Varnishing/treating/staining a stripped slant 4x12 cabinet from 1972

lukedlb

Can the woodworkers in the forum advise me on how to proceed? I have stripped and sanded the cab to reveal a beautiful pale wood with lovely veins, etc. I would like to varnish to a dark golden tan, much like the 68 cab I have. I'll post some photos of that cab later. I can leave it to dry in the cellar even though it is a bit dusty. Not ideal conditions but that's all the space I have.
Do I need to apply several coats? Is there a natural solution so I don't poison myself?
I have to put on a new grill cloth. I'm going with this black and tan:
https://www.tube-town.net/ttstore/grillcloth-british-jtm30-black-tan-80-x-100-cm.html
although I could just coffee/tea stain a salt and pepper cloth:
https://www.tube-town.net/ttstore/grillcloth-british-salt-pepper-80-x-100-cm.html

The cab and baffle is painted black inside so I'll just be varnishing the exterior.

lukedlb

Piping and side handles are gold.

greggreg66

Oil or lacquer I'd say. Oil will enrich the colour, but a lacquer or varnish would be harder wearing (and also enrich the colour so long as it's not water based..... but you can get 'wood warming' water based lacquers). 

lukedlb

Here’s the cab I want to copy with the sanded wood leaning against it. 

lukedlb

https://imgur.com/gallery/yHniDnQ

lukedlb

greggreg66 said:

Oil or lacquer I'd say. Oil will enrich the colour, but a lacquer or varnish would be harder wearing (and also enrich the colour so long as it's not water based..... but you can get 'wood warming' water based lacquers). 

Any advice about applying a lacquer? A single coat?

greggreg66

Ah I see. The old cab looks like it's got quite a bit of age to it making it rather dark. You might need to stain that first or maybe even a tinted oil or lacquer/varnish. The waterbased lacquers can be rolled or brushed, spraying is best, but to get closer to that finish i wonder if varnish is best. It looks like it has a varnished vibe with the rich amber / treacle colour. If you used a stain it would bring out the grain more, whereas the old cab doesn't have that, it's a more uniform colour, so maybe a tinted varnish might be best?

robgilmo

That photo, thats some kind of staining varnish, thats not a natural wood colour, you could add a tint to some varnish or just buy some tinted varnish, if you want a dead on match you will have to add a tint. I used a clear wax on mine during last summer and its started to darken naturally.

lukedlb

robgilmo said:

That photo, thats some kind of staining varnish, thats not a natural wood colour, you could add a tint to some varnish or just buy some tinted varnish, if you want a dead on match you will have to add a tint. I used a clear wax on mine during last summer and its started to darken naturally.

The guy who did mine, whose memory is poor, has remembered that he used a synthetic gold one. He recommended I use a water-based one. It doesn’t need to be exactly the same; more just an indication of the colour I like. 

robgilmo

If you want a hard coating you could try spraying a polyurethane, you need an oil based one or a tinted water based one , spraying will give you a even coat but whatever varnish you use it will be glossy unless you use a matt varnish. If you want to replicate something old its quite hard, years of scuffs, UV, polishes , waxes all take a toll on any finish and trying to replicate it can make it look very unoriginal.