Expert: Eileen Cronk - 8/23/2009

Question
HI. Eileen I have a natural finish oak table and chairs. I started with sanding and then I stripped one of the bottoms of my chair.
I applied and oil based stain and it ended up blotching. I sanded it again after it had dried but still ended up with darken small strips in the grain in some of the places.
Do I need to use a grain filler before I start the process of refinishing so that I don't end up with darken spots when I stain.
Could you tell me what kind of grain filler to use?

Thank you
Marie

Answer
Hi Marie
Nice to hear from you.
You absolutely do not need grain filler on this oak set but you must strip it of all its finish with an MC stripper.
You cannot sand off a finish.
Here are my complete instructions.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR STRIPPING FURNITURE
The first thing you must do is assemble the material to do the job.
The stripper is the most important item.  
I am hoping you can get "CIRCA 1850" brand paint and varnish remover in your area.
Here is a link
http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=1694&familyN...

MATERIAL LIST For the stripping stage.
1 gallon stripper
3 boxes of Bull Dog steel wool in medium grade.
One 3 inch oil based paint brush.
Rubber gloves (like you do dishes with), and a pair of cotton gloves inside the rubber ones.
People react differently to stripper. A lot of people feel heat through the rubber gloves, but I feel cold. Have no idea why.
An empty large coffee can. (for the stripper)
A couple of old tooth brushes.
Lots of old rags (I like t-shirts or cotton but for this first stage whatever you have)
Lots of newspaper to protect the garage floor
LOTS OF VENTILATION..A MUST
That's all you need to get started.
HERES WHAT YOU DO...
Work in sections.
Brush on the stripper with the brush. Stripper will quit working if it dries, so keep it wet till the finish softens.
Then take a rag and wipe this mess off.
Then another coat of stripper, rag off again, then while the wood is still wet, take the steel wool and rub with the grain till the wood is nice and clean.
Depending on the material you are removing, another coat of stripper is often needed but you will know this as you progress into the job.
Use the toothbrush in crevices.
Thats all there is to it ...move to another section and continue.
No other prep is necessary...and DO NOT SAND
When the stripping is complete, stain with Minwax oil stain applied with a rag, then 3 or 4 coats of low lustre tung oil also applied with a rag.
I use Minwax fast drying poly on my tabletops.
Please let me know if anything is not 100% clear.
Regards
Eileen