Product Spotlight – Repairs with Scratch Cover and Beeswax Filler Sticks

Surface Scratches

Our Scratch Cover for Furