So, I am 100% new to woodworking and everything that that entails. I have started to refinish a dining room set I recently purchased from a family. Unfortunately, it was a veneer but I am very happy with the piece and how it's turning out. I am now looking for a solid wood coffee table that I can also refinish to match our decor. Any advice on this piece? Pass or buy?

 

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/798380605809329/?mibextid=dXMIcH

Looks well built! Don't know anything about Broyhill brand, for pricing. If you plan on refinishing it, that looks doable to me.

Lew, I definitely plan on refinishing it to match our decor. I do not have enough experience with this to identify the wood; Any opinions on the type of wood this may be?

If I'd have to guess, I'd say it was red oak. The grain patterns on the bottom shelf (facebook market place images) look very much like that.

Well, we missed that piece by a day. We are now looking at this piece that is advertised as solid oak.

 

 

Little difficult to tell from image how it is made 

I forgot to add the link to the ad that has additional photos.

 

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/814906937452127/?mibextid=dXMIcH

Whey I look closely at the third image it almost looks like end banding at the corner. Maybe someone else has some ideas 

Lew, I had to look the term "end banding" up but thank you for that. I am definitely not sure and would absolutely appreciate advice on the piece before moving forward. I do not want to buy another veneer piece.

I’m on my phone but the right side of the second image doesn’t seem to show a seam or break between the breadboard end and the side edge pieces. Maybe @kmealy could give you more information 

10 hours ago, lew said:

When I look closely at the third image it almost looks like end banding at the corner. Maybe someone else has some ideas 

I would agree with that.  That would be typical of a veneered surface (i.e., not "solid" oak").  If it was solid wood, the edge banding would not  work due to expansion and contraction.  Look the the breadboard ends on the first table you showed.  You can see that the center section had expanded a bit and the breadboard had allowed it to happen without damage.

 

When I saw only the first picture of the second table, my first impression was that it had "saw marks" that would indicate solid wood, but seeing one of the detailed photos, it looks more like "physical distressing."  That would be made by pounding some sort of tool into the surface during prep and before finishing.  They are too  uniform.

 

All that said, veneered pieces can be refinished, but you definitely want to use a stripper and take it easy on the sanding.  You'll have to use some sort of brass brush or the like to get the finish out of those distressed marks.

1 hour ago, kmealy said:

I would agree with that.  That would be typical of a veneered surface (i.e., not "solid" oak").  If it was solid wood, the edge banding would not  work due to expansion and contraction.  Look the the breadboard ends on the first table you showed.  You can see that the center section had expanded a bit and the breadboard had allowed it to happen without damage.

 

When I saw only the first picture of the second table, my first impression was that it had "saw marks" that would indicate solid wood, but seeing one of the detailed photos, it looks more like "physical distressing."  That would be made by pounding some sort of tool into the surface during prep and before finishing.  They are too  uniform.

 

All that said, veneered pieces can be refinished, but you definitely want to use a stripper and take it easy on the sanding.  You'll have to use some sort of brass brush or the like to get the finish out of those distressed marks.

 

Thank you! I really appreciate the details response. As you know, I'm still learning about all this. Even though it is veneer, it seems like a decent piece and would fit our decor after refinishing it to fit our decor/colors. I'm waiting on more pictures from the guy today but I may go ahead and take it. The fiance likes it so...

Well, we looked at the piece yesterday and it was far from the description. After looking at it, I wouldn't be comfortable sanding this table. The veneer on it felt very thin and soft to me. I knew it was an issue when he lifted the coffee table up in the air, by himself, with no help! I even said out loud to him "To lift that table that easily by yourself, no way it's close to solid wood of any kind". Either way, nice guy but we decided to pass. Smart decision!

On 8/6/2024 at 8:52 AM, Bryan Cassidy said:

I even said out loud to him "To lift that table that easily by yourself, no way it's close to solid wood of any kind".

 

I'm not sure that going by the weight would be a good indicator.  Plywood "may" be lighter than some (or even most) lumber species bdft/bdft - but I think MDF would be equal or heavier than many species.

MDF is a fairly common substrate in furniture, it looks like a sawdust & glue mixture made into board/panels.

 

At the Lowe's store closest to me, there are MDF "boards", typically with a laminated white veneer for shelving in the same isle with the kiln dried oak and poplar that they carry.  Next time you are at the store do an experiment and see which board is heavier.

2 hours ago, Cal said:

 

I'm not sure that going by the weight would be a good indicator.  Plywood "may" be lighter than some (or even most) lumber species bdft/bdft - but I think MDF would be equal or heavier than many species.

MDF is a fairly common substrate in furniture, it looks like a sawdust & glue mixture made into board/panels.

 

At the Lowe's store closest to me, there are MDF "boards", typically with a laminated white veneer for shelving in the same isle with the kiln dried oak and poplar that they carry.  Next time you are at the store do an experiment and see which board is heavier.

Thanks, Cal. I appreciate the tip and will definitely check things out the next time I'm in Lowes. From your experience, what would a very soft and almost spongy like texture indicate when looking at a piece? As soon as I touched the top, that stood out to me immediately about the table.

 

Edit:

 

HARO50, I'm not sure how to best describe what I am trying to say but I'll try again. The tabletop just felt like a soft rubber texture. It did not feel like wood at all. It was not solid at all. It felt soft as in a rubbery texture or something. My apologies if that doesn't make what I'm trying to say even more clear. Ultimately, we did not like the piece and would not have been satisfied with it.

Edited August 11, 20241 yr by Bryan Cassidy

33 minutes ago, Bryan Cassidy said:

Thanks, Cal. I appreciate the tip and will definitely check things out the next time I'm in Lowes. From your experience, what would a very soft and almost spongy like texture indicate when looking at a piece? As soon as I touched the top, that stood out to me immediately about the table.

https://picketandrail.com/blogs/solid-wood-furniture/how-to-identify-genuine-solid-wood-furniture#:~:text=Cheap substitutes like particle board,and dense as solid wood.

21 minutes ago, lew said:

https://picketandrail.com/blogs/solid-wood-furniture/how-to-identify-genuine-solid-wood-furniture#:~:text=Cheap substitutes like particle board,and dense as solid wood.

 Thank you, Lew! I will definitely read it!

21 hours ago, Bryan Cassidy said:

what would a very soft and almost spongy like texture

 

There's good info in that link @lew provided.

 

My first thought on "soft & spongy" is that the substrate of MDF or MDO has gotten wet - but if that were the case it would also likely show up as a swollen or wrinkled area.  Spalted real wood could also be a bit soft & spongy, but I don't see any spalting in the pic.

What I do see in the pic, and might be a tip off to it's being not real wood (and likely not even a real wood veneer) is the uniformity of all the "hit or miss" planing/sanding marks, those small dark lines across the width of the board.  I've not seen them this uniform...

 

I'm not sure what you are describing as soft & spongy is the same thing as what I might describe as soft & spongy.  We'll never know on this piece, unless you happen to go back and see it sitting on the side of the road and pick it up for learning...