AboutGreg 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,usage,etc.
Experience Fine furniture restorer and cabinet maker for over 30 years,serving high end Antique dealers, Interior designers, Collectors in the CT area. 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, and offered instruction on use and care as well.I even have some Trade show Demo experience.
Organizations none at this time.
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"), local newspapers as well
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 by Major tool manufacturers, Delta, Powermatic, Performax, Porter Cable, Skil/Bosch to name a few.
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.) 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.), local Museums and Historical Societies.
QUESTION: I have been working for this client for years. They have a outstanding, and I mean outstanding reproduction of a Greene and Greene dining table, a exact copy of the one in the Gamble House in Pasadena, Ca. It was built around 1980. The clients live right on the ocean, so the weather can be hot, humid, very foggy. It varies a lot. The material is mahogany, each half is 31"x60", making it a somewhat round 60". I have had this table refinished three times, buy two different people. I just had it refinished again last month. The refinishers use a brush and scrape method, they do not dip it in a tank, it is all done by hand. The problem I have is, it just split. The split is not on a glue joint, but in the solid wood itself. It is about 20" long. I can send a picture if you instruct me how to do it. I am wondering why it split in the first place and what are my options on how to fix it. I cannot cut and reglue the wood. The only way I can think of is to rout out a slot and inlay another piece. If that is the best method, what can be done to prevent this from happening again? This table is worth it, look up Greene and Greene and see their work. Thanks Alex
ANSWER: Hi Alex, I am a little familiar with the Greene and Greene style and name. As to why it split, dryness beyond the usual environment can cause shrinkage, and if the top is confined, perhaps with screws that hold the top on not being able to move, etc. , you can have a failure like this. A solid wood top has to be able to move, as it will move about during the year as the environment changes. Screw holes that hold on a solid wood top need to be oval so they can shift subtly as the wood moves, and there can't be any glue blocks attaching top to apron, you'd be surprised how often I see that....I'd flip the table over and investigate the way it is attached, also try removing the fasteners to one side of the crack, (towards the middle of the table), and see if the crack will move...it may come back together when the screws are removed and can be glued and clamped.I definitely wouldn't start routing out pieces and inlaying new wood, you'll just be creating even more seams and areas where the wood will be stressing and moving...relative humidity is important to monitor as well....here in the Northeast we have a lot of issues during the Winter as we heat our homes, and this is especially hard on solid wood and veneered furniture. I recommend all my clients buy and use a simple Hygrometer, that measures relative humidity, and place one in every room where they keep fine things. Leather, paintings, wood, paper, animal skins, ...even us, are all affected by relative humidity, and swings in humidity, and it's important to know the levels in a given space, so one can add humidity when needed, or vice versa.I'd like to see a pic, and it should be fairly easy to do, just click on "attach image", navigate to where the image is stored on your computer and upload it. You may have to reduce it's size depending on what the site limits are...and there's many a software out there that will help with that.Please post back and let me know what you find- regards- Greg
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QUESTION: I am very aware that solid wood needs the proper construction to allow movement. I also know that this construction does not allow for movement. It is interesting that the finish, where it meets the surrounding trim, has never cracked from movement. I literally watch for it when I am working at the house. Your response about the movement does not surprise me. I am looking for other opinions to verify what I already suspect. As well, there may be other reasons that I may not be aware of. Is there any possibility that the stripping and refinishing could have anything to do with it? Needless to say the client is not thrilled about this and they want me to go back to the refinisher for a fix. After sitting in their dining room for thirty years, it seems odd that it would split now. I would have thought that any imperfections or stresses would have shown up by now. It seems that I can attach only one image, I would like to send more. You can see the split and how the surrounding trim would capture the top. Any feedback or thoughts would be helpful. Thank You.
Answer Funny, but this top looks like a veneer to me, and that would conceivably be on a plywood substrate...and that would be really stable. So to have it crack like this as you say, after 30 years in the home...is odd. It's likely more of an issue with the shop environment, or being baked in a van at 150+ degrees, or possibly being dropped?.....or something like that. The act of stripping and refinishing wouldn't really have an affect, I wouldn't think. Such a fine crack could be filled and likely blended, but this would probably entail a complete refinish...
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