Any Advice on refinishing this piece

[matt pickston]

I bought a new dining room set and would love to refinish an existing buffet to match the new set. The nerw set is a dark maghony and the old buffet is sort of a light cherry. I have never refinsish before and was plannign on using a chemical stripper, sanding, and finishing with oil based gel.

Does anyone see any issues with that plan? How do I determine if I need a sealer? Here are some photos . Middle two are the buffet.

[Jim Becker]

Refinishing to change the color to "something specific" is a very, very hard task to do, even by a professional. Not only do you have to deal with potential damage from the process (especially from sanding), but matching a color with potentially dissimilar species as well as the effects of time on the existing finish on the pieces you want to match isn't easy nor always possible.

BTW, just using a gel stain isn't likely going to do what you want to do. You'd probably have to do a multi-step finish with dyes and toners to get close to what you want. And gel stains tend to "hide" the wood underneath, too.

Personally, I'd embrace the contrast!

[Scott Holmes]

I see three different pieces. The buffet looks good... does it have any antique value?

If so, refinishing it will hurt the value, since the existing finish is in good shape.

I agree that this will be a large project and would demand a hefty price tag in many shops, mine included.

[matt pickston]

Thanks for your feedback.. Obvious my lack of experience underestimated this project. Much thanks for the valuable advice.