Lazy Daze Owners' Group

Repairing the finish on a drawer

July 22, 2019, 08:15:48 am

After 10 years of fulltiming, one of my drawers under the kitchen sink had gotten damaged, with the finish getting worn, scratched and abraded.  My initial trial repair was to use a bit of stain to hide the damaged areas.  It didn't work.  The maple was apparently hard enough that I got no penetration with the stain.

I called Vince at the mother ship.  He confirmed that the finish was a sprayed, tinted varnish.  He also said that the precise shading and tint varied over the years, so he did not have a matching varnish for me.

My woodworking and wood finishing skills are decent, so I decided to strip the finish down to bare wood, then apply a tinted varnish.  My woodwork is the lighter factory wood color.  I picked two Minwax Satin tinted varnishes that looked close.  Pecan was a little too dark and had a slight reddish hue, and Classic Oak was a little too light.  I mixed them 50-50 and applied it.  I didn't like it.  Back to bare wood, and I started again using just the Classic Oak.  The hue looked perfect, but it would need several coats to match the darkness.

After 7 coats, I think I am there.  It is still a little lighter than the original in daylight with the dinette window open, but is a match using the interior lighting.

If you are thinking of doing something similar, I caution you that your wood may be a slightly different shade than mine, so don’t assume that Classic Oak will work for you.  Get a few small cans of tinted varnishes.  Try one and see if the color matches.  If so, begin building up coats until the darkness matches.  If the color of the first coat does not match, it can be sanded off, allowing you to start again with a different one.

If you are new to varnishing, never, never, never, never shake the can of varnish.  You will never get the air bubbles out.  Allow each coat to dry thoroughly, then sand lightly, just enough to dull the surface a bit, sanding with the grain, with 320 to 400 grit sandpaper.  Stir the varnish gently.  When it is thoroughly mixed, apply a thin coat, finishing with the grain.  Use a good brush and always move the brush slowly, with almost no pressure, just barely touching the surface. 

Personally, I am pleased with the result, though it took time and patience.

Ken F in WY

Re: Repairing the finish on a drawer

Reply #2 – July 22, 2019, 09:16:19 am

I’ve refinished several spots/areas/surfaces of the drawers and cabinet trim a few times; I sanded the areas to be done with 400 grit, vacuumed the dust, then used Minwax stain. The color that was closest to the trim color in my 2003 is Minwax Puritan Pine; two coats of stain with a light sanding in between stainings, then two coats of Minwax semi-gloss polyurethane “varnish” (sand lightly in between coats). I didn’t use the combination stain/sealer because it wasn’t available in Puritan Pine. 😉