Restoring a dresser

1565
5

I do woodworking as a hobby and do a little refinishing now and then. The latest request has me a little stumped though. Hopefully I can get a few helpful tips. The dresser is made with Tiger wood and had become a little wobbly. The actual refinish of the wood is not the issue, but is infact is the wobbling . They said they were ok if I just use a piece of 1/4"ply attached to the back to make it sturdy. However, it would cover up the tag that had the original makers info on it, and I would like to avoid that if possible. This is the area that I need some ideas for. So please, advise away.

Pictures would help.

The early bird gets the worm but its the second mouse that gets the cheese.

Cut a hole in the plywood to match the location and shape of the tag

Wheaties

Do you have room or access to install corner pieces to strengthen the joints? The table in the pictures, I was able to disassemble and reassemble. Probably not an option for you with this dresser but, if you can install hardwood corner pieces, it may just take that wobble out.

Jamesw

corner blocks would help alot

jim

How old is the piece? If it is antique it is assembled with hide glue. If so the glue can be reversed by applying heat and moisture and the piece can be disassembled and reassembled easily.
There is no need to remove the old glue as long as you reassemble with hide glue again. I would use hot hide glue where time constraints allowed it and liquid hide glue where I needed assembly time. If it is really an antique this would maintain its value and return it to its original state.

The early bird gets the worm but its the second mouse that gets the cheese.