French Polishing beginner

[Terry Hyland]

I am planning to learn how to French Polish and for my trial piece I want to use a Chinese Rosewood coffee table I bought in Hong Kong 20 years ago. I think it was polyurethane varnished? Do I have to strip it back to the bare wood before I can polish it or can I polish the existing surface?

Terry Hyland

 

[MJOriginals]

Hi
You can french polish over certain finishes but you need to test what the finish is,but you won't get as good a deep shine as the base layer of varnish will set the tone of the polish
French Polish gives a deep shine because the multiple layers fill up the grain into a smooth coat (if it's done right).
You also need check the products being used don't effect the varnish finish on the table
Martyn
MJOriginals

 

[Droogs]

Best to take off all the old finish to get the best results

 

[Mr T]

It is quite difficult to self learn french polishing as it is all about how much you load the rubber and the amount of hand pressure applied when rubbing, not the sort of thing you can learn from books and videos. I don't know where you live but if it's anywhere near Ilkley I would be happy to give you a few pointers if you can get to my workshop.