Gerstner machinist chest

Sam's club has grille cleaner 3 pack for 10 bucks or so.

It is pump spray oven cleaner and makes great paint stripper.

Pour a small amount into a spray can top and with tiny brush apply to just the paint carefully.

It will soften it up well and be very carefull.

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I would highly recommend that you reach out to Gerstner and talk with them. They are very helpful people and have restored many of their old boxes in much worse condition. They are very friendly and willing to help people through this process.

For the paint, I would use the Orange Paint remover that can be purchased from any hardware store. It is safe to use and will remove and clean the wood very nicely. But again, I highly recommend that you reach out to Gerstner. But that is just me.
 
+1 on seeking Gerstner's opinion. From my days in High School restoring antiques, the finish may well be varnish, which darkens and attracts dirt. If so, and I'd experiment on a less obvious place, varnish can be ablated using mineral spirits. this takes the top layer off, along with dirt and some of the darkening. Do NOT use them in abundance - just barely dampen the dust free cloth with the spirits, and gently rub for a second or 2 only. Soaking the finish will soften it all the way to the wood, making a tacky, frustrating mess.

To get that golden colour, a more drastic means would be necessary.
 
Interesting . I still have a 1937 leatherette Gerstner sitting down the basement as well as an unknown 1916 chest . My wife wanted to keep the chest and put it on a mantel one day . I'm up in the air with the Gerstner though .
 
barcuna said:
What's a good way to clean the wood? It appears to be mostly just dirty, accounting for the dark color. The drawers and interior wood are a beautiful golden oak color. I would like to get the whole box back to that color or at least just get rid of the dirt.
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That "dirt" is called patina by those who collect antique stuff. It shows that previous people have used (and abused) the tool box over the decades. If you make it look "newer," you are letting the soul of the old box flow away. You can always take away the patina, but can never put the vintage soul back into it again. Just my humble opinion. Your box, your choices...
 
I did some spelunking into my filing cabinets today, and found the papers on the two Gerstner chests that I have bought, the first in the early 60s was a 26" without the drawer for the handbook, it was in mahogany, and cost $76, the second, the W42 (walnut) with the handbook drawer was $94 in 1969.
I gave the first one to a kid who worked for me, and of course still have the second with a later addition of a base unit to store more goodies. It was sent at catalog price by USPS with no extra shipping cost.
 
benmychree said:
I did some spelunking into my filing cabinets today, and found the papers on the two Gerstner chests that I have bought, the first in the early 60s was a 26" without the drawer for the handbook, it was in mahogany, and cost $76, the second, the W42 (walnut) with the handbook drawer was $94 in 1969.
I gave the first one to a kid who worked for me, and of course still have the second with a later addition of a base unit to store more goodies. It was sent at catalog price by USPS with no extra shipping cost.
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John,
The Gerstner I bought was from a retired machinist/model-maker from Lawrence Berkeley Labs. He bought one of them new in the late 60s for about what you paid. He got the other in lieu of cash for some weed or something like that. I'm sure he made 10x what he had into it, but I was happy to get them in the condition they're in.
Evan
 
i respect Bob Korves opinion. but not it this case. looks to me that the chest was not taken care of and it is now butt ugly. i have restored 3; none as bad as this one; but it can be made to look very nice. there will still be a lot of nicks and dents. the hardware should be removed and buffed, finish stripped, cracks filled and surfaces sanded and new felt added. with a fresh finish the older blemishes will give it all the patina that it needs. and you will be most proud of the finished product.
 
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