Page 26 - 1219

Page 26 The Antique Shoppe December, 2019
Fred – I am trying to repair a factory made (not an antique) dining
Questions & Q. chair that has a couple of broken stretchers. I can’t seem to get them
out of the holes in the legs. I seem to recall that you can use vinegar to loosen
old glue. Is there a particular type or brand of vinegar the works best – or at
Common Sense Answers least better than another? Are there any other chemicals or mixtures that will

work better or faster? How long does the vinegar take? George T.
George – The best vinegar to use is the cheapest white vinegar you
with Fred Taylor A. can find, no need to get “gourmet” for this project. Vinegar is a dilute

solution of acetic acid. Acetic acid is a great dissolver of organic compounds
including aliphatic resin glues, common yellow wood glue. How long it takes to
Mr. Taylor - These are pictures of a chair that I purchased at auction. work depends on a combination of factors including ambient temperature, the
Q. It reminded me of the chairs from my Sunday School class when I was amount of glue and how accessible the glue actually is. When using vinegar to
little. My question is this - What are the small pieces of wood on the bottom of remove old caning in seats the glue is right there on top and is softened in a
the seat? I have never seen this type of woodworking, and it has me curious. matter of ten to thirty minutes. In a case like yours where the glue is concealed
Also could you tell me what value I should place on this for insurance? (Or is it in the holes for the stretchers (they are called mortises) it can take quite a bit
not worth doing that?) Yours truly, Dottie K. longer for the vinegar to actually reach the glue. You can speed that
Dottie – Your little chair is a process up by drilling a 5/64 or 3/32in diameter hole, the size of a 16ga
A. Windsor chair from the early 20th veterinary syringe needle, and inject the vinegar directly into the joint.
century. Chairs from this period have seats Warming the vinegar slightly will improve the action but it still may take
made from several boards rather than several hours or in some cases overnight to loosen the joint enough to
the single board seat found in most 19th remove the broken stretcher piece. You don’t want to heat the vinegar
century chairs, especially earlier ones. Your too much because that will harm the finish in surrounding areas. That’s
chair appears to have been repaired and why I don’t recommend using extremely hot water which will also
refinished at some point and the small weaken yellow glue. After you remove the broken piece allow the site to
pieces of wood are repairs. They are called air dry a couple of days before you reassemble the chair. You don’t want
“cleats” and are used to secure the joint lingering vinegar to weaken the new joint.
between two pieces of wood. Butterfly
shaped cleats are sometimes seen in older Some of the boards came unglued Mr. Taylor - I have a table made by John T. Kenney. It is all
furniture to hold down shrinkage. This and someone used rough cut cleats Q. pegged together with stencils on the corners and I’m sure is
repair was not part of the original chair. to repair the joints. made of hard maple. Do you know if he is still in business in Connecticut
Obviously the seat split down the middle and if not when did he quit.? Did he peg all of his furniture? I have tried
at some point and this how some “craftsman” repaired it. The chair is a 20th to get information through the Connecticut Historical Society but they don’t
century factory made piece and has very little collector’s value. It would not even have anything on the Hitchcock chairs. Can you help? Dee H.
be worth your while to insure it separately from your homeowner’s policy. Continued>

WILDWOOD � EUSTIS � MOUNT DORA

3Rd geneRation antiques RenningeR’s
301 121 N Bay St. Eustis Hwy 441, Mt. Dora
75 UMATILLA
352-483-4367 19 352-383-8393
1 441
Lake EUSTIS
WILDWOOD Eustis 5 44
44 B S
441
LEESBURG TAVARES MOUNT
Lake Harris DORA
48 6 441
301 27 HOWEY
75 IN THE HILLS
19
33
Lake Apopka
301 19 27
50
Mascotte
50

www.villageantiquemall.com
FINE ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES

OPEN 7 Days a Week

3107 SR 44, Wildwood, FL Specializing in Antique Clocks
352-748-6255 Mon-Sat 9:30-5:30, Sun 12-5 SALES • SERVICE
I-75 Exit 329, then go 3 mile east, Just across from Russell Stover Grandfather Clock House Calls
Over 100 Mount Dora’s Largest Antique Mall
Vendors Fine Watch Repair 12,000 sq.ft. with over 40 dealers
Visit our Large Showroom
1107 S. Bay Street 405 N. Highland Street
30,000 Eustis, FL 32726 Mount Dora, FL 32757
Sq.Ft.
(352) 357-9150 352.385.0257

Victorian, Primitive & Vintage Furniture, Art, Glass, Pottery, China, Books, Toys, Helen Cipollone-Carden Owner/Clockmaker
Collectibles and an eclectic variety of vintage decor for indoor & outdoors 1 Howard Miller Sales & Service Center 5 6