Advice needed - how to restore table and chairs

[Dengue]

My son has just bought his first home, and today has given me the job of restoring his solid timber table and chairs. You will see from the attached that there is water damage to the legs (cyclone Yasi etc) on all of the chairs and table, and that there is an old varnish finish of some sort on the whole outfit.

The table is made of the same timber and finish as shown, of boards edge glued together. Structurally, the table and chairs are quite solid.

He would like the finish in a deeper, darker glossy colour.

Never having restored table and chairs before, I am seeking some advice.

1. What timber is this? Or is it a combination of several different timbers?
2. Should I try and remove the seats ( 4 boards, curved )
3. Should the legs be shortened to get rid of some of the water damage?
4. Should we go for a stain and polyeurethane or a paint job? Will need to be hard wearing and water proof. (I have a small HVLP spray outfit).
5. What is the best way of removing the old varnish, on the table and in all the corners and nooks and crannies on the chairs? There is a lot of surface area on these chairs

I would welcome all ideas and suggestions

[Dengue]

The advice that I have from another thread is that the timber is most likely Douglas Fir, a close grained timber. Also, the watermarks on the legs of a test chair sanded out OK.

Looks like it might have been coated with a Danish Oil like substance. Will it be possible to get that out of the grain and then stain with Wattyl Traditional dye based stain?

[Claw Hama]

Hi Jill
When ever I tackle something like this I usually keep in mind it will end up with a bit of a rustic look unless you paint it.
I usually strip it back by putting it in an area like a gravel driveway or some area you are happy to kill off the grass, weeds etc and use caustic soda. Paint on your caustic soda (mixed acording to directions on the bottle or diggers or similar web site). Take note of the safety precautions too, it's nasty stuff. Once painted on give it a few minutes to start working and then give any stubbon spots a scrub with a nylon brush or pot scrubber etc when you think its done some work hose it all off and see how your going. Go over any troublesme spots again. Let it dry, sand it to a point you are happy with, repair any loose or broken bits and put on your finish.