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Tanker Desk and Vintage Office Furniture - Polished Exposed Steel?
I am in the process of refinishing an old Steelcase Tanker Desk. Ultimately I'd like to have a brushed or exposed metal look to the desk. When I sandblasted some of the parts down, the metal had a light aluminum look. I would like to achieve a color similar to this: Which I would describe as a darker 'graphite' looking finish. I've done a lot of looking at different kinds of tanker desks, and some definitely have a darker finish to them, versus what I saw when I stripped part of my desk down.
My question is how do I achieve this darker look? Is it polished, where the lighter desks are only clear coated? Or is there another process involved?
Thanks
-Jeremy
hobbyist - Grand Rapids, Michigan
April 10, 2008
May 2, 2008
Hi, Jeremy. Are you sure it's not just painted and clearcoated?
Regards,

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
(Ted can offer longterm or instant help)
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
April 9, 2009
Hey,
I recently started to strip a tanker desk similar to yours but stopped when my father in law mentioned it might be coated with lead paint. A lead test kit
[lead test kits on
eBay
or
Amazon [affil link]
came up negative but just to be on the safe side I thought I would post the question. Has anyone come across one that had lead paint or know if its likely?
Thanks,
BWM
- simpsonville, South Carolina
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