I'm finally getting to the cabinet of my RCA C15-3.
There was damage to the top that I thought was from water. The veneer on the left
side(viewed from the front) was gone and the surrounding veneer was lifting. The
crossbanding was also lifting in the left front corner.
I stripped the veneer and cut out the ragged crossbanding. It appears that someone
had sat a lead-acid battery on that corner of the radio at one time. The stains on the
base wood bear his out. I've since stripped the crossbanding off the entire top, so
the top is only the base wood, ~2" wide strips of ~1" board bonded together.
The contamination has gotten into the base wood on the entire left side, and left
the wood "soft". I can dig it out with a fingernail. This repair is quickly getting
beyond my expertise. Thoughts?

Tom Adkins wrote:
I'm finally getting to the cabinet of my RCA C15-3.
There was damage to the top that I thought was from water. The veneer
on the left side(viewed from the front) was gone and the surrounding
veneer was lifting. The crossbanding was also lifting in the left front
corner.
I stripped the veneer and cut out the ragged crossbanding. It appears
that someone had sat a lead-acid battery on that corner of the radio at
one time. The stains on the base wood bear his out. I've since stripped
the crossbanding off the entire top, so the top is only the base wood,
~2" wide strips of ~1" board bonded together.
The contamination has gotten into the base wood on the entire left
side, and left the wood "soft". I can dig it out with a fingernail. This
repair is quickly getting beyond my expertise. Thoughts?

Anywhere you see brown, the wood is soft and contaminated. There's no chance it
would adhere veneer.

"Tom Adkins" wrote in message
et...
Tom Adkins wrote:
I'm finally getting to the cabinet of my RCA C15-3.
There was damage to the top that I thought was from water. The veneer
on the left side(viewed from the front) was gone and the surrounding
veneer was lifting. The crossbanding was also lifting in the left front
corner.
I stripped the veneer and cut out the ragged crossbanding. It appears
that someone had sat a lead-acid battery on that corner of the radio at
one time. The stains on the base wood bear his out. I've since stripped
the crossbanding off the entire top, so the top is only the base wood,
~2" wide strips of ~1" board bonded together.
The contamination has gotten into the base wood on the entire left
side, and left the wood "soft". I can dig it out with a fingernail. This
repair is quickly getting beyond my expertise. Thoughts?

Anywhere you see brown, the wood is soft and contaminated. There's no
chance it
would adhere veneer.

Tom,
I've never done a repair like that... but here's how I'd approach it.
1)Use a wire brush to "gouge" out the soft spots as far as they go.
2)Rinse the contaminated areas with a mild bleach solution to neutralize
what may be left of the acid. Rinse and allow to dry for a day or two
3)Dilute some Weldbond (c) glue with water, and let it soak into the
soft spots. If it's thin enough, it will soak right in, then harden.
4)Fill to a level surface with Plastic Wood (c) and sand level with the
surrounding area.
5)Lay on new veneer.
...an idea, anyway.
Nelson

"Tom Adkins" wrote in message
et...
Tom Adkins wrote:
I'm finally getting to the cabinet of my RCA C15-3.
There was damage to the top that I thought was from water. The veneer on
the left side(viewed from the front) was gone and the surrounding veneer
was lifting. The crossbanding was also lifting in the left front corner.
I stripped the veneer and cut out the ragged crossbanding. It appears
that someone had sat a lead-acid battery on that corner of the radio at
one time. The stains on the base wood bear his out. I've since stripped
the crossbanding off the entire top, so the top is only the base wood,
~2" wide strips of ~1" board bonded together.
The contamination has gotten into the base wood on the entire left side,
and left the wood "soft". I can dig it out with a fingernail. This repair
is quickly getting beyond my expertise. Thoughts?

Anywhere you see brown, the wood is soft and contaminated. There's no
chance it would adhere veneer.

