Picked up a great workbench form a home up in Rhode Island a couple of weeks ago. I was not told too much about it other than it was used by the seller's father. There were a few customizations added to the bench and it was raised by adding leg bottoms. It was also covered in all different colored paint.I sat around staring at it and was going to leave it alone but I just couldn't stand not knowing what it looked like under the splatter of decades of paint that covered it. I wanted to know what the underlying finish and patina looked like. I guessed that the bench was factory built in the early 20th century between 1905 and 1925. Based on condition, I thought that it had a few homes and a few owners that used it for different things.
I think that the original owner was a wood worker or a cabinet maker. I think that that person treated the bench very well and (aside from the occasional saw kerf-mark) really respected the bench. I decided that subsequent owners (possibly inherited the bench) were the ones that used it for a general work/paint bench and did not really consider the impact of painting all kinds of stuff on it and just beating it up.
Given these assumptions and by making a few small scrapings I decided that the bench needed to undergo a very gentle cleaning. I started using oils, steel wool and scrapers but that was going to be way too slow so I switched to a product that I have used successfully in the past. The product is called Smart Strip (by Dumond), a water soluble "green" product. I tried it on a small section on the top of the bench.
The small section that was cleaned showed some very nice colors. The bench top looked like it was made of maple. It had aged nicely and seemed to reinforce my belief that the first use of the bench was not a paint shop splatter bench. I oiled the top and used fine steel wool to smooth out the surface further.
The small section that was cleaned showed some very nice honey brown colors. The bench top looked to me like it was made of maple. It had aged nicely and seemed to reinforce my belief that the first use of the bench was not a paint shop splatter bench. I oiled the top and used fine steel wool to smooth out the surface a bit more.
For the most part the bench top was in (relatively) excellent shape. I decided to leave a bit of the paint and the darkening stains left behind so that one could see that the bench was used. My intention was to provide a little TLC to expose the great natural patina but not to make a new bench. I hope that the "new" finish will not subtract from the value of the bench as I know many "purists" do not like to see anything done to piece of furniture. I consider what I am doing a cleaning not a restoration.
Further cleaning exposed the vise top being made of oak. The bench dog squares were also maple except for those located on the main vise. I had not yet cleaned the side vise or the tool tray so I do not know what I will find under the paint there.
