Repairing a Chewed Table

[Knurl]

Fascinated by discussions on sealers and stains...and learning a lot!

Having just built my new shed and coming back to my old hobby after a long lay-off I realise that I need to study up.

1. I have seen some beautiful woodwork that displays the grain and feels like silk to the touch. Where can I find some useful links about choosing finishes, application techniques and finishing?
2. How the heck can you tell if shellac is on an item of furniture? Or for that matter how do you recognise any treatment. I have to repair nested coffee tables that the puppy chewed (serious damage to the legs and coross member). I suspect it's finished with shellac and that's mainly because it's about 1960 vintage, dark brown in colour and sands quickly to clear timber (a very soft white coloured timber, but definitely not pine).

Help will be appreciated. (BTW pup in pic is not the culprit)

[China]

I've got one of those four legged woodchipers as well, sounds like it is shellac is the dust almost crystline? It is most likely stained as well grab some dark stain and experiment on some scrap, when colour is ok finnish with shellac and polish or if it's not a restoration use polyurathane

[Knurl]

Thanks China.

I'm worried about sanding because it will necessarily reduce the profile of the legs and cross-member - spoiling the overall look of the item. But I think I have no choice here.


Would it be feasible to remove the legs etc? How - given that it's probably glued and most likely M&T jointed. I may as well built entirely new tables (3 off) given the nature of the damage.

[Knurl]

Followup- 3 years on. I easily knocked the tables down by gently breaking the tenon glue-joints. It proved to me that these tables must be very old. I used a bar-clamp with the faces reversed and gently applied pressure until the tenon slipped out of the mortise.

I matched the wood by grain and texture to Merbau and carefully cut replacements to match the "bitten" pieces. Getting residual old glue out of the mortises was difficult without enlarging the opening, but was possible using my smallest chisel. I couldn't get to the bottom of the mortises but a very careful hand drilling resulted in more old glue popping out.

The new bits were very carefully Black Japanned and then rubbed down quickly so that I could bring the colour back up to the antique appearance of the original parts.

Altogether, quiet pleased with myself. BTW this was all completed about 1.5 years ago and little Tess is now 4 and never chews things any more. Good doggie.