Yeah, good luck -- and take care. Best to take luck out of the equation whenever possible!
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
My Homemade (ultimate iMac) Desk
- Thread starter fivepoint
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Yeah, good luck -- and take care. Best to take luck out of the equation whenever possible!
The major worry with sanding is that I might go through the thin veneer on the plywood table-top. If I do that, I'll have to spend another $100 on a piece of plywood, and start from scratch on the top again!
I'm hoping that the chemical stripper will get 98% of it off, and I can hit it all once really quick with the sander to get the rest. After that, I should be able to go back and apply a quick coat of stain and start with the finish coat again.
My only major worry is that with all of the chemicals that I've been putting on it, all the different varieties, that something will happen bad with the final coat again. Some sort of reaction which I can't predict. I'm going to try and use a test piece first, so we'll see what happens!
Also, I don't know about 'getting intimate' with that sander, but I am awful sick of chemicals, and in general... I would say chemicals are also something you don't want to 'get intimate' with.
I agree, I would generally stay away from chemicals, I love my sander (or drill, with brush attachment - possible option for you ???), but it depends on the wood - if it has character and is old, then there are other ways to get the character back.
It very much depends on the surface, age and finish of the wood - in your case, however, I suggest you stay chemical based at the minute though, as much as you dislike it.
It very much depends on the surface, age and finish of the wood - in your case, however, I suggest you stay chemical based at the minute though, as much as you dislike it.
Also, I don't know about 'getting intimate' with that sander, but I am awful sick of chemicals, and in general... I would say chemicals are also something you don't want to 'get intimate' with.
Saw your photo in the 'FAIL' thread and wanted to see what you are up to. Good job on the den. Great colour choices. I have a similar colour scheme in my rabbit-hutch Tokyo apartment. The contrasting dark brown and litter off white actually give my place depth and makes the apartment visually bigger. Same for your den I would expect.
Looking forward to the finished project/s
Looking forward to the finished project/s
I did a little research on this before I started, and from what I could find, the general consensus is that this approach, while perfect for small wood projects, is generally low-quality compared to the 2-product approach. The biggest difference is the strength of the end result... and because it is a desk that I will be dropping stuff on and using ALL THE TIME, I thought that I would go for the strongest surface possible.
Thanks for the support on the colors. We were pretty happy with how it turned out too! There's a lot left to do with teh crown molding, lighting, window treatments, etc.... but I think it will turn out good in the end.
Hopefully I will have that desk in the room sometime in the next 2 weeks. That will make it feel like we've gotten a lot done!
Nice work either way man...
In august I'm going to begin my Kitchen and Bath Design school and I think as a personal side project I'm going to design a desk as well.
Though I'm only going to assemble it because my dad's company, the company I will be interning with, pretty much takes my design and drops the wood off at my house, stained and ready to go, we just have to piece it all together. Not quite as crafty as yours but I think I will be able to do a pretty cool design considering there is less labor involved in building it.
Nice work though.
In august I'm going to begin my Kitchen and Bath Design school and I think as a personal side project I'm going to design a desk as well.
Though I'm only going to assemble it because my dad's company, the company I will be interning with, pretty much takes my design and drops the wood off at my house, stained and ready to go, we just have to piece it all together. Not quite as crafty as yours but I think I will be able to do a pretty cool design considering there is less labor involved in building it.
Nice work though.
This is a really nice project. Like an earlier poster, I would have gone with a 'soft' finish, with 2 or 3 coats of oil followed by 2 or 3 coats of wax. I've made quite a few bits of furniture from Shaker Workshops and have always followed their instructions for 'soft' finishes (see http://shakerworkshops.com/resources/product-instructions/) and these have always turned out beautifully (biggest project was our maple-top trestle table: http://www.shakerworkshops.com/catalog/view/shaker-dining-tables/Shaker-Trestle-Tables---Maple/FX21 - now about 10 years old).
