[Retired]

Hi,

Thanks for your kind comments guys; I'm just pleased to pass on what I've learnt and did it to encourage others to have a go because I've made most of the mistakes the hard way. I'm delighted to hear you're thinking of having a go Lloyd and hope many others follow; go for it and enjoy yourself.

I've a small confession to make and that is I never liked the light coloured wooden trim on this Bush; it was initially finished with dark shellac and added to the overall dismal colour of the cabinet; when I stripped it I found it was cheap timber and the grille opening appeared to be made from common deal with a very large grain which can be seen in the previous picture.

Having reached this stage I wanted to go a bit further and see what I could really do by pushing myself further. I couldn't improve on the finish to the veneer but the two grille bars; grille surround; dial surround and feet didn't sit well with me at all. I risked making a mess of the work already done and masked the cabinet using masking tape and paper allowing me to spray these bits. I chose a spray can of auto satin black lacquer thinking it might improve the look and possibly pull it all together? I didn't want to use gloss black because it would have been too much.

I opened the workshop window and sprayed a bit at a time letting each bit flash off and applying more coats then turned the cabinet and sprayed again as before; the workshop stank of lacquer and it carried through into the bungalow where it lingered for quite a while.

I had tried to buy correct masking tape when I bought the lacquer but the supplier was totally out of stock so I resorted to using some I had previously bought from Poundland; I wasn't impressed to see that the lacquer had softened the tape adhesive allowing lacquer to creep beneath in a few places; not too badly but still annoying so this was another little job requiring attention removing the unwanted lacquer. I removed the masking paper and used white spirit to remove the remains of the adhesive and hadn't noticed what the cabinet looked like until I stood back and had a good look.

I was amazed standing there looking at the cabinet as it was now just as I wanted it to look and I felt over the moon; to me the extra work was well worth the effort. The ugly duckling was now a swan and I could live with it. I hope to add a finished picture shortly but here are pictures of the cabinet to date with the black lacquer added. Col.