How do I repair my wood finish that I messed up?

[Rich Stidger]

The attached pix shows the result of my sanding a couple wooden plugs that I used to plug some unused holes.

I didin't realize that the wood panel was not solid wood but rather a laminated product with just a thin veneer of teak. I plugged three holes with 1/2" teak plugs and sanded the plugs down to be level with the surface. I've done this several times before now but the plugs always went into solid wood and after sanding I just wiped on some Daileys finish and it would always look perfect.

Now after sanding and removing the dust I see that I have sanded thru the thin veneer and now I do not know how to restore the finish so that it looks acceptable.

I've thought of applying some stain to closely match the color and that may make it less obvious, but is there a way I can rstore the look of wood grain?

Can anyone help me?

 

[Ross]

Your best bet is do do a faux woodgrain finish or find a friend that can. Using light and dark stains paint the color and striation into the damaged area.

 

[Hermit Scott]

I'm just guessing, Ross will know. But I would use a razor and a fixture to cut a vertical section of the verneer out from the top to that lower trim piece. Then install the new piece with the fixture in place.

 

[Ross]

I'm just guessing, Ross will know. But I would use a razor and a fixture to cut a vertical section of the verneer out from the top to that lower trim piece. Then install the new piece with the fixture in place.

The problem is that they slice veneer about .008 inches thick, just a little more than heavy paper.

 

[RAD]

Maybe install a new panel a little bigger where the four screws are and it'll look like it was supposed to be there

 

[Guest]

Repair

Hi Rich, how large is the panel, can you remove it and do you have access to wood working tools; table saw, etc.?

If it were my boat and I wanted the repair to be invisible, first I would remove the panel and cut out the bad section with my table saw and replace with a new piece of matching teak veneer plywood. A butt joint glued with biscuits for a stronger bond should do the trick.

I suppose if you had access to teak veneer and a veneer patching kit that might do as well. I've never tried doing a veneer patch so no advice here. I do recall some years ago articles in Wood magazine that covered the technique. They also have a web site. The experts say it is easy to do. Perhaps a Google search might point you towards some technical advice for that alternative.

Terry Cox

 

[DannyS]

I agree with RAD, make a vertical "trim" piece that is wide enough to cover the screw heads and the OOPS. If you incorporate (what I assume is) the fire window into the design, it will look deliberate.

 

[Hermit Scott]

It also looks like a perfect place to hang a picture.

 

[Ross]

Hermit, first follow the admonition of the medical profession :first , DO No Harm!
Your picture hanging is no risk, a faux finish is reversible all of the other methods have the potential of making a bigger mess than you have.

 

[Marco Garcia]

Teak...

Rich,
I have a piece of teak faced marine plywood. If you want a small piece of veneer you can take it of, it's a double faced one, left over from my replacement of the aft kickboard, or make a plug repair..It's 11" x 6" x 1/2".

send me your address and i'll mail it.

Marco

 

[Hermit Scott]

After I did the first repair, then I would have to replace the whole face on that cabinet.

 

[William12213]

I think I would agree with Ross. You could try to replace the veneer but if you have never done it it most likely will not turn out well. It is thin and somewhat hard to work with in the situation you are looking at and to top it off it will still show.

You can buy stain pens to use to add some wood grain then rag on a blend of stain to match what is there. It is much easier and will look good.

 

[DannyS]

Hate to say it all, but I don't think trying to stain that back to a faux wood grain will work. If you look closely, the underlayer of wood is running horizontal to the exterior veneer layer. Stains are going to bleed in the direction of the wood grain so you'll end up with a bigger mess that will draw more attention. I don't think you'll be able to make vertical "woodgrain lines" on horizontal woodgrain without sealing the wood first to prevent bleeding, but then the stains are only going to be a surface paint job and not actually a stain.
Plus, (no offense here, Rich) the plug is not a perfect match anyway, it's quite a bit darker than the surrounding wood so even if you match the wood, the plug still shows.
A simple trim piece covers it all.
I do like Hermit's picture idea as well.

 

[AXEL]

What is that odd shaped piece of teak screwed next to the damaged area?
Is it possible to just flip the around to cover the damage?
Or take it off and put a bigger piece on.

 

[Rich Stidger]

Thanks to all for your suggestions....

Replacing the veneer is not a task I would attempt. I was thinking more like attempting to stain the core and blend it in with the surrounding area. I realize that the defect will not "disappear", I just want it to look less like a sore thumb. Marco- thanks for your offer of a piece of teak veneer anyway.

DannyS- you are correct in that the plug does not disappear and it is a bit darker. However plugs are commonly used to cover screws and although the plugs are usually visible they do look OK.

Axel- the teardrop-shaped part next to the defect is a swinging cover that exposes a hole into the engine compartment through which a fire extinguished can be discharged. It's a fire port.

The four bolt heads that you see are the mount for my automatic fire extinguisher that is inside of the engine compartment. I needed to replace my engine fire extinguished this year and the new one did not use the same mount. This required me to drill new mounting holes for bolts which you see. The old mounting holes received the plugs that I was attempting to finish.

This panel is on the side of my engine compartment and opposite the stove.

I have a friend in the kitchen cabinet business and he will take a look at this over the weekend and give me his opinion on a repair. However, his initial assessment of the situation was "Never sand through veneer."

I will post his (hopefully) more thoughtful reply and my final solution next week.

 

[rardiH36]

Re: Thanks to all for your suggestions....

Maybe a bit of creativity will work. That "tear-drop" piece actually looks very nice in the location. How about moving it to cover the offending area instead? Or, if the tear-drop also covers up something, then make a bigger tear-drop that will cover the entire area. Or make up any other geometric or artistic shape that would add some positive character to the area.

A PO of my boat sanded through a few square inches on the veneer of my main salon table, then hid the mistake with several coats of varnish stain which essentially painted the color solid. I only found out when I went to restore the wood by first removing the finish. I was able to "faux" an immitation wood grain over the area. But it only looks acceptable from certain angles. From other directions, the light catches the natural wood and the faux look differently and the area stands out glaringly. Maybe a faux expert would do it better ... but $'s?

Thats why I'm thinking for your situation its best just to cover it up with a piece of teak nicely shaped .... like your tear drop. Only you will know whats behind it. I couldn't use this solution for my table surface.

 

[sand sailor]

i'm with ROSS R & R ing the piece is asking for trouble if your not a pro try to stain over it and blend it in

 

[Stu Jackson]

My wife used to have a hobby

called faux (sp?) finishing and did some great finishes using just colors with brushes or sponges. You might try that method. Maybe take another area or another piece of similar wood somewhere and try it out first.