Teletone cabinet restoration

Ken G · Posted: Oct Thu 22, 2009 6:20 am

Not sure if it's just me, but it doesn't seem like there are too many people really following this. It could just be me, because I'm not in too good oof a mood because of my living arrangements.
So does anyone really follow this thread, or am I posting to blind eyes?

Right after you insisted a roller would not work to spread glue i lost all interest in this . I really like what you are doing but that killed it for me .

slammed87d21 · Posted: Oct Thu 22, 2009 7:31 am

I don't remember if I had said it wouldn't work exactly, but if i did, I apologize. The reasoning behing recommending a brush over a roller, is one, a paint brush is cheap, two, less cleanup when you're finished, and three, for more than smaller items, the rollers gums up, and is useless. For this radio, a roller would have done fine, but I'm trying to restore this radio for the least amount possible, without sacrificing quality, so the brush goes with the theme of this restoration perfectly.

Sorry if a comment as such killed it for you. It's just personal opinion what works best.
_________________
Andy

The Vintage Attic Forum
http://www.thevintageattic.net/forum/index.php
Come join!

All my classified listings are on my site too.

glasdave · Posted: Oct Thu 22, 2009 8:51 am

I'm still here,....was out of town for a bit, the brush vs. roller thing is kind of an interesting debate. To be valid, though, you would have to use the same tools, under like circumstances, it seems. The proof would then be self evident.
But, I like both ideas, and will try them for my next foray into wood working. David
_________________
Stumbling through the hobby since 1967.

amyotte · Posted: Oct Thu 22, 2009 9:34 am

Gassy Tube · Posted: Oct Thu 22, 2009 12:36 pm

Another lurker here. Keep up the good work!
_________________
-Cameron

MichaelD · Posted: Oct Thu 22, 2009 4:48 pm

radiorich · Posted: Oct Thu 22, 2009 11:28 pm

Hello Andy,
to bad you did not live closer I get free shelving ,
and wood all the time that people are tossing on the job.
That equipment self would be a breeze to build.

Far as your set I've been following it Because see I've only refinished one wooden radio so far .

mainly I love redoing the insides guts the most.
Rich
_________________

amptramp · Member Joined: 26 Jun 2009 Posts: 83 Location: Mississauga

I'm still here lurking, I just don't have any insights that I could contribute.

slammed87d21 · Posted: Oct Fri 23, 2009 1:21 am

Got a little more done tonight, since I took a break yesterday. Did some stain work, and a little more. Got a sneak peak of what it's going to look like coming up later. But first, got to watch Fringe. Cool

_________________
Andy

The Vintage Attic Forum
http://www.thevintageattic.net/forum/index.php
Come join!

All my classified listings are on my site too.

slammed87d21 · Posted: Oct Fri 23, 2009 5:43 am

Where oh where to begin...

Yesterday I stripped the sides and the grill. I used chemical stripper to help lighten the wood. It didn't help too much since I had already sanded, so most of the wood showed its natural color.

The way I do that is pouring on the stripper to the wood, and scrub it till my arm wants to go numb, then rinse. Nice and simple. The really strong stuff works best.

Anyway, today is staining. I usually use Minwax stains, but I thought I would try Ace brand since it's a dollar or so cheaper than the Minwax equivelent.

Starting with the grill since it's the more complicated piece of the three.

The way I stain, is to rub the stain onto the piece with a soft cotton rag, and then instantly wipe it off. That way i don't darken the wood too much.

You can always add stain, but you can't take it from the wood without starting over.

Anyway, here's the grill getting stained.

And here it is.

Next up is a little more work to the lower edge of the front, and the dial opening.

For the dial opening, it needs smoothed out a little.

And a little filler here.

I sanded a little bit around the edge to smooth it out, then went on the filler to build up the edge.

Alright. On to the sides.

I'm staining these the same way I did the grill. BTW, I rub the stain in with the grain. Seems to work better without darkening the wood more than you want.

I'm not sure where the pics went if me doing the top, front, and inside, but here it is stained.

Doesn't look too bad. May need to be what I call "spot stained". By that, I mean stain just the light areas to even their darkness to the already dark areas.

Well the wood putty on the dial openings edge is dry finally. After a little sanding...

The putty is still a little moist, so I use a razor knife in this situation.

Now that edge isn't too bad looking. Once it completely dries, I'll sand it perfectly smooth.

Time to stain the front/top. Same as before with the stain.

Since tht's finished, let's do the other side.

Looking good...

Since it's all stained now, here's how it's looking. All 3 pieces are close in color, so just a little more work with the stain. Maybe one more day if I'm lucky.

Well, the stain is still wet, but I thought I'd stick it together for a little sneak peak of what it will look like finished. But first, let's see where I started at.

Next...

How it looks now...

Almost looks new already. Still have a bit more to go though. Soon enough it will be done. Cool

_________________
Andy

The Vintage Attic Forum
http://www.thevintageattic.net/forum/index.php
Come join!

All my classified listings are on my site too.

calmark · Posted: Oct Fri 23, 2009 1:14 pm

Looks 1000% better, excellent work.

Mark

Chuck McB · Posted: Oct Fri 23, 2009 1:32 pm

It really looks good & I can't wait to see it finished.

badrestorer · Member Joined: 17 Mar 2008 Posts: 2362 Location: Arkansas

Andy,
Quick...tune in a station on that bugger.
One comment: I've found that Minwax Pre-stain Treatment helps a great deal. It automatically evens out the color. Prevents blotching. Very easy to use. After brushing it on you have 2 hours to do your staining. Terrific stuff. Comes in a quart can from Lowes, Home Depot, etc. Once tried, you'll use it more and more. And it's pretty cheap.
_________________
Regards,
John

They don't know the power of the radio side.

slammed87d21 · Posted: Oct Fri 23, 2009 4:27 pm

glasdave · Posted: Oct Sat 24, 2009 7:17 am

Good looking and a great color choice, Andy. Smile

_________________
Stumbling through the hobby since 1967.

Pbpix · Posted: Oct Sat 24, 2009 7:29 am

radiorich · Posted: Oct Sat 24, 2009 7:40 am

Hello Andy,
it's looking good from this end
Rich
P.S. I used that preastain on A fir dresser that I had to refinish it worked nicely.
_________________

slammed87d21 · Posted: Oct Sat 24, 2009 7:43 am

slammed87d21 · Posted: Oct Sun 25, 2009 5:58 am

Ok, well did some more staining tonight.

Here's what we did the other night, now dry.

Doing one last staining now.

The grill should match perfectly after it completely dries.

Like I said last time, the bottom needs a little work too. All it really needs is a little sanding and a bit of stain so it matches.

And now the back edge...

Now a light staining...

The bottom piece will only get one staining, since there is so much figuring. With much more than this, it would end up with black swirl marks.

I know it looks like black swirls now, but wait till they dry. They will end up a medium to dark brown.

Now that the staining is finished, the lip that goe into the sides is missing a little wood. Since it's hidden, I just used a little wood filler.

Well, that will be it for a couple days. Since I've used so much stain in such a little amount of time, I'm going to give it a couple days to dry completely. In the meantime, there's still plenty to do.

I have finally decided against using brown for the grooves and dial hole edge. The wood has too much of a red tint in it to match any brown I find or even mix. So black it is.

Well, since it will be a few days, I'm going to go ahead with the chassis.

Check it out here.

http://antiqueradios.com/forum ... 547#970547
_________________
Andy

The Vintage Attic Forum
http://www.thevintageattic.net/forum/index.php
Come join!

All my classified listings are on my site too.

slammed87d21 · Posted: Nov Sat 07, 2009 9:19 am

Finally, I can update this thread!

Since it's to cold to do much right now, I got the cabinet glued together tonight. Gluing is simple enough, so I'll let the photo's speak for themselves.

Just want to point out in this pic the small pieces of wood wedged in. This is to keep the front/top pressed against the outer edge of the groove.

And lastly for tonight...

The tape you see is helping hold the bottom of the front to the front of the bottom. Very odd angle, and I only have one clamp that will work on that. I'm letting it sit till tomorrow night, so the glue won't let loose.

A little off topic, but I've been doing a good bit of research on glues for woodworking. That's why I've been away from the cabinet and chassis of this radio for a while.

From what I've read and figured out, I may be throwing out my carpenters glue and never buying any again.

I've been comparing carpenters glue like most people use to other glues like hide glue. Let me just say that I'm a believer of the old ways, because if something works effectively, why change it.

I'm going to try getting some true hide glue, and doing some tests of my own to compare it to carpenters glue. I guess you could call it aging tests.

Anyway, the next warm day, I will be spraying the lacquer on ths radio to get this cabinet finished finally. Hopefully in a day or 2 the edge around the dial and the grooves can get painted.

More to come...
_________________
Andy

The Vintage Attic Forum
http://www.thevintageattic.net/forum/index.php
Come join!

All my classified listings are on my site too.