dresser project

...any ideas on how to remove the shellac finish? i figure that if i get back to the bare wood, i can start the process over again. ...

Those look more like silicone 'fish eyes' than bubbles. You may have an even bigger mess to contend with.

For removal of the shellac, a couple rolls of paper towels and a gallon of denatured alcohol - and maybe some green or maroon Scotchbrite - will be your best bet. Time consuming and messy, but it'll get the job done.
 
picked up the dna, and scotchbrite, and had at it. after about an hour or so, with a lot of elbow grease (and a few bad words), got the shellac, and other stuff off of the top. after a couple of hours, hit it with a couple of wiped on coats of gel stain. going to give it another couple of coats in a few days. i wasn't to happy with the original finish after the gel stain, realizing today, that i had forgotten the old one about eating an elephant. with the gel stain, i tried eating the elephant all at once, and wasn't happy with the results. tonight, i went one bite at a time, and am much happier with the results. with getting all of the drawer opening measurements out of the way, i can start the finishing of the sides, and drawer frames.
 

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  • 067 first 2 coats of gel stain.JPG
    067 first 2 coats of gel stain.JPG
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Looking good. Be sure to let the gel stain dry for several days before applying the shellac. The bubbles might have been from uncured stain under the shellac, and you sure don't need a repeat of that.
 
back to the top! the first thing done, was to cut the back board for the top. 30 degree angles on the ends, and shallow angle to the middle. then, another coat of gel stain, and it came out just like i wanted to begin with.
 

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  • 069 back board cut and placed on top.JPG
    069 back board cut and placed on top.JPG
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  • 070 top as dark as needed.JPG
    070 top as dark as needed.JPG
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sprayed the seal coat on the top, no problems. not too hot today, and the top was outside only long enough to get sprayed, and back in the garage. between the coats, sanded all of the other parts, attached the corbels to the sides, dyed them, and gave them all a coat of seal coat. got the last coat of shellac on the top, and held my breath, after 4 hours back in the garage, no bubbles... :woot: almost forgot, hauled out some of my big boards, to cut the new drawer faces. now i have to reassemble the frame, in order to get the most accurate measurements for the drawer faces.
 

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  • 079 final coat of shellac.JPG
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  • 078 all parts seal coated.JPG
    078 all parts seal coated.JPG
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  • 077 start of seal coat step.JPG
    077 start of seal coat step.JPG
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  • 076 first coat of shellac sprayed.JPG
    076 first coat of shellac sprayed.JPG
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  • 075 back board dyed.JPG
    075 back board dyed.JPG
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  • 074 sides dyed.JPG
    074 sides dyed.JPG
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  • 073 corbels added.JPG
    073 corbels added.JPG
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  • 072 all other parts sanded.JPG
    072 all other parts sanded.JPG
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  • 071 seal coat sprayed.JPG
    071 seal coat sprayed.JPG
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got a good picture of the top, after it was waxed, and buffed out. then reassembled the case, and fitted the dividers. then for the fun of it, put the top on, with the backer board. tomorrow, it will be finishing up with the spacers, and drawer guides.
 

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  • 082 case with spacers and top.jpg
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  • 081 case reassembled with spacers fitted.jpg
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  • 080 top waxed.jpg
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a bit more done today. cut the new faces for the drawers to rough width and length. then, cut the parts for the drawers themselves, ripped to width.
 

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  • 083 new drawer faces cut.JPG
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  • 084 drawer parts ripped to width.JPG
    084 drawer parts ripped to width.JPG
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cut the last 2 of the spacers for the back frames. then cut the back frame support, and the front kick plate. after that was done, cut all of the drawer guides to length. tomorrow, they will be ripped to final size.
 

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  • 087 front kick plate and back brace cut.JPG
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  • 088 kick plate in place.JPG
    088 kick plate in place.JPG
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  • 089 rough cut drawer guides in place.JPG
    089 rough cut drawer guides in place.JPG
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started the finishing process for the last of the small parts. all that is left is to cut the drawer guides, and finish up the drawers.
 

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  • 090 start of finishing for small parts.JPG
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got the drawer guides cut to size, and glued in place. glued the back support for the bottom of the bottom frame. got the bails for the pulls ripped to size. measured the drawer faces to finished length.
 

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  • 094 drawer faces marked to finished length.JPG
    094 drawer faces marked to finished length.JPG
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  • 093 drawer pull bails cut.JPG
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  • 092 rear support in place.JPG
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  • 091 drawer guides cut to size and glued in place.JPG
    091 drawer guides cut to size and glued in place.JPG
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got the drawer faces cut, and fitted to the case. started cutting the parts for the drawer pull bails and posts. put together the drawer boxes, and nearly done, but for the finishing.
 

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  • 101 test set up of drawer pulls.JPG
    101 test set up of drawer pulls.JPG
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  • 100 drawer pull posts cut.JPG
    100 drawer pull posts cut.JPG
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  • 099 first set of posts cut.JPG
    099 first set of posts cut.JPG
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  • 098 start of cutting the drawer pull posts.JPG
    098 start of cutting the drawer pull posts.JPG
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  • 097 drawer pull bails cut to size.JPG
    097 drawer pull bails cut to size.JPG
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  • 096 drawer faces in place.JPG
    096 drawer faces in place.JPG
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  • 095 drawer faces cut to finished size.JPG
    095 drawer faces cut to finished size.JPG
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got busy with work and such, and now finally have time for last weekend's pics. started in on the drawers, first ones being the 3 upper drawers. cut the dadoes for all of the drawer faces. now i just have to finish the rest of them, and the pulls.
 

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  • 102 parts for 4 inch drawers.JPG
    102 parts for 4 inch drawers.JPG
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  • 103 rabbets cut in drawer faces.JPG
    103 rabbets cut in drawer faces.JPG
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  • 104 dados cut for bottom panels.JPG
    104 dados cut for bottom panels.JPG
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  • 105 first drawer constructed.JPG
    105 first drawer constructed.JPG
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  • 106 first drawer in place.JPG
    106 first drawer in place.JPG
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