So I think that it was about 3 years ago now that Shelah found this "industrial cart" on kijiji- with the intention of turning it into a coffee table. The very nice woman who delivered it to our house was selling it for her father who had too many projects on the go so was letting some go. The condition was pretty rough- dirt and oil on the unfinished boards, iron and metal surfaces rusty and grimy.
So finally it's time to get these projects caught up. With the garage finally half clean I had room to dismantle the cart and see what exactly I had to work with. It was as bad as we thought. But, nothing was broken- nothing some elbow grease and patience couldn't fix.
The boards, which appear to be oak were rough sanded with a belt sander and then followed up with a palm sander. I wanted them smooth enough to look finished and take a stain nicely, but still retain some of the marks and wear and tear that give them character. For the metal I cleaned what I could with a wire brush attachment on my angle grinder, then wire brush what was left. After washing down I treated the wheels, side angle iron, bolts, with rust converter followed by clear coat. The frame I primed with rattle can followed by black then a black hammer paint.
The boards were stained with a walnut stain- same one that I used on the Deacons bench project- it will be a good match to the new wood floor in the living room. I let the stain soak in and dry after a good wipe down- just one coat. Then four coats of polyurethane with some light sanding between coats. I finished after with- maybe not the "purist" woodworker method- using the random orbital polisher used compound, polish, then hand waxed using my supply of auto product. Hey- it didn't cost anything, it was all on hand!
All dry and back together, looks great in the living room. I knew that the one end with the handles was going to be a little low- I had been thinking about just how to address that. Lots of ideas. I don't think I'll keep the sticks.
So having made the decision to go with "vintage" wheels, I hit the RE-Store in the north end before I committed to eBay. Glad that I did, these guys were .75 cents each! It turns out that the plugs in the ends of these two handles are metal and about an inch thick. I drilled them out centre (stepping up through three size of bits) until the caster posts fit. Perfect!
