What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Printable Version
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What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Kirbyc - 07-18-2014
I've got a 38-62 that someone stained and refinished very poorly some years ago. What wood is this made of? The stain in the grain makes it very hard to tell what it should look like.
Thanks
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Ron Ramirez - 07-18-2014
The front panel was originally covered with photofinish.
http://www.philcoradio.com/gallery/1937b.htm#n
Behind the photofinish is a very cheap white wood.
The top and sides are a species of Walnut - Arran probably knows which species it is, I'm afraid I don't.
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Arran - 07-19-2014
I think that the top and sides maybe the same grainless white wood, possibly poplar, it was finished dark anyhow. Bob had a 38-62 that he fixed up and the top and sides looked pretty much like those on a Philco 620. I have no idea if they used the same on the front panel or whether they had to go with a harder wood like maple veneer, but probably not. In any event the marquetry that you see in pictures was a faux finish, basically a large decal that can flake off if the set was stored improperly, or disappear if it is stripped. Supposedly there is a guy making from panel decals for a 37-610 or 37-630 tombstone but I don't know about a 37-62 or a 38-62. I hate cabinets with such finishes, I have a Packard Bell which had something similar, and it's turning to dust too.
Regards
Arran
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Kirbyc - 07-19-2014
The top and sides have a grain. The lady at the paint store thought it looked like mahogany but with the dark stain it's a little hard to tell.
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Bob Andersen - 07-19-2014
Here's a video showing a Refaux Pro reproduction decal being applied: http://youtu.be/KwsEq7PW1_4
They don't appear to offer a 38-62 yet though: http://www.vintageradiolabels.com/refaux-pro.html
Here's my 38-62 after stripping. As Arran said, it's some nondescript cheap secondary wood.
[Image: https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8379/8640005153_30308d233f_z.jpg]
After grain filling and some dark walnut toner.
[Image: https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8122/8656052242_8569299927_z.jpg]
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Kirbyc - 07-19-2014
The stripped top and sides look just like mine. What did you use for filler and what did you do to the front?
Thanks.
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Arran - 07-20-2014
It's definitely not mahogany, mahoganies of all species have an open grain, even more so then walnut. But the veneer they used has a tight closed grain like poplar, maple, birch, or beech has. Sometimes poplar does display some interesting grain, like spalting or fungus stains, as does maple, but more often then not it's just a bland white wood. Beech looks like maple but has more of an orange colour to it, birch is whitish but it has more of a grain to it then either beech or maple. If they knew that the wood was going to be finished dark they would have used whatever hardwood was cheap and available, I've even seen ash used for this.
Regards
Arran
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Bob Andersen - 07-20-2014
Here's the detailed thread on my 38-62 cabinet restoration. http://www.philcoradio.com/phorum/showthread.php?tid=6200
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Kirbyc - 07-20-2014
Thanks, Bob. The photo finish on mine is gone. I'm thinking about getting some veneer, maybe walnut, and doing the front. Maybe change the direction of the grain a couple of times or something then staining the rest of the cabinet to match.
Any thoughts from the group?
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Steve Davis - 07-20-2014
I would use a walnut burl veneer on the front. Look on Ebay.
Steve
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Kirbyc - 07-20-2014
Great idea. Thanks!
RE: What wood was a 38-62 made from? - Kirbyc - 07-26-2014
I just received the veneer and need to know what to do next. Can anyone point me in the right direction?
Thanks.