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Photo: roryrory / Flickr

When you’re faced with the problem of a broken piece of wood on a treasured piece of furniture, your main objective should be to repair it without any evidence of the repair. This is especially the case if you are working with an antique. If you’re not up to repairing the piece yourself, rather take it to a professional restorer than run the risk of a ‘broken repair’. If you are up to the challenge though, read on for some tips.

Blind doweling

To achieve a repair that shows little evidence of there being a repair, consider using a technique called blind doweling. Blind doweling allows for an invisible and strong repair and it is not too difficult to accomplish.

The technique involves joining the broken pieces of wood with hardwood dowels. It works especially well for broken table legs, split chair seats and broken chair legs.

Mark breaks

Start your repair by removing all the broken pieces from the furniture you’re working on. Align the pieces at the break on a flat surface. Use a pencil to draw lines across the break as follows: for a narrow leg, draw one line across the break. For a thicker leg, draw several lines.

Drill into the break

Choose a dowel that is about a third of the diameter of the broken piece. Now separate the broken pieces and drill holes into one side of the break. Use a drill bit that is the same diameter of the dowel. The depth of the holes will depend on the thickness of the leg and should be anywhere between half an inch and an inch deep.

Put it together

Cut a separate dowel for each pencil line that you drew so that the length is twice as long as the depth of the hole you drilled. Glue half of the dowel and position it by tapping it into the drill-hole so that the other half sticks out of the break.

The pencil line you drew across the break as a guide will now help you to align the broken pieces. Trace the circumference of the dowel at the point where the protruding dowel touches the other section. Drill a hole in this area, allowing for the same depth of the first drill-hole.

Glue the projecting dowel end as well as the sides of the break. Using your pencil lines as a guide again, tap the two sections together. You should now have an excellent match and a repair that is almost invisible. Be sure to see to any loose splinters.

Finishing touches

Using a damp cloth, wipe any excess wood glue off the wood and clamp the piece. Allow the glue to dry overnight. Once your repairs are stable, you can see to any finishing or touching up that may be required. You can attend to other minor problems at this point like scratches, small dents, gouges, ink spots, cigarette burns, white rings, black rings and milk-like finishes.

Tags: furniture