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Old 02-10-2015, 05:51 PM   #1
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2007 25' Safari FB SE
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Recommendations for Refinishing Cabinets

I have a 25' 2007 FB Safari. The finish on the kitchen cabinet doors have worn thru to the base material from opening the cabinets. I am guessing (Ahemmmmmm), my wife's "hand moisturizer" had something to do with it. The wear points are at the lower corners of the cabinet doors only.

The cabinets are golden oak in color and the doors are curved in shape.

I need suggestions for refinishing to match as close as possible to the original finish. I see the choices are: 1) Remove the doors; 2) Use paint remover and sand down to base; 3) Re-stain seal with varnish; or 3) Just buy new cabinet doors.

Any thoughts here will be helpful.....................
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Old 02-10-2015, 06:42 PM   #2
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You would most likely have to get new doors from the factory, very costly, and the color may not match to suit you. I would first try the refinishing approach. A whole lot cheaper than replacement. You can replace if the refinishing should not work out as you would hope.
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Old 02-11-2015, 04:40 AM   #3
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Might try cleaning the areas thoroughly, then touching up with one of those stain pens that MinWax, I think, makes.

Then coat with a cabinet renewal product. I have done this with good success on our cherry finish cabinets.


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Old 02-11-2015, 06:17 AM   #4
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I will only add that I contacted the factory about what type of finish is on the cabinetry in our trailer. I did this because I did not want to put a polyurethane product on top of a lacquer finish, or vice versa, and they told me it was a lacquer finish. This is what I suspected because lacquer is much easier to use and dries much faster making production costs lower.

Anyway, I got a can of Deft lacquer interior finish from Lowe's, and can touch up damaged areas quickly and easily, and the repairs cannot be seen afterwards.
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Old 02-11-2015, 07:04 AM   #5
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Try on one door. Clean all dirt and oil ''hand lotion'' off then dry. Brush''minwax'' satin clear polyurethane on. I did this on a customer's kitchen once. They were ready to replace until I did this on a door. Pictures of your cabinet doors would help us a lot on advice
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Old 02-11-2015, 10:57 AM   #6
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Pictures would be invaluable here, however, I will offer some generic information.

We have used "Old English" scratch cover. They have at least 2 color shades, lighter and darker. You may want to start with the lighter version to be sure it does not end up looking like a dark spot but the lighter may give that result too, depending on the color contrast of your existing finish. If possible, try it somewhere that it is hidden.

This works well around the cupboard door handles where our nails scrape the wood. It is a temporary solution and must be reapplied every now and then. I am OK with that as it takes very little time to wipe on and there is no concern with matching color or finish at this point. Have used in our home kitchen and inside the Classic model AS on the oak doors. Again, works very well. I never have used it on a Safari interior. Good luck.
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Old 02-11-2015, 01:43 PM   #7
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Smile

Well for us, we are just repainting everything...Oak cabinets, walls, ceilings. Putting paintable wall paper up and painting that too. Using a lot of rivets to fix joint surfaces. Good luck
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Old 02-11-2015, 02:07 PM   #8
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Thanks all for inputs. I will take some pictures of the cabinet doors and attach.

Thanks again. Hugh
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Old 03-03-2015, 02:56 PM   #9
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OK Got some Pics of the Cabinets

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Old 03-04-2015, 08:25 AM   #10
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Can you take down one of the doors and on the inside sand down an area and then go about with trying the various methods of refinish.

Airstream service in Jackson Center may have a touch-up solution idea or product or you may be able to purchase a couple new doors.

Put up a Classified ad on the "parts wanted" portion of this forum requesting replacement doors.

Or, get some of the hand lotion your wife uses and bottle it up with a new name on it, call it some sort of concentrated stripper, make lots of money and buy a new 2015 model AS.

Good luck.
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Old 03-05-2015, 05:32 PM   #11
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Thanks. I'll give Jackson a call. The underside is not finished in the same manner as the top side. It's more of a matt finish w/o the grain??

