<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; = charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2800.1498" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Hi Greg, </FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Another option is to scrape as = much old finish off as possible to avoid working with stripper, nasty stuff, and only = bleach when there is color variation that needs to be evened out.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Rob E.</FONT></DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; = BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: = black"><B>From:</B> <A title=bases-loaded76@sbcglobal.net href="mailto:bases-loaded76@sbcglobal.net">Mark Potter</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A = title=pianotech@ptg.org href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">Pianotech</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, April 27, 2005 = 5:47 AM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: refinishing frustrations</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV> <DIV>Hi Greg -</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>When you say the wood seems to end up darker than you would like = when you try to even out the color are you referring to evening out the color = from one piece to the next (i.e. - making the legs the same color as the = fallboard), or evening out some color 'blotchiness' you may encounter on an = individual piece?  If you are referring to blotchiness, I would say you are inflicting this on yourself in the stripping process by being more = aggressive in some areas than in others in either scrubbing or sanding.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>In my experience, if you just let the stripper remove the finish = to the point where a putty knife will easily scrape it off, that avoids = pitfall # 1 - scrubbing real hard in stubborn places to remove finish still = adhering. Then if you lightly scrub/rinse WITH THE SAME EVEN PRESSURE THRUOUT using = either a water/alcohol, lacquer thinner, or TSP rinse (or combination of all = 3)with #1 steel wool or maroon scotchbrite pad, you should have all pieces = stripped clean, free of any blotchiness.  I am not a big fan of inflicting = further aggression on the wood after achieving this state other than a light = sanding with 150 - 220.  My personal opinion is that bleaching robs the = wood - especially mahogany - of some depth that is not retrievable. Just my = opinion, FWIW.  Nor have I found it necessary or desirable to go = after the old filler with scrub brushes, but to each his own.  </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>As far as keeping the color as light as possible, I will = generally pick the darkest piece of the lot, and only dye as necessary to get the = rest of the pieces to that shade. I would consider this then to be the lightest = this wood wants to be.  I prefer to take what the wood is giving me and = work with it, rather than to impose a completely different color regimen = that is much lighter in tone and requires bleaching to get there.  = Seems to me this is like "askin' for a fight".... ;-)</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I will say that of the three common liquids I use for = cleaning after stripping - alcohol, lacquer thinner, TSP - the TSP removes the most color.  FWIW.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Mark Potter</DIV> <DIV><BR><B><I>Greg Newell <gnewell@ameritech.net></I></B> = wrote:</DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE class=replbq style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #1010ff 2px = solid">list,<BR>I wonder if you all (as many opinions as I can get) would = <BR>enlighten me on what you do in the stripping process. I'm specifically = <BR>interested in everything that comes before repairs and coloring etc. <BR>Perhaps = more to the point is whether or not you are seeking to make the <BR>wood as = bare as possible i.e. devoid of any color, or are you simply <BR>removing = topcoat, then repairing, even out color and re-topcoat? It seems <BR>that my = attempts seem to bring the finished product darker than I would <BR>like by attempting to make everything the same color. I have only removed = <BR>finish in the past but am contemplating bleaching. Is this necessary in = <BR>order to get the lighter colors I'm after? Would you be kind enough to <BR>describe exactly the steps and materials and tools you use in = the stripping <BR>process? Thanks in advance.<BR><BR>Greg = Newell<BR>Greg's ! piano Forté<BR>mailto:gnewell@ameritech.net = <BR><BR><BR>_______________________________________________<BR>pianotech = list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives<BR></BLOCKQUOTE></BLOCKQUOT= E></BODY></HTML>