Antique mahogany 19 century military campaign chest of draws

Daniel chapman antique furniture restoration

The antique mahogany campaign style chest of draws had come in for restoration recently. After being passed down through the private clients family .

The military chest of draws had been repaired in the past by someone   Else . The had used filler to repair  were wood had chipped out and the coated the chest in some sort of tinted varnish. Over the years the brass handles ,brass corners  and straps were discoloured with age.

The first job was to remove all of the old varnish from the carcass and draws. After stripping and allowing to dry I began to sand the carcass and draws. Underneath the old finish was some lovely Cuban mahogany . The old filler was removed and old timber was found to match the grain . The repairs were carried out and new patches were cut in were the filler once was. The draw runner were worn in place and needed some attention. This helped the draws run freely and saved repairs in the future .

Originally the chest would have had four small turned fitted with threads, enabling them to be removed . These were now missing and new feet were turned and fitted to the chest . The brass work had been removed before the carcass was stripped. These were polished on buffing machine along with the screws and key escutcheons.afterwards the brassware was lacquered .

The natural colour of the timber was a dark rich red colour and would only require to be sealed with shellac before French polishing

 

Once all the polishing was done and the repirs were coloured out the chest was then waxed and the brassware fitted back on .

the chest was then ready for delvery back to the customer for years of use once again