Refinishing "old" dresser

[ryan paulsen]

SO my wife and I are expecting our first child, and instead of buying new furniture that will probably get destroyed anyway, I am considering refinishing and old dresser we already have. It's nothing fancy, just appears to be veneered with some unknown finish. Dresser is probably ~50-75 years old.

We would like the final product to be opaque black. Without knowing the current finish, would I be pretty safe scuff sanding, and then spraying EM3000 followed by black EM6000? I was also considering BM Advance as that also seems popular, but may need too much thinning for my gun. Any thoughts on a better approach? More project details needed?

I am new to finishing (especially spraying), but just successfully sprayed a base cabinet using BIN and topped with thinned Behr Enamel. I have a gravity fed conversion gun that I'm learning to use.

Thanks all for the help. There is so much information out there, I think I've changed my mind 15 times over which process to use, so hopefully someone can set me straight!

[John TenEyck]

I can't tell you what to use, but I can tell you not to use BM Advance in a gravity feed gun. You will have to thin it far more than prudent to get it to spray. However, Advance is a great product and it goes on great with a mohair roller. If the dresser is mostly flat surfaces that could be an option. For comparison, BIN pigmented shellac primer has a Ford #4 viscosity of about 35 seconds, even though the TDS says it's quite a bit higher. Advance has viscosity of about 500 seconds - I got tired after 450 seconds and just called it 500 even. You need a pressure assisted gun to spray it effectively.

GF's Milk Paint also is too thick to spray with your gun but goes on great with a foam brush. You could topcoat it with GF's HP Poly or Enduro Clear Poly.

John

[ryan paulsen]

Thanks, I was hoping you would be one of the people to respond!

Thanks for the viscosity info as well. I did purchase a Ford cup, as this seems to be the best way to get consistent results (based on hours of searching this site). The BIN sprayed beautifully out of the can at 35-40 seconds for the Ford #4 cup. Do you (or anyone else) know the Ford viscosity for the EM products listed above? The dresser is mostly flat, I'm not opposed to brushing/rolling, but this would also be a good opportunity to practice my spraying skills for future products. If I brush/roll, I could always spray the topcoat like you mention, and get the best of both worlds? Hmmm.....just what I need, another option!

Thanks, you got my wheels churning again.

[ryan paulsen]

So I emailed Jeff Jewitt over at Homestead, and he recommended the Enduro tinted poly over BIN. I'll probably go that route, as it seems like people like the Enduro products as well as the customer service from HF. Here goes nuttin!