DIY Woodgrain

Greetings,

Here are some photos of a DIY woodgrain method I developed for the
restoration of old radios. Many radios of the 1930s had a photo print on
them instead of real wood veneer and restoring these cheaply has been
impossible until now.

First photo shows DIY woodgrain paper. The radio on the right has been
restored by covering it with the paper. On the table in front of the
radios are samples of the paper I made.


http://tinypic.com/view/?pic=497p2ea

Next is a closer look at the radio so you can see the grain.

http://tinypic.com/view/?pic=3yef09y

There is a transfer method called Acrylic Transfer where the image is
transferred to another surface and the paper removed. This photo is a
magazine page that has been transferred to a sheet of aluminum foil and
the paper removed. Notice that the image is backwards. This is because I
didn't bother to set the color copier to print a reverse image. The
image size was reduced for e-mailing.

http://tinypic.com/view/?pic=43f7z1g

This photo shows colored woodgrain transferred onto yellow acrylic paint
and the paper removed. It is "toner ready". Final color is achieved by
brushing or spraying transparent brown toners over it.

http://tinypic.com/view/?pic=4bqb2oj

Here is an example of how the toners work. Black grainlines were
transferred onto yellow acrylic paint. An orangish brown was applied
thinly over it and then a brown followed by another brown. Toners are
thin and transparent, easy to apply, and can be done making the paper or
as in this photo, using the acrylic transfer method.

http://tinypic.com/view/?pic=4hcojh2

Final photo is a radio cabinet I am working on. It had been in a flood
and the veneer came off. It took some work to get the cabinet back in
shape. Rather than paying for new veneer, I am using the Acrylic
Transfer method to apply grainlines only and will then apply colored
toners over it.

http://tinypic.com/view/?pic=4ico850

If there is any interest in this, I will post a link to more information
and answer any questions.

Stewart