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flyin_blue_egg
09-02-2011, 12:24 PM
Just bought a wood dresser for my son due in December but it doesn't match the crib. I haven't seen it yet, but I've been told the top and drawers have a few scratches/gouges in them, but the sides are fine. I was also told that the sides of the dresser are pretty thin wood.

I've never done this before and was wondering what I need to do it and do it right. I'm guessing stripper (and tools to strip the stain) and a sander are a few of the basics, but I don't know much more then that. Any help is greatly appreciated.

05caddyext
09-02-2011, 12:46 PM
what is your goal for the dresser? do you want to re-stain it or paint it? There aren't really strippers for stain, stain soaks into the grain of the wood it doesn't stay on top of the wood like a paint does. A lot of sanding will get you there. For the scratches and gouges make sure you use a wood filler/putty that is stainable. Don't just assume that what you buy will be. A lot of them are either paintable or stainable, not both. And as a rule of thumb with stain, you can always go darker, pretty hard to go lighter if you don't like the color. Prep is the most important when woodworking, just like a car. If you want it to look nice, take your time and use quality products. Most all in one products are garbage, they save time but your final result won't be nearly as nice.

animal
09-02-2011, 01:10 PM
I had to do the same thing... skipped the stripper as that shit is messy and stinks. I bought about $10 worth of sandpaper of assorted grit, and a $4 sander and went to town. In all I have about 2-2.5 hours in the sanding. Took 'er all down to the original wood from the reddish 70's stain that was on it. Still have to restain it. It's only been 1.5 years since I sanded it. Not sure when I'll get to finishing it, heh.

flyin_blue_egg
09-05-2011, 01:58 PM
what is your goal for the dresser? do you want to re-stain it or paint it? There aren't really strippers for stain, stain soaks into the grain of the wood it doesn't stay on top of the wood like a paint does. A lot of sanding will get you there. For the scratches and gouges make sure you use a wood filler/putty that is stainable. Don't just assume that what you buy will be. A lot of them are either paintable or stainable, not both. And as a rule of thumb with stain, you can always go darker, pretty hard to go lighter if you don't like the color. Prep is the most important when woodworking, just like a car. If you want it to look nice, take your time and use quality products. Most all in one products are garbage, they save time but your final result won't be nearly as nice.

Yea I plan on staining it. Problem I've been having with that is the color of the crib we bought is "dark cherry" but the only stain I've found that even ressembles that is red mahagony (sp)

05caddyext
09-05-2011, 04:25 PM
take a piece of your crib and a piece of the wood you want to stain to your local hardware store. they will be able to help you get an exact match.

flyin_blue_egg
09-06-2011, 10:48 AM
Thanks