Bojangles- I think Davis used a really poor varnish? on the NVF. The decals on mine were completely shot too. The varnish was really dark orange and cracked pretty good. I ended up lightly sanding the head down to make the machine clean/smooth enough, aesthetically pleasing, to use. I wish someone computer savvy would create some new decals.... I sure love that machine!
That is a nice machine Janice! The Davis cabinet mine is in has pristine veneer but the quality of it and the pine is pretty flimsy compared to most cabinets and prolly not worth stripping down in my opinion. Orange/red is would brighten any sewing room. Nice find!
Dan