04-12-2018, 05:16 PM
[Image: http://i798.photobucket.com/albums/yy264...4d26f2.jpg]
My first venture into the wonderful world of tube radios.
This set belonged to my great-grandmother who owned and operated a teeny-tiny neighborhood grocery store, this was the store radio the checker players listened to.
When I got my hands on it in 1984, it was in sad shape. the base and the front were all that remained of the cabinet and the original shellac finish had darkened so much it was just... black. It wasn't until I put a dab of stripper on it and wiped away a spot of the finish that you could see the beautiful booked walnut burl veneer.
At that time I was working for a furniture refinishing and restoration company so this became a sort of shop project to restore. Two new sides were steam bent and quarter saw walnut veneered and new base molding cut then it was stained and then I applied (and sanded) over 20 coats of hand rubbed polyurethane to achieve that filled grain piano finish.
The chassis only required re-capping and a couple new tubes (which in those dark days before the interwebs were a trick to find).
My first venture into the wonderful world of tube radios.
This set belonged to my great-grandmother who owned and operated a teeny-tiny neighborhood grocery store, this was the store radio the checker players listened to.
When I got my hands on it in 1984, it was in sad shape. the base and the front were all that remained of the cabinet and the original shellac finish had darkened so much it was just... black. It wasn't until I put a dab of stripper on it and wiped away a spot of the finish that you could see the beautiful booked walnut burl veneer.
At that time I was working for a furniture refinishing and restoration company so this became a sort of shop project to restore. Two new sides were steam bent and quarter saw walnut veneered and new base molding cut then it was stained and then I applied (and sanded) over 20 coats of hand rubbed polyurethane to achieve that filled grain piano finish.
The chassis only required re-capping and a couple new tubes (which in those dark days before the interwebs were a trick to find).
