Originally Posted by
mme3924
Very interested in how you repair veneer. I refinish furniture from time to time (not sewing machines but chests, dressers, tables, chairs, etc.) and have never solved the veneer problem. There's a professional refinisher here in town and he rather snootily told me, (when I asked him if he had a veneer source) that he usually does not work on veneered furniture.
My thought is your professional refinisher doesn't do a lot of business unless he's working on REALLY old stuff. There's a lot more veneered furniture out there than not. Veneer has it's weaknesses but it also solves a lot of problems associated with wood movement and fancy grained wood has always carried a premium price. Veneer allows the look for a lot less money.
Madamekelly: You're right, missing veneer is a replacement job. I want to keep as much of the original veneer as intact as possible so I won't be stripping all of it off, just what is necessary to repair the surface. The bad sections will be trimmed back and new veneer spliced in as carefully as I can to make the repair blend in. Even then there's a good chance the repair will show. Matching new to old is tricky at best.
I was playing on the internet last night looking for good sources for veneer and haven't quite found what I'm after yet.
I'll share my sources as I find them. A good friend told me one somewhat local source but I don't remember the name of the company. My friend also moved out of state and I'm not sure if he's settled down anywhere with internet so I can contact him yet either.
Macybaby: THANK YOU! Just that front panel will make things much easier. I still haven't unloaded the main cabinet so haven't measured the opening or checked what type of drawer it takes but having the old panel with the molding will make things much easier to blend in even if it isn't exactly like original. It's raining buckets and I haven't been out to my shop to clear a space for it yet, hopefully tomorrow. Sending a PM.
Thanks,
Rodney