Help with a quick restoration

[Shannon]

Good afternoon all

I have been asked to give a quick sand and refinish to 2 cabinets from my work.
Unfortunately I do not have much time so cannot do the job as well as I (and my boss) would have liked, but beggars can't be choosers.
I have attached a couple of pics to show you what is happening. The writing on the front panels (and the actual panels themselves) will not be touched. The vertical panels at the front as well as sides and top and bottom will all be given a sand and reapplication of stain? and finish.
I have not done much woodkworking for about 2 years and am starting to feel a bit nervous about getting this right. Some basic info I would love is as follows:

Could somebody suggest a if a stain has been applied to the light cabinet and if so what colour it could be?
The darker cabinet I am assuming would have been stained - again what colour might this be?
Could anyone suggest a finish that would end up looking like the original (minus all of the last 75 years buildup of junk and residue etc)

Any other tips would be great. Bear in mind I am not allowed to dismantle the cabinet at all or take the shears off the backing board - which makes things a little more difficult.

Thanksguys - I am not expecting miricles here, but some confirmation of colouring would be a start.

Shannon.
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[Chikoroll]

left is walnut stain, low gloss lacquer is what i'd go
right is natural or teak, low gloss lacquer again

give it a scrub and a scrap with a sharp cabinet scraper, no waste, no mess, no extra time or effort that way

do it properly and you won't need to sand it either

that lettering.... is that inlayed, or painted on?

[Shannon]

Thankypu for the reply chikoroll

This will help me in the task at hand - I am actually working on it from home today so I am glad of the quick response!!
The lettering is painted on which is why we decided not to touch it - they want to preserve some of the original feel of the cabinet but at the same time did not want it to look too unloved if you know what I mean. Repainting the lettering was out from a historical perpective. I am hoping (praying) that the job I do on the rest of them will ensure that people who view it will realise that it was a very old piece and that there is enough contrast between the old and new for them to realise that it has been given the once over but had parts let alone to maintain authenticity.

If you guys have any other tips I am open to them!! This has given me good info though.
Thanks again.
Shannon

[Chikoroll]

yea, i definately wouldn't touch the paint either, even scraping around it risks damaging it

[Master Splinter]

Personally, I would not touch them at all - the cabinets are (I'm guessing) just as historical as the contents.

Marks and damage are just part of the story that they are telling - and trying to match the appearance of the old finish may lead to horrible results in several years as the new finish fades or oxidises in a way very different to the remaining original pieces.

You could clean them with metho - but make sure first that it's not a shellac finish (if it is, the metho will take the finish right off) but that's as harsh as I'd go.

Wipe with a damp cloth to get the dust off, and place the whole shebang in a shiny new glass cabinet as a complete display piece.