Refinishing an Antique Table Top

I came across this great table at the local antique place for a price of $20 - this price was just too good to pass up for such a nice looking piece. Trouble is, the top surface of the table had been abused over the years. This was not really a surprise, but at the same time, it detracted from an otherwise nice table. Below is an image of the top of the table and a few close ups of the damage it had sustained. 

What a shame for such a nice-looking piece of furniture - it would certainly be nicer without all of that trouble on the top. So, I decided to refinish just the top portion of the table. I began by carefully taping off the top of table with blue painters tape. I covered the trim work that drops below the table top using several strips of tape and then taped some newspaper to this tape so the rest of the table was covered in a shroud with only the top visible. I wasn't sure the tape would be able to protect the trim work like I wanted it to, so I spent some extra time going around the border with my finger nail, trying to make sure that there were no gaps or other places where the tape wasn't fully adhered.

With the patient prepped for surgery, I made up a fresh batch of my favorite antique furniture stripper: equal parts of lacquer thinner and acetone from the local hardware store. A new plastic paint roller tray was used to hold the mixture. I placed a few wooden blocks on either side of the tray so I could lay the table on its back with the plane of the table top positioned directly over the tray. Then, I dipped my 0000 steel wool pad into the stripper and began wiping across the table top. The old finish immediately liquified and came off like magic. I tried to work quickly and neatly, so I wouldn't splash the stripper where I didn't want it to go. I was also extra careful not to use too much around the edges where it might get under the tape. A few minutes later, the top was completely stripped.

I let it dry for a few hours and then started with the grain filler as described with my RCA Radiola 17 cabinet refinish. There weren't any gouges or scratches in the surface that needed to be fixed, so I went right to the grain filler. Two passes with the grain filler (with some scraping, buffing, and time to dry after each coat) worked well to fill in the pores. I let this dry over night and started the next day with some lacquer. First up was a coat or two of clear to seal the raw wood. Then I used a few coats of Perfect Brown toner lacquer and let this dry. It is important to do one light coat at a time, let it dry, and then carry it out into the sunlight to see how close the color match is and how evenly you've applied the color. After the color was good, I added about 8-10 coats of clear lacquer on top, using 0000 steel wool after each coat and wet-sanding with 600 then 800 grit sandpaper after every 3 or 4 coats. It is important to use thin coats of lacquer so it dries well and then to give it a few hours (preferably over night) before sanding, otherwise, the sandpaper will tear out chunks of your finish and you'll have to start all over again.

Removing the tape and newspaper after a few days of work revealed this:

With all of the mess gone, the bookmatched veneer on top is now easy to see and appreciate! What a real beauty! It was definitely worth the effort to restore this little gem! It will make a great display piece for one of my antique radios.