ive always wondered about restorations.
 
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The price can deter some, but the clientele I work with if the piece is of value to them be it monetary or sentimental most will have it done. I approach it this way; I ask the customer how they would like to see their piece look? What is it they would like for me to do?
Then I get into the process and the hourly fee. I will not do a half a$$ job, it's either do it or not. Most piece can be done for $1,500.00 or less but some have run as high as $5000 K like this Damascus game table which I replaced over 200 pieces of Mother of pearl, ivory and ebony. The substrate was very week and the table had to be entirely reconstructed as well. It all depends on the customer. Once they see what I can do usually I get the job.

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Dave, are you sure you got the right before photos to go with that after picture? It sure doesn't look like the same table. :huh: :rofl: Good job! :thumb:

Amazing how just the finish makes the piece look totally different. I know it is the same piece in the pics, but my eyes don't really agree.
 
You do some awesome work Dave:thumb:. I have a piece of furniture I need to repair. It has a chunk of veneer missing from the leg about 3/4" square. I think when I get ready to repair it I'll have to hit you up for some tips:wave:.
 
Alan , let me know, always willing to help out.

Al it amazes me what some guys will do in the name of refinishing. LOL

That angle iron quick fix was a hard way to go on that leg. If the restorer had gotten the leg straight I would never had know the iron was in there. But the wood filler was a dead give away to deeper problems.
 
I tough my boys how to hunt and respect others. So I don't have many worries about them.

Jacob , my youngest attends a Military Academy and is in 11th. He just earned a 97 in AP Calculus one more class and he's done for the year. They take one class at a time for 7 weeks each. Encase your wondering. I very proud of my boys. So I sleep well.
 
very nice work indeed. It realy erks me to see how some people ruin a perfectly good restoration by taking short cuts. I've seen drywall screw, nails and some real sloppy vereer patches done to name a few. I tell my clients that the piece will be done when it's done right. I never give them a completion date since you never know what your going to do especially if a wood butcher has been there before you. All of my work comes from referals. Half the time I don't even now who refered the clients to me. I am sure your business is the same judging from the quality of what I've seen. Once again good save. It's a pleasure to see your work.
 
Don, I can look at a piece and give the amount of hours expected to finish a piece but in the case of a hack job like this one was I will call the customer and explain the problems and add time accordingly.
I find out where my customers come from so I will know something about them. In 13 years at this shop I'm at now I have only had 2 jerk off customers. And nothing leaves the shop with payment in full. Good practice to consider.
 
Don, I can look at a piece and give the amount of hours expected to finish a piece but in the case of a hack job like this one was I will call the customer and explain the problems and add time accordingly.
I find out where my customers come from so I will know something about them. In 13 years at this shop I'm at now I have only had 2 jerk off customers. And nothing leaves the shop with payment in full. Good practice to consider.
I am the same way regarding payment. Right now I don't get a down payment unless the job requires me to buy materials such as wood or expensive items.
 
People look at me sometimes who don't know me and ask how much to put down I tell them you pay when you pick up or it's delivered. My client list is big and most don't ask how much any more. But I still tell them just to be on the safe side.
Do you do any conservation on period furniture. I get a lot of pre 1830 furniture to clean.
 
Do you do any conservation on period furniture. I get a lot of pre 1830 furniture to clean.

The oldest piece I've had to work on so far was a secratary made in the late 1800. It belonged to a professor at ASU. It came from Germany and belonged to his Grandmoter.

We don't see a lot of period funiture out here. Most pieces I get are family Heirlooms. Not much of it is true antiques. I did recently hook up with a dealer who wants me to do all of his restorations.
 
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