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Article: Restore Along Part 10: Varnish Work

Restore Along Part 10: Varnish Work

cosmetic

Welcome back to the Restore Along with Julia and Tulip. We're on Part 10 already, and Julia has made so much progress. Today she will take a break from cleaning the small parts and focus on Tulip's varnish.

If you are joining in on the fun with us today, you can catch up on the last Restore Along here:

Previous Post: Restore Along Part 9: Progress and Innovation

Today's work begins with a surprise: Julia turns Tulip to the side to start stripping the extension bed, and a small washer falls out. Even after completely disassembling Tulip, this part had escaped Julia's notice. It was probably stuck to the inside of the extension bed with old oil. Since Julia has already cleaned the other extension bed washers and screws, this one goes into a baggie, so Julia is sure not to miss it again!

washer fell out

The washer that escaped Julia's sharp eye.

Julia then stores this baggie in her rolling storage cart, which has proven to be a critical organizational tool during the whole process.

organizational bin for Featherweight parts

Julia's organizational rolling cart.

detail on the organizational bin of Featherweight parts

Julia's baggies containing all of Tulip's parts.

The cart holds tools, spare parts from The Featherweight Shop, cleaning supplies, magnifying glasses, safety glasses, reference material, testing supplies, and separates Tulip's clean parts from the dirty ones. This cart allows Julia to know precisely where everything goes, and where to find it later - even the odd errant washer.

For the parts she is actively working on, Julia uses a half-baking sheet. The sheet is a perfectly portable surface for containing, transporting, and working on the parts for the day. Washers aside, the parts she is working on today are quite large. She isn't likely to lose track of these!

varnish being removed on Singer Featherweight

Polishing the neck.

polishing neck of Singer Featherweight

Details.

detail on polishing neck on Singer Featherweight

varnish removal Singer Featherweight

The varnish is coming along.

tulip at the beginning

For comparison, here's what Tulip looked like before Julia started working.

tulip at the end of day 1

Here is Tulip at the end of Day 1.

Tulip at the end of part 10

And here is Tulip at the end of Part 10.

the before on the decal for Featherweight

Here is the detail of how bad Tulip's decals were on Day 2. Julia is not giving up on these quite yet!

Quite a difference! Julia isn't giving up on the decal on the base, but for now, Julia turns to her RV, which she and Mark are cleaning after their trip through KY where they found Tulip.

rv with Featherweight

Did you spot the Black Featherweight Sticker from The Featherweight Shop?

Our thanks again to Julia for sharing her journey with us. Join us in looking forward to next week when the Restore Along continues!

Restore Along Part 11: Look At That Shine