John,

The best thing to do with antique furniture is to dust it and leave it 
alone. The old folk remedy of "feeding" wood by oiling it will severely 
compromise the finish - oils contain organic components that will 
darken and crosslink - making thier removal very problematic.

If a piece of antique furniture requires cleaning then get professional 
advice from a conservator. If the piece is unpainted then you could try 
some mineral spirits by q-tip in an unobtrusive spot - if it appears to 
lift off the finish then stop!

The Furniture conservators that I know advise only occasionaly waxing, 
with a product like "Antique Wax" and nothing more.

I always like to point out to clients that famous Antiques Roadshow 
episode where the lady brought in her 18th century Cherry Highboy and 
proudly told the appraisers how her husbaqnd had refinished it, 
removing all "that ugly black crud". The appraiser told her that the 
"ugly black crud" was the orginial finish and that the value had 
dropped many tens of thousands of dollars because the piece had been 
refinished.

Cheers!
Dave

David Harvey
Conservator
Los Angeles, California USA

-----Original Message-----
From: John Martinson <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent:         Mon, 9 May 2005 07:07:16 -0600
Subject: Wax / polish antique furniture

   There is a person using old English light and dark on an old piece of
furniture.  They say to remove it with something like Formby's build-up
remover.  I think that may remove even the original coating/finish.
What is recommended to use?

Thanks.

John

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