Oh yeah, I can just hear me now "Well, because you stripped off the finish off the cabinets, I'll just have to buy a new AS" I'll be lucky not to be traded in too. :-)
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Old 02-03-2017, 09:31 PM   #12
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Up date. Traded in the 25 FB Safari in on a 30 FC 2017. Problem solved. Lol But I did get the cabinet doors refinished by Avalon RV. They did an outstanding job. Wasn't cheap but worth it.
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Old 02-04-2017, 05:33 AM   #13
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For what it's worth, I'm a hobbyist woodworker ...perhaps known by others as an extreme enthusiast. I think it really comes down to how good you want it to look and how well you can spot-fix with a can. You're surely going to need a solvent to break down the oils/chemicals that have surely penetrated the bare wood. If it were me, I would want to take all of the doors down to bare wood and build them all back up with the same stain and finish.

If you don't have a lot of experience, that's okay. General Finishes makes a product called Arm-R-Seal. It's a wipe-on oil-based product that you might not be able to buy in the Republic of Kalifornia ... but ... it's so easy to apply (wipe-on a couple of thin coats) and it's a beautiful and durable finish. If you stain, buy a large enough container to do them all from the same lot of stain. If you mix your own dye (which will fade over time), be sure to write the formula and decrease the concentration over time to account for fading (provided you need to spot-fix in future years).

I, personally, would not attempt to do large areas with a spray can of lacquer. While I own a 5-stage turbine HVLP sprayer, I don't even consider spraying lacquers unless water-borne. Extremely combustible. Be sure to wear a respirator and have MAJOR airflow, blowing in vs. sucking out ... you don't want to pull traditional lacquer through a traditional (non-explosion proof) fan. I would hope a spray can won't generate enough of an airborne concentration to combust, but I'm over-the-top safety conscious. Finally, consider doing some testing with various products to determine compatibility with your wife's hand lotions. Lacquers are tradionally the single most durable finishes. Shellac-based finishes are least durable, but the easiest to repair. The good thing about shellac is that you can mix your own with flakes and fresh denatured alcohol. Stuff to consider. Can't wait to hear about what you do and how it came out with close-up pics. Regardless, don't hesitate to thin finishes by 10-15% to help them flow/level-out, even though the instructions say "Do not thin" ... just match the base solvent for thinning, such as water for waterbornes, mineral spirits or turpentine or paint thinner for oils (you need to sample test a small amount to determine which), and lacquer thinner for lacquers ...again, attention to combustion vapor). This stuff isn't rocket science but practice and experience helps improve results. And curved surfaces (will complicate the leveling process). Worst case, the doors will already be off and you can bring them to a professional shop to have them re-done again. Easy.

Good luck!
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Old 02-05-2017, 10:23 AM   #14
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I realize you've had them refinished & traded the unit, but for the benefit of others i wanted to share my experience. Annie Sloan chalk paint is wonderful to use on any cabinetry or pre-finished wood. No prep work involved other than cleaning. The other thing I've used is gel stain to darken cabinets or other wood surfaces. Congrats!
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Old 02-06-2017, 06:07 AM   #15
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Oh my ... I'm such an ... AIRHED! I somehow missed zapper's post about having sold the trailer and not being an issue anymore. :-)
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Old 02-10-2017, 10:50 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AIRHEDS View Post
Oh my ... I'm such an ... AIRHED! I somehow missed zapper's post about having sold the trailer and not being an issue anymore. :-)


Lol no problem at all. Thanks for the input.
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Old 12-13-2017, 07:42 AM   #17
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Cabinet Finish on a 2008 Safari Sport 17'

Are the cabinets in this model plastic coated?
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Old 12-14-2017, 12:16 AM   #18
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[QUOTE=GreenTadpole;2044914]Are the cabinets in this model plastic coated?[/QUOTE

On the 2007 25’? Nope don’t believe they were plastic coated. The finish was golden oak semi gloss. The darker Grain ran vertically. See posted pics. The material was some kind of wood composite pressed into a curve. Avalon in SF who did the refinish had fits trying to match the color and finish but eventually did an excellent job. Lesson learned.
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Old 12-14-2017, 08:40 AM   #19
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If that's wood or even just a wood veneer, take the doors off, lightly sand, apply some wood stain as needed (check carefully for coloration in advance), and then apply a few coats of clear satin polycrylic. Remount the doors, and you're done.


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Old 12-15-2017, 06:26 AM   #20
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Thanks for continuing to help with ideas for refinishing cabinets in the Safaris. We are purchasing a 2008 Safari Sport and I'm not a fan of the golden colored cabinets. Has anyone tried staining them darker to look more like the color in the Internationals? Thanks for your help, Tadpole
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