Big boo-boo in my dining table top!

[Kirk (KC) Constable]

Me and a buddy share a truck when we go to the mesquite show...so LOML and I packed some stuff over to his house today for loading up Thursday. When we got there Jean noticed a big nasty on the dining table top. At first glance and from the right angle, it looks like a crack, but if you study it, looks more like a deep scratch. The 'cut' in the lacquer looks too 'clean' to be a crack...and since I use very good material, it just doesn't seem reasonable...so we musta done it sometime between the time we carried it out of our house and unloaded it over there. Although we try not to drag stuff across the blankets, sometimes we do anyway. Maybe there was something on the blanket. :(

Doesn't really make any difference WHAT happened...it's too bad to leave alone. This is the top that I worked on for probably 2 days AFTER spraying it the first time...and another day after spraying it the second time. If you overlook the single beard hair buried in an early coat :mad: , it is (was!!!) without question the finest finish I've ever put on anything. And now I have to try to fix it in two days, and preferrably one, without completely stripping it and starting over. :(

I have a good bit of lacquer on it...and it's very nearly flat (smooth)...so what I'm going to do first is SAND the entire top with 320G to see for sure whether it's a crack or 'just' a scratch. If after sanding I find that it's only a scratch, I'll shoot a bit of lacquer on the scratch, steel wool the bejeezus out of the entire top to get rid of the inevitable sanding swirlies, and see if it'll buff up again and look decent. If not, I'll spray the whole thing again and say a little prayer that the bugs and hair stay off it.

It would go without saying that this pretty well wrecked my Sunday, and certainly kills tomorrow...but I'm saying it anyway. Honestly, I almost wish we hadn't noticed it until we unloaded at the show. Obviously I woulda had to fix it at some point or knock a couple hundred bucks off the price, but now I don't have any choice other that to fix it TOMORROW.

I'm feeling quite sorry for myself, and I'd appreciate it if you folks did too. :o :rolleyes:

KC

[Steve Clardy]

Don't ya just hate that when something like that happens?
Reminds me of the time I did a 5x12 Red Oak Dining Table, 1 1/4" thick.
Last coat of lacquer, about nine at night. Gosh, she really laid on good, and looked great.

Came in the next morning, and a June Bug decided to camp out on top of it. Wasn't just one spot, it tracked a fourth of the way across it.

[Byron Trantham]

Kirk, I feel for ya Buddy! I hate "going back" on a project especially when you've put so much time in it. If it's any consolation, I stained a Kitchen Island for my daughter only find out I picked up the wrong can of stain! The color was close but not close enough. :mad:

Good luck on your finish fix.

[Corvin Alstot]

Keep us posted on how it turns out.
Its not fun re-doing previous work especially when it looks good, and now you have to go fast. Yikes. Best of luck!

[Don Naples]

Kirk:

Since you finished the table surface, there is no need to use #320. I hope these comments may save you some time. If you sand the scratched areas with #600, is is easier to cover with a light coat or two. If the scratch is deep, get some Nitro Stan at an automotice paint supply. A touch of primeer, a squeege applied bit of Nitro Stan, a little sanding to make it smooth, prime, and then spray the top coats. You can buff out the overspray, but since it is new paint and you are using the same paint, you will never see the repair. Unless I missed something from your comments, this is a quick way to repair the damaged area and not have to do the entire surface again.

[Keith Burns]

Makes my heart ache:( :( . You will be in my thoughts and prayers. Good luck on the repairs.

[Gary Herrmann]

I put together a Mahogany bookcase in the Spring. Had the top just perfect and my 5 yr old was running around in the basement, bumped against the table, knocking it off which resulted in a huge gash in the top of it.

As somebody once told me, the measure of craftsmanship is the ability to hide mistakes. Sometimes those that aren't our own. I'm sure you'll do just fine in fixing this one. Doesn't make it less frustrating, but I'm sure you'll learn something positive from it.

Good luck.

[Jim Becker]

Ouch!! :( The bright side...you at least discovered the problem with "some" time available to deal with it before the show... ;)

[Corey Hallagan]

KC, sorry to hear about the damage. I hope you get it all in shape for the show and all goes well. Good luck!

Corey

[Alan Turner]

KC -- I am not a lacquer guy, but I have heard that you can french polish it much like shellac. Were it shellac, then I would try a light sanding in the area of damage, and then french polish it back in in that area only; rub out, and wax. Just a thought, and pretty quick to try.

[Dan Forman]

Kirk---Hope the redo goes well, can imagine your frustration.

Dan