Nakashima table

Martin O'Brien <martinjob [at] earthlink__net> writes

>Zbynek Jonak <zjonak [at] yahoo__com> writes
>
>>We are treating several pieces of furniture at a private residence.
>>One of the pieces is a large Nakashima dining table which has
>>developed a dull, sticky finish. ...
>...
>Unless the wax fails to give you proper color saturation, I would
>not attempt to apply tung oil.  You might consider contacting the
>Nakashima Studio.  I believe they are still quite active in New
>Hope, PA

Mr. O'Brien is absolutely correct. Nakashima's daughter runs the
studio and can tell you exactly how the piece would have been
finished if you know as little as when the piece was made. In fact,
George Nakashima was very specific about how he wanted the finishes
on his pieces maintained. In most cases, maintenance involved the
periodic application of a mixture of linseed oil and turpentine that
was applied with 000 steel wool over a period of days. I'm not sure,
but the recipe may be given in his book, "The Soul of a Tree," which
I believe is out of print.

However, it would be essential to determine if the piece had been
maintained this way in the past. Many weren't.

Dr. Johanna R. Bernstein
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Rutgers - The State University of New Jersey
Piscataway, New Jersey 08854
732-317-4349


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 21:28
                 Distributed: Friday, October 26, 2007
                       Message Id: cdl-21-28-007
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