Antique table top.

[George Armstrong]

I'm building a dining room table. Using S. Yellow Pine. I'm going to distress the surface and want it to look old. I will appreciate any thoughts on how to get an old looking result with the finish. Any recommended books that would focus on the old used look I'm after?

[Scott Holmes]

George,

We will need a bit more info to answer your question.

Are you wanting to paint it?

What look and feel to you want?

Bob Flexner's book is the best.

[Tony Bilello]

Most refinishers including myself use glaze. The type of glaze you use depends on the finish you will be applying. I use lacquers almost exclusively and so I use an oil based glaze. The technique willl be the same, just the chemical base might vary depending on your finish. Check for compatability with your paint supplier.
First apply your primer/sealer coat. Now you will know what your piece will ultimately look like. Try to get a good color match with the glaze, but just a lot darker. For all intents and purposes, glaze come somewhere between a stain and a paint so it will be somewhat thick. Apply the glaze in all cracks, crevaces and 'shadow areas' such as the coves in turned legs for example. Get a clean rag and wipe most but not all of the glaze off wiping along the grain. Now get a clean dry brush and start spreading the glaze outward from the shadow areas until you get the desired 'look'. After that, let the glaze dry and spray your finish over it. I dont think this wii work with a brush on coating. Pretty simple to do. If you dont like what you did, mineral spirits will clean it right off and start over again.

They do make a chemical aging solutuin but it dont work right on soft woods like pine.
Have fun.

[George Armstrong]

I don't know enough about finishes to ask the right questions. The table is the Barnsley Hayrake Table. The top is Southern Yellow Pine I want to stain it (Or ????. No paint.) It has knots I want to show. It has the "Bowtie" type inlays made of hickory I want to show. I'm going to add some dents and scars, etc. to make it look old. Hope to stain it to add to the "Old" effect.

I ordered the Flexner book. Hopefully it will get me on the right track.

[Tom McMahon]

Here is a picture of one of my sample boards, on the left side you can see an example of grain reversal, this happens when staining soft woods like pine. This is why it is easier to age pine with toners and glazes not stain.

[johanes purnama]

You need a antique finishing on your table.
It need some special finishing techniques such as distressing, and a spetical technique of stain and glaze application.

This is a link that you may view to find the idea about your finishing.

Antique finishing for wood furniture

Good luck

Johanes