Cabinets, Furniture, Woodworks/Dents in table

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Expert: - 5/8/2009


Question
We have a small dent in our new dinning room table. Checking with the manufacture found it is finished with catalyzed lacquer. was thinking of a damp towel and a warm iron to raise the dent but am afraid i will damage the finish. do you have any ideas on how i can remove this dent. the finish surface does not appear to be broken. thanks bob

Answer
Hi Bob, I wouldn't try to steam this dent out. Catalyzed finishes are a crosslinked film, like an epoxy. They seal the wood from anything reaching it...and you'll undoubtedly damage the finish, most likely, before you'd be able to affect the wood underneath. You can see how tough it is from the damaged area. If the finish film is intact, it's pretty impervious to anything....that's kind of the point of a finish like this. The only hope of possibly being able to fix this dent, and do it well, would be at the wood level, and that means stripping and refinishing.Wish I had better news- post back if need be- Greg

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Greg Scholl

Expertise

Questions on Woodworking, wood finishing and refinishing of all kinds, repairing furniture and wooden objects, Architectural details, Woodturning, carving, tool usage, product usage, some chemistry as it applies to woodworking and related interests,cabinet making and furniture construction/design, etc. I have experience with all manners of colorants, finishes, paints, stains, dyes, glazes, and coatings, wood species recognition and usage,tool recommendations, blade types and recommendation,techniques and methods for many Woodworking related issues, etc.

Experience

Fine furniture restorer and cabinet maker for over 30 years,serving high end Antique dealers, Interior designers, Collectors in the CT area. Consulting for area Painting/Decorating and Building contractors on non painting issues..(staining, wood prep.,clear finishing, floor restoration and architectural detail restoration and repair, etc.) Sold, built, serviced, setup Home, Industrial, and Commercial stationary woodworking tools for a major tool retailer in CT. for three years, sold hand and power tools , provided knowledge, parts replacement, service, and on site service, Trade show Demo, and training as well.

Publications
Published in Fine Woodworking Magazine (12/97), included on Fine Woodworkings first "Best of Fine Woodworking" CD-ROM (2002) ...("27 year compilation of expert know-how")

Education/Credentials
Art School at Silvermine Guild in Norwalk, CT., 9 year apprenticeship in a European run Cabinet and Restoration shop in CT., various classes on subjects having to do with the field. Seminars from major Tool manufacturers, Skil/Bosch, Delta, Powermatic, Ritter, Porter cable, Milwaukee, Dewalt/B&Decker, Performax.

Past/Present Clients
Many varied clients including work on Martha Stewarts' Westport, CT. show house, many fine Antique dealers and private collectors in and around Fairfield County and in Woodbury, CT. (the Antiques capital of CT.), Golden Age of Trucking Museum, Wilton Historical Society.

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