Posted 9 years ago
B.Kay
(15 items)
Hello! I am new to collecting and I was helping a woman clean her house to go live in an RV. She had a smaller trunk that I asked a few questions about which lead to her saying " I have another in the garage and you can have both". So at the end of the day I proceed to the garage not sure what to excpect. She showed me where it was and I literally had to dig through piles to get to it and it was so heavy. I didn't even know they made dresser trunks, but I did know it was special. So it's completely intact with oak slats running from back, top, and front. It has 2 markings of Henry Likly & Co. I have done my research on his company but have yet to see another like it. The closest is trunkman's dresser trunk. The bottom had a hidden secret drawer. It still has all of the canvas inside and was light blue. I need to know IF, and how to refinish this?? Also any other info would be super! It's very spectacular and I'm thrilled to have found this site to share it and get ideas! I live on the coast and it's humid here, I'm worried about the canvas inside. Thanks all!
Great trunk and we do have a few guys on here that do beautiful restorations . They should be able to help you :-)
Always nice to see a dresser trunk -- this is from a well known maker who may hold the patent on this style. The outside veneer on your seems to be in good condition -- I see that the canvas is a bit "ratty" on the inside. What kind of refinishing or restoration are you looking to do? Great find and welcome to Collector's Weekly.
Hi and thank you! So I am thinking of tung oil. But the inside I don't know what to with. I'm worried about mites on the canvas inside. And it is completely covered twice. It has an under layer that is vanilla colored and then the layer that looks ratty is or was the light blue and it comes off easily but that first one is really on there. After I take it off how do treat the wood drawers? They are pine. The other thing is, I don't know how to clean the rust from the hardware and what to after that to keep it from rusting again?
That first layer of canvas can be tough to remove -- usually it comes off well when you soak it first with a wet cloth... try a piece at the back or bottom to measure your success. I find tung oil does not work well with pine so you may wish to try another treatment for the interior. (pine tends to just soak it in) For the metal you can use fine steel wool to rub off the first layer of rust and then apply some gun oil for protection. If you are brave and want to get radical you can use a drill and a steel or preferably brass brush to tackle the rust but it can get away from you and gouge the wood. I used a steel brush and drill on mine and you can see the results but my hardware is different than yours. Good luck and make sure you post the results!
Awesome! That was very helpful. I will post after pics. I love how there's a secret drawer and that the 2 top drawers also have lids. Ok I am excited and will start tomorrow! Thanks again!!
Can't wait to see the finished product, welcome to CW:)
Thank you Trey!!!
OMG! This is awesome! How far have you gotten on this one, if you've started yet...
How lucky you are that someone gave it to you. Nice!
Thank you shareurpassion! I have stripped several peices, sanded a couple of drawers. And fabricated some fabric peices. This is taking a long time, but I'm also a single mama of 3 and just gained custody of my nephew. I go out to the shop every chance I get!!!
It's so amazing!