Restore an MCM Coffee Table from Denmark - a Fixing Furniture Restoration Project

Video Description

This Mid-Centry Modern (MCM) coffee table has been well used and unfortunately, poorly repaired. I show how to repair the table and remove the major marks on the Teak table top. It's a challenge to restore damaged table tops with oil finishes as the wood is so susceptible to marks from moisture and alcohol. This coffee table was made in Denmark by Toften, which is burned into the bottom of the table top. The legs are coming apart at one end and on the other end, they were repaired with glue and screws though the front of the legs. The top has black rings and white rings in the oil finish from damage over the years, and in some spots the wood is bare. I start by taking off the legs and inspecting the damage. I then take advantage of the abnormally warm weather of the day and move the table top outside to strip off the old finish and start repairing the marks. I use a paint stripper without methylene chloride, a hazardous chemical. I apply it liberally and keep it wet over the course of 30 minutes. I then scrape if off with a putty knife and wash it down to neutralize the stripper. While the stripper took off the old finish and the white ring, there's a very dark mark on the table. The next step is to use wood bleach to reduce the dark mark. I use a strong solution of oxalic acid and let it try overnight. The next morning I wash the table top off with water to remove the crystals from the oxalic acid, which are dangerous if you sand them. Once the table has dried, I applied a custom-mixed acrylic stain to the table top and let it dry thoroughly. I then applied Danish oil, which is a mix of oil and varnish. This provides more protection than other types of oil finishes. Once dried, I applied a dark paste wax to help protect the table from scratches and moisture. It's not the most durable finish, but it's a finish that's appropriate for MCM Teak furniture. Repairing the legs required disabling all the parts, removing the old adhesive, and fitting some custom sized dowels in the holes that were very worn. I filled the screw holes from the previous repair with burn-in wood filler and I touched up the color on the filler from the previous repair. Once I glued up all the parts with hide glue, I was able to reassemble the table. This MCM coffee table is now ready to go back to the customer. They asked for a touch up of the finish on the top, but it needed more than that to disguise most of the damage from years of use. It's now looking much better and it's ready for many more years of enjoyment by the family. FIXING FURNITURE COMMUNITY MEMBERSHIP - Get access to videos before they're published on YouTube, watch all the videos without ads, get downloadable reference sheets, and participate in Fixing Furniture Live every two weeks. Learn more about membership at https://www.fixingfurniture.com FURNITURE REPAIR COURSES - https://www.fixingfurniture.com/furniture-repair-courses OUR NEWSLETTER - Sign up at https://www.fixingfurniture.com TOOLS & SUPPLIES - See the tools we use in our workshop and the tools we recommend: https://www.amazon.com/shop/homeimprovementwoodworking 🇨🇦 Canadian link - https://www.amazon.ca/shop/homeimprovementwoodworking Fixing Furniture is hosted by Scott Bennett, Co-owner of Wooden It Be Nice Inc. - Furniture Repair in Perth, Ontario, Canada. https://WoodenItBeNice.ca #MCMFurniture #FurnitureRestoration #DenmarkFurniture