Tom,
I haven't seen the previous posts of this thread, so I hope this is
relevant. A good paint store will carry wood restoration materials such as
the Minwax products I've used. There's a liquid which hardens remaining
fibers (epoxy based?) and a product much like Bondo to fill holes. It works
easily and dries hard. I've used it on dry-rotted exterior window trim and
it does hold up. It would make an excellent repair under veneer.

Dave Burson

2)Rinse the contaminated areas with a mild bleach solution to neutralize
what may be left of the acid. Rinse and allow to dry for a day or two

Nelson:

Bleach won't neutralize acid; it's an oxidzing agent just as sulfuric acid is. What could
happen is that residual acid could react with the bleach and release chlorine gas. Not to
be recommended!

I'd suggest using baking soda solution to neutralize the acid. Safe, and won't harm the
wood.

The remainder of your suggestions are right on. I saw some wonder glue the other day,
Elmers Ultimate Glue, I think it is. It is a urethane glue that foams slightly upon
exposure to air, and then sets up. A friend was using it to mend some dry-rotted areas in
the woodwork of a Model T Ford. Amazing stuff, and it ought to do this job just fine. Can
be sanded and worked once hard.

Even autobody filler would work OK under new veneer.

Lee Valley Tools has a whole lot of products for restoring damaged wood, too.

Gordon Richmond

"Gordon Richmond" wrote in message
...
2)Rinse the contaminated areas with a mild bleach solution to neutralize
what may be left of the acid. Rinse and allow to dry for a day or two

Nelson:

Bleach won't neutralize acid; it's an oxidzing agent just as sulfuric acid
is. What could
happen is that residual acid could react with the bleach and release
chlorine gas. Not to
be recommended!

I'd suggest using baking soda solution to neutralize the acid. Safe, and
won't harm the
wood.

Doh! I was thinking acid vs base, and forgot about the chlorine. Good
catch!
Now that I think about it, Rona (and maybe Home Depot) carry a wood
hardener that might even eliminate the need to remove the soft wood (after
it's
neutralized.
Nelson

"Gordon Richmond" wrote in message
...
2)Rinse the contaminated areas with a mild bleach solution to neutralize
what may be left of the acid. Rinse and allow to dry for a day or two

Nelson:

Bleach won't neutralize acid; it's an oxidzing agent just as sulfuric acid
is.

Actually household bleach DOES have a highly alkaline pH (my profession is
pool pro so one thing I DO know is chlorine chemistry). BUT I still wouldn't
use it due to the toxic gas issues! My impulse would be to deeply scrape the
area and apply *short* fiber autobody filler. Be sure to *roughly* shape the
setting Bondo at just the right moment- before it is fully hard- with a
Surform or coarse sandpaper (that will clog a bit).

John H.

"Gordon Richmond" wrote in message
...
. A friend was using it to mend some dry-rotted areas in
the woodwork of a Model T Ford.

Remember though not a drop of glue can be used to hold a wooden *body*
together lest it squeak unmercifully forever though!!!

John H.

Tom Adkins wrote:

Thanks for all of the tips fellas. I've scraped out the worst of it and given it a
rinse with a baking soda solution. I like the idea of the hardener and "wood bondo",
I'll see if I can find it locally. If not, I'll break out the body filler. That front
corner is going to be a bit tricky, it has pretty much disappeared.

Is there any way to shrink this photo so I can see what it is?


"Tom Adkins" wrote in message
...
I'm finally getting to the cabinet of my RCA C15-3.
There was damage to the top that I thought was from water. The veneer on
the left
side(viewed from the front) was gone and the surrounding veneer was
lifting. The
crossbanding was also lifting in the left front corner.
I stripped the veneer and cut out the ragged crossbanding. It appears
that someone
had sat a lead-acid battery on that corner of the radio at one time. The
stains on the
base wood bear his out. I've since stripped the crossbanding off the
entire top, so
the top is only the base wood, ~2" wide strips of ~1" board bonded
together.
The contamination has gotten into the base wood on the entire left side,
and left
the wood "soft". I can dig it out with a fingernail. This repair is
quickly getting
beyond my expertise. Thoughts?