Hi,

I just bought an antique piano, and the previous owner was kind enough
to give the finish a boost by applying a coat of melted vaseline over
the shellac.

I have seen the photos and they look good, with the wood having
re-gained some of the darkness before oxidization.

I'm just wondering if this technique is going to make it impossible for
me to apply further coats of shellac on top if I ever need to!

how could I rub shellac on top of the existing finish now that it has
been treated with vaseline?

alfred wrote:
Hi,

I just bought an antique piano, and the previous owner was kind enough
to give the finish a boost by applying a coat of melted vaseline over
the shellac.

I have seen the photos and they look good, with the wood having
re-gained some of the darkness before oxidization.

I'm just wondering if this technique is going to make it impossible
for me to apply further coats of shellac on top if I ever need to!

how could I rub shellac on top of the existing finish now that it has
been treated with vaseline?

Remove the vaseline. With paint thinner or naptha.

--
dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

NO . . NO . .NO
Do not use a solvent to remove the vaseline. You will only remove the
finish.
Padding & French polishing with shellac will remove the vaseline just
as it removes the oil in the final stages of French Polishing. Do a lot
of practicing before you try it on the piano, but it is a skill well
worth learning.
Bugs

"alfred" wrote in message

I just bought an antique piano, and the previous owner was kind enough
to give the finish a boost by applying a coat of melted vaseline over
the shellac.

If you do want to try to remove the Vaseline, try Murphy's Oil Soap on an
area that is not highly visible. It should be your safest bet to try, but no
guarantees.

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 12/13/05

On 11 Jan 2006 04:33:39 -0800, "alfred" wrote:

I just bought an antique piano, and the previous owner was kind enough
to give the finish a boost by applying a coat of melted vaseline over
the shellac.

Depending on the age of the piano, the finish probably isn't shellac
anyway,

Piano finishing scares me. It's _very_ hard to restore.

"Bugs" wrote in message
oups.com...
NO . . NO . .NO
Do not use a solvent to remove the vaseline. You will only remove the
finish.
Padding & French polishing with shellac will remove the vaseline just
as it removes the oil in the final stages of French Polishing. Do a lot
of practicing before you try it on the piano, but it is a skill well
worth learning.

Alcohol is poor solvent for Vaseline, but a good one for shellac. Paint
thinner is a good solvent for Vaseline, and does nothing to shellac, which
is why it can be used as a lube for wet sanding, evaporating quickly without
risking water under the finish.

I generally just remove excess polishing oil with mineral spirits rather
than a rag.

Aren't most pianos these days, and for that matter, for many days
finished with lacquer?

Robert

Andy Dingley ha scritto:

On 11 Jan 2006 04:33:39 -0800, "alfred" wrote:

I just bought an antique piano, and the previous owner was kind enough
to give the finish a boost by applying a coat of melted vaseline over
the shellac.

Depending on the age of the piano, the finish probably isn't shellac
anyway,

Piano finishing scares me. It's _very_ hard to restore.

it's a european piano from the late 1800's.. shellac.

someone mentioned paint thinner, as it doesn't melt shellac..
do you mean toulene, I mean Nitro thinner?

On 12 Jan 2006 06:18:58 -0800, "alfred" wrote:

Piano finishing scares me. It's _very_ hard to restore.

it's a european piano from the late 1800's.. shellac.

That's still no guarantee that it's shellac, or that it's only shellac.
It would tend to rule out the synthetic lacquers though.

Brown pianos could be a spirit varnish (with plant resins) rather than
shellac - especially older ones, so probably not this one. These are
somewhat like shellac to apply initially, totally different to re-finish
later. The great characteristic of shellac is that it's easily
re-dissolved by applying more solvent (the key to french polishing), the
plant resins don't dissolve easily enough. Shellac restoration
techniques will have little efffect on these, possibly a detrimental
effect. They certainly won't improve things.

If it's black, then it's likely to be based on shellac but the high
polish is obtained by really complex polishing techniques (only used on
pianos, and rarely on clocks and coffins), not just french polish.

someone mentioned paint thinner, as it doesn't melt shellac..
do you mean toulene, I mean Nitro thinner?

No, I think they mean light naptha fractions, as sold as "white spirit"
in the UK. It's a very weak solvent for anything, which makes it useful
for gentle work. If you really needed to clean the vaseline off it, then
this would be the stuff to use - however I don't see any problem with
vaseline, so I'd be inclined to leave it.

I've never use toluene with shellac, but my initial expectation is that
it would dissolve shellac - certainly not something to go slapping onto
your piano.

Vaseline is an easy contaminant to remove in any piece of high-end
re-finishing work. I'm surprised it does much for the finish other than
make it sticky and show fingerprints, but it's stable and it's not
damaging.

If this thing is worth serious money, then talk to a piano expert. I'm
no finishing expert (I don't have enough practical experience) but I'm
fairly knowledgeable. Like I said, pianos are beyond anything I know
about., particularly black ones.

OTOH, I'd dive straight into a harpsichord or virginal. I know about the
finishes on those.

alfred wrote:

someone mentioned paint thinner, as it doesn't melt shellac..
do you mean toulene, I mean Nitro thinner?

Is Nitro thinner lacquer thinner? No, not lacquer thinner, paint
thinner...mineral spirits. The stuff that is substituted for
turpentine. It won't hurt anything regardless if the finish is shellac,
varnish or lacquer but it *will* dissolve waxes and oils.

--
dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

On Thu, 12 Jan 2006 18:10:48 GMT, "dadiOH" wrote:

The stuff that is substituted for turpentine.

By UK naming at least, good quality "white spirit" will evaporate and is
OK to use. "Substitute turpentine" will leave an oily residue behind
and should _not_ be used for wiping down furniture.

A bit OT but:

I found that Vaseline was just the thing to restore the seriously chalked
finish on a fiberglass boat. The guy who suggested it recommended using 90
weight oil, but that stunk like an an old garage. The Vaseline took 20
years off the appearance, went on MUCH easier than wax (and looked shinier).
It washed off with use, but was so easy to reapply that it didn't matter.

Walt C


"alfred" wrote in message
oups.com...

Andy Dingley ha scritto:

On 11 Jan 2006 04:33:39 -0800, "alfred" wrote:

I just bought an antique piano, and the previous owner was kind enough
to give the finish a boost by applying a coat of melted vaseline over
the shellac.

Depending on the age of the piano, the finish probably isn't shellac
anyway,

Piano finishing scares me. It's _very_ hard to restore.

it's a european piano from the late 1800's.. shellac.

someone mentioned paint thinner, as it doesn't melt shellac..
do you mean toulene, I mean Nitro thinner?

You're technically right, but the process of French polishing floats
the lubricating oil [usually mineral oil] off the surface and removes
it on the pad. That's when the high gloss characteristic of this
process starts to show.
Vaseline also makes a good restorative for dried and cracked tortoise
shell. Repaired an old mandolin that way 20 years ago and it's still in
good condition.
Bugs