Our custom cherry kitchen cabinets have some dings and worn areas. I have had professionals look at them and they either want to refinish the entire cabinets (thousands of $) or say the job is too small and they are not interested. So, I am looking to do the fixes myself. I believe the finish is a varnish. Any suggestions as to how to proceed?
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I think we need a little bit nore information. Since the cabinets are custom built they might be sprayed or brushed poly finish. But if you say they are custom built but yet by a professional shop they are more than likely lacquer. Glossy or satin? when you say they are worn in spots are you refering to the clear finish itself or are they worn down to the wood? Is the wood stained?
Basically if you want to spot fill dings and worn areas your going to have to find a good quality wood filler paste and /or stain filler to touch up those areas then an appropriate finish to match what you have...hence the questions.
I tried the test for the finish and believe it is a varnish. The wear is chiefly on the drawer fronts where the finish is worn and chipped in places from normal use but the color is still intact. I am reluctant to sand to avoid removing the color where the finish is the thinnest. The finish is what I would call satin.
Two of the professional refinishers I had look at the cabinets said they were in good condition - that is my problem - they did not want the small job. I am remodeling the kitchen and want to bring the cabinet finish to a better state.
Well then your task is to fine a satin finish varnish that matches the sheen of the old. Or plan to recoat everything with the new varnish. You don't really need to sand everything just wipe all the accumalated grime off the surfaces with mineral spirits of lacquer thinner( Make sure you have good ventilation. You might want to sand the surfaces where you say the finish is chipped to achieve a completely smooth finish. Though you do run the risk of sanding off the stain and having to rematch than. If the chips aren't really bad you may get a satisfactory result with a satin varnish by just applying a fresh coat.You'll just have to do some tests.Any good quality satin poly varnish will suffice. I would suggest recoating all the surfaces on a particular bank of cabinets as opposed to trying to just refinish a drawer front. But you may get lucky and just doing the drawer looks fine. Good luck."The purpose of life is rapture. Here and now"
If they are shellac finished (unlikely) touching a cotton swab soaked with alcohol will slightly disolve the finish and the cotton will tend to stick to it. If lacquer, wiping with lacquer thinner will do a lot to remove grime. If varnish, probably have to remove hardware and sand the old finish and wipe away grime with lacquer thinner, then revarnish. Sometimes just wiping around the handles with lacquer thinner will clean them up enough. I've heard of using Blue Diamond hand soap, but when I tried it it didn't do much.
Artie,
I think you will get more response if you post this over in Knots, which is the Fine Woodworking forum.