K.B FR10 replacement finish for veneer sides

[telstar]

Since I can not get access to replacement veneer strips for my K.B FR10 radio, does anyone have any ideas in making a finish on the cabinet that would be similar in appearance, please?
Cheers
Mike

[Hit and Miss]

Got a similar challenge on this one: Saving my Amplion Table Model on Vintage Radio.
Waiting for the woodworm killer to dry out. Meanwhile experimenting on scrap veneered ply with stain, varnish and paint tin lets to try get it right. Seems to be four different finishes with black dark shading around the front edges. Tricky. Wish me luck. I'll post how I get on.

[David G4EBT]

Originally Posted by telstar

Since I can not get access to replacement veneer strips for my K.B FR10 radio, does anyone have any ideas in making a finish on the cabinet that would be similar in appearance, please?
Cheers
Mike

The challenge with late pre-war and early post-war radios (1940s/50s) is that the actual veneer used was often nondescript, such as poplar, which was then sprayed with 'toner' to make it look like whatever veneer they wanted it to look like - dark brown to simulate walnut or dark oak for example, or a lighter reddish brown to look like mahogany. They were then sprayed with nitrocellulose lacquer.

As good an example as any is the 1930s Philips '634A Superinductance' (AKA 'Ovaltiney').

At first sight, it looks like it has two darker veneer bands, but it doesn't. They're just bands of toner sprayed onto the nondescript veneer, to masquerade as walnut. The thin nitrocellulose lacquer flakes of over time and too often, inexperienced owners strip off the lacquer, and to their horror, the toner, which they mistakenly though was walnut veneer, comes off too. Toner isn't like stain - it doesn't soak into the wood, so the end result is that the bands disappear. The hapless owner then applies a couple of coats of Danish oil or whatever, and the radio will never look the same again.

The attached pic shows what the radio should look like, but they rarely do.

As radios are viewed from the front, they would sometimes use a better veneer on the front, and the sides would be sprayed dark brown or even black, showing little or no grain, so when it comes to matching veneer, unless the original really was walnut, oak, Sapele mahogany, it becomes quite difficult. I'm not familiar with the FR10 so depending on what veneer was originally used, it may well be that you could match it up. Small quantities of a very wide range veneers are available. EG: https://oakdalecrafts.co.uk

There have been lots on inspiring examples of forum members who have experimented with a range of woodstains and paints to effect repairs that, unless viewed from close-up, are almost undetectable.

Without seeing pictures of the cabinet and what you wish to do to rejuvenate it, it's difficult to be more specific, but as a general rule, 'less is best' as it's next to impossible to re-touch the original cellulose lacquer with modern acrylic gloss lacquer, and it's rather drastic to strip a panel back to the bare veneer, which is only 0.6mm thick and on corners and bends, is all to easy to sand through. Cabinet restoration can also start to be expensive, relative to the value of the radio.

I'm not sure that any of these generalised comments are much help to you, but without seeing pics of what you wish to do it's hard to be more specific.

Good luck in your endeavours.

Pic 1: Shows toner band and thin flaking cellulose veneer.
Pic 2: Correctly restored with toner bands intact.

[telstar]

Originally Posted by David G4EBT

The challenge with late pre-war and early post-war radios (1940s/50s) is that the actual veneer used was often nondescript, such as poplar, which was then sprayed with 'toner' to make it look like whatever veneer they wanted it to look like - dark brown to simulate walnut or dark oak for example, or a lighter reddish brown to look like mahogany. They were then sprayed with nitrocellulose lacquer.

As good an example as any is the 1930s Philips '634A Superinductance' (AKA 'Ovaltiney').

At first sight, it looks like it has two darker veneer bands, but it doesn't. They're just bands of toner sprayed onto the nondescript veneer, to masquerade as walnut. The thin nitrocellulose lacquer flakes of over time and too often, inexperienced owners strip off the lacquer, and to their horror, the toner, which they mistakenly though was walnut veneer, comes off too. Toner isn't like stain - it doesn't soak into the wood, so the end result is that the bands disappear. The hapless owner then applies a couple of coats of Danish oil or whatever, and the radio will never look the same again.

The attached pic shows what the radio should look like, but they rarely do.

As radios are viewed from the front, they would sometimes use a better veneer on the front, and the sides would be sprayed dark brown or even black, showing little or no grain, so when it comes to matching veneer, unless the original really was walnut, oak, Sapele mahogany, it becomes quite difficult. I'm not familiar with the FR10 so depending on what veneer was originally used, it may well be that you could match it up. Small quantities of a very wide range veneers are available. EG: https://oakdalecrafts.co.uk

There have been lots on inspiring examples of forum members who have experimented with a range of woodstains and paints to effect repairs that, unless viewed from close-up, are almost undetectable.

Without seeing pictures of the cabinet and what you wish to do to rejuvenate it, it's difficult to be more specific, but as a general rule, 'less is best' as it's next to impossible to re-touch the original cellulose lacquer with modern acrylic gloss lacquer, and it's rather drastic to strip a panel back to the bare veneer, which is only 0.6mm thick and on corners and bends, is all to easy to sand through. Cabinet restoration can also start to be expensive, relative to the value of the radio.

I'm not sure that any of these generalised comments are much help to you, but without seeing pics of what you wish to do it's hard to be more specific.

Good luck in your endeavours.

Pic 1: Shows toner band and thin flaking cellulose veneer.
Pic 2: Correctly restored with toner bands intact.

Hi David. Many thanks for your comments. I will have to take a photograph of it. Someone informed me that one of the market traders at York outdoor market used to sell veneer strips (pre Covid) but are now no longer trading (only on-line)