Anything you can do about bleached mahogany finish?  

Oftentimes these finishes were proprietary lacquer-based formulas toned with pigments and/or other additives to provide a "bleached" appearance  and are notoriously difficult to match even for professionals. Definitely DO NOT apply oil or any of the miracle finish repair products widely marketed to amateurs. Chemically stripping finish from the entire surface is likely the best first step. Post photos?

I believe that is what I had heard previously.  So no mechanical removal

I'll try to attach a couple of photos....

Pic #2

That looks like oak veneer to me. Possibly white oak and definitely rift-sliced from old-growth or forest-grown timber.

Anyway, yes. Best to strip the finish rather than trying to sand it off. Sanding can't get into the open grain structure of oak. With the piece thoroughly stripped, you'll be able to see what's what as far as treating any darker stained areas or adjusting the overall color before refinishing. Looks like you'll need to do all 3 sides of the case at once in order to get seamless, consistent results, too.

What do the drawer fronts look like?

Edit: I've since found a few online attributed to Loewy for Mengel in "cerused oak".

If the finish is indeed lacquer, a simple test with lacquer thinner on a cotton swab applied to an inconspicuous area should tell the tale. Wet a spot, wait a minute, and blot with a clean paper towel. If it's sticky or shows signs of dissolving the finish, the good news is that lacquer thinner can be used as a stripper. Nasty and volatile as the stuff is, it's still much easier than stripping old oil, varnish, or paint.

Ack!

That is all good news and all good info.  I do want to refinish it as this is going to be my wife's and she...is not gentle with furniture.

I am mostly a mechanical stripping guy (I go through ALOT of fine steel wool).  What would you suggest for this?

Funny story, I got this piece after JUST MISSING out on the matching desk at another charity shop. By seconds.  It turns out the tried to donate it to the first one and they didn't want anymore desks....

OFF TOPIC - As you can see I haven't been hanging out here since the changes.  Good to see a familiar name.  Are any of the old crew posting elsewhere? I benefited so much from their combined knowledge over the years.

Thanks tons and I will provide an update.

beat me to it...typical

For stripping lacquer with thinner, I've used those thick blue paper shop towels on a roll, but you can use any old rags. I try to avoid abrasives until after the piece is completely stripped of finish and dry mostly because I'm afraid of sanding through veneers. Of course if there are raised splinters, or fibers that might catch on a rag, those areas would need to be addressed before stripping. Solid piece? Sand away if that's your preference.

Hardly any of the old gang here anymore.  Just a few hardy stalwarts check in sporadically. I don't know if there's a new roost. Those were the the days, though, huh?

Hey-

I've stripped a ton of chippy old lacquer finish with just acetone.  On flat surfaces I lay a single layer of cheap paper towels down and then saturate them with acetone.  The paper towel keeps the acetone from evaporating before it completely dissolves the lacquer---and if you don't get to it before it dries, you can just pour some more acetone on it.  It also keeps it from running down the sides so much.  Acetone has a very low surface tension--worse than alcohol, I think. 

Anyway, then just wipe the finish off with the paper towels.  Go over it again with paper towels saturated with clean acetone.  I don't like to use rags because they collected the dissolved lacquer and you end up reapplying it---diluted, yes, but still.  I want it all gone.  

Work in small areas until you get an idea of how much you can do before the acetone evaporates.  You will end up wasting some acetone but with care you can minimize the waste.

You must use heavy duty chemical resistant gloves because acetone dissolves latex and most plastics within a minute.  Also, use a respirator.  I sometimes will do a small object outside with no respirator (I just hold my breath) but when there's a lot of acetone you will feel it after awhile.  Even outside.  

Oh, and one more thing--acetone will make your skin feel very, very cold.  I don't notice so much in warm weather but when it gets down to 55 F. or so, I have to wear fuzzy acrylic gloves under the heavy rubber gloves and even then I need to go inside and warm my hands up under running water and then go back out again.  It can start to feel like frostbite, even. 

Anyway--have fun!  Be safe!

well well well well well well well

I tried the Acetone trick as described above and holy heck did it work.

It took a little futzing to get it right.  I had to be quicker then I thought and more liberal with the Acetone but when I did both of those bango.  

I am obviously going to have to go over it again with some detail, maybe a few passes with some really fine steel wool.  But overall the comparison is tremendous.

It used to be the color of week old oatmeal.  Now it is OAK. 

Thanks so much for your input. Will send pics later for sure.

Awesome, Waff! Looks like you're on your way.

Thx for posting. Always fun to see updates.

well, here she is.

The Acetone trick worked aces.  I did do some after the fact steel wool with teak oil and that evened everything out.  It also darkened it up (no surprise there) but I much prefer the tone now and the oak really stands out.  I finished it with OSMO which is a finish a buddy of mine swears by.  I am getting better with it....Most importantly, the wife likes it ALOT

I am refinishing what will be my new dresser now using the same basic technique.  It is a 6 drawer tall boy.  A really great shape but has an aweful sort of faux colonial finish...Just aweful.   The acetone is taking it right off, now that I know what I am doing...

p.s. I finished the drawers with watered down india ink, which I love to use.

Looks good