As far as I can see, the advantage of a 'soft' finish is that if a polyurethane finish gets scratched, then it's scratched, whereas if an oil/wax finish gets scratched, you just wipe on a bit of wax and polish it in and it looks fine.
- HB
As far as I can see, the advantage of a 'soft' finish is that if a polyurethane finish gets scratched, then it's scratched, whereas if an oil/wax finish gets scratched, you just wipe on a bit of wax and polish it in and it looks fine.
- HB
Thanks for the support. Good luck on your projects, too! They can be a lot of fun, as long as you take your time.
It's good to get advice like this... unfortunately I don't know much about this technique and the people who were helping me didn't seem to either. I can see the advantage of being able to more easily fix scratches, but I would aslo imagine that it would be far easier to scratch the surface on a 'soft finish'. Would this be correct? I suppose there are obvious benefits either way.
Yes, a soft finish is more easily scratchable but more easily repairable, and the oil and wax smell nicer than varnish.
- HB
Unless you prefer the smell of varnish...
Anyway, I've been following this from the beginning but this is my first post. I'd just like to say your doing great and I can't wait to see the end product! This type of furniture always gets me excited! (no not like that)
Nothing great is made without a few hiccups along the way
i hate to overly contradict you, but we painted out stairs with a 2-in-1 stain, and 3-4 years later they still look brand new.
of course its all your choice, but you may not know about the better types of stain. here are some images of the stairs
and one of the actual stain:
This is a good point... I honestly don't know the main difference, other than what I am told by the professionals I know. In retrospect, I would have done anything that promised to make the process 'easier'.
Yes... and no. I am still in the stripping process. I've gone over everything several times, but each time does a smaller percentage of good. Let me clarify:
The first coat of chemical stripper I added took off left about 10% of the clearcoat remaining, the second coat left about 5%, the third left about 3%, and the fourth, about 2%. It seems that I've probably got to do it atleast once or twice more because I keep finding little bits of clearcoat remaining.
I think that by the end of the week I should be ready to stain again. After that it won't take much longer. Cross your fingers and/or pray for me.
That fireplace needs a flat panel above it
Haha, yeah... I know what you mean! Actually, that was the original plan... we were going to keep this room as the 'Living Room' with a plasma above the fireplace, and also have a 'Formal Living Room' for... sitting... I guess. The only problem was we have no need for a formal living room, and did have a need for a den! So, instead, we turned the Living Room into a Den (as you've seen earlier) and the Formal Living Room in to our main Living Room.
You mentioned a flat panel. Here is a photo of my brand new Panny TH-50PX80U in all of it's glory in our new "Living Room". We've got a lot of painting to do in this room too... but as I like to say, "at least the important part is done."
Totally digging the Plasma and AppleTV combo by the way. Highly recommended!
Oh, and yes... the color of the credenza was inspired by my new desk!
Alright guys... I've been debating whether or not to post these here or not...
Currently, the project is at about the same spot it was 3 weeks ago. The desk still isn't completely stripped... and frankly, I don't know how long it is going to take for me to finish. Now that Summer has begun, I and the guy helping me are very busy. I have faith that it will be done within a month at most, but I don't want you guys to have to wait that long to see the final result.
Luckily, or unluckily I guess... depending on how much it ruins my sanity, I took a few photos of the desk in it's 'new home' before I stripped it down for the 2nd time. I just had to... I had to see what it would look like with the computer on it, in the room, and just see what I had to look forward to when I was done. So, I had my wife help me carry the desk in from the garage and we set it all up together. It was great, I used it for one night, took a few photos just in case, and then took it to get stripped the next day.
Anyway, since I am sure many of you (22,000 and some odd views later) are sick of clicking and checking clicking and checking to see if I had made any progress... I thought I would at least post these photos for you so you could see what it WILL look like when I finish and start to use it.
Looking over the computer, into the Dining Room.
Enjoying my first brew in my Den while streaming iTunes music to the stereo behind me on the bookshelves. Nice. (It can also stream to the living room to the AppleTV. Double nice.)
From the front, showing the hidden drawer and poor clear-coat quality. Sorry about the hanging cord and mess in the room... I didn't get it all looking nice since it would be a limited engagement. By the way, the cord will be run along the desk and down the leg. I will make it very inconspicuous, eventually.
Hope you enjoyed these... and sorry for not posting them earlier! I thought I could get it all completed, everything 100% done in much less time... but when I have to drive so far to work on it, it just doesn't happen as much as it should. I'd love to answer any questions or hear any comments! Thanks for all the support guys... It's really been great.
Things left to do:
- Finish Stripping
- Sand
- Stain
- Reapply Clear Coat
- Transport Home
- Fill Hidden Drawer
- Run Cords
- Install Leather Insert for Hidden Drawer
- Find Protective (Leather?) Top for Wrist Area
- Install Drawer Pulls
- Find Matching Chair
Currently, the project is at about the same spot it was 3 weeks ago. The desk still isn't completely stripped... and frankly, I don't know how long it is going to take for me to finish. Now that Summer has begun, I and the guy helping me are very busy. I have faith that it will be done within a month at most, but I don't want you guys to have to wait that long to see the final result.
Luckily, or unluckily I guess... depending on how much it ruins my sanity, I took a few photos of the desk in it's 'new home' before I stripped it down for the 2nd time. I just had to... I had to see what it would look like with the computer on it, in the room, and just see what I had to look forward to when I was done. So, I had my wife help me carry the desk in from the garage and we set it all up together. It was great, I used it for one night, took a few photos just in case, and then took it to get stripped the next day.
Anyway, since I am sure many of you (22,000 and some odd views later) are sick of clicking and checking clicking and checking to see if I had made any progress... I thought I would at least post these photos for you so you could see what it WILL look like when I finish and start to use it.
Looking over the computer, into the Dining Room.
Enjoying my first brew in my Den while streaming iTunes music to the stereo behind me on the bookshelves. Nice. (It can also stream to the living room to the AppleTV. Double nice.)
From the front, showing the hidden drawer and poor clear-coat quality. Sorry about the hanging cord and mess in the room... I didn't get it all looking nice since it would be a limited engagement.
By the way, the cord will be run along the desk and down the leg. I will make it very inconspicuous, eventually.
Hope you enjoyed these... and sorry for not posting them earlier! I thought I could get it all completed, everything 100% done in much less time... but when I have to drive so far to work on it, it just doesn't happen as much as it should. I'd love to answer any questions or hear any comments! Thanks for all the support guys... It's really been great.
Things left to do:
- Finish Stripping
- Sand
- Stain
- Reapply Clear Coat
- Transport Home
- Fill Hidden Drawer
- Run Cords
- Install Leather Insert for Hidden Drawer
- Find Protective (Leather?) Top for Wrist Area
- Install Drawer Pulls
- Find Matching Chair
Excellent!!
Looks great! It'll all be worth it when it's done.
I've been lurking, following your thread since it started, and I've enjoyed being along for the ride! I've been through less ambitious woodworking projects, and repairs to cars, etc. There are always things that go wrong. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one! A lesser man would have bailed out a long time ago and painted the darn thing (I painted my desk white....). Stick to your plan!
Thanks for sharing the journey this project took you on- look forward to seeing the finished desk with secret drawers (excellent touch!) and all it's glory!
Also glad to see you've enjoyed a beer with it- not my brand mind you, but who I am to judge, I'm the guy with a desk painted white.
Looks great! It'll all be worth it when it's done.
I've been lurking, following your thread since it started, and I've enjoyed being along for the ride! I've been through less ambitious woodworking projects, and repairs to cars, etc. There are always things that go wrong. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one! A lesser man would have bailed out a long time ago and painted the darn thing (I painted my desk white....). Stick to your plan!
Thanks for sharing the journey this project took you on- look forward to seeing the finished desk with secret drawers (excellent touch!) and all it's glory!
Also glad to see you've enjoyed a beer with it- not my brand mind you, but who I am to judge, I'm the guy with a desk painted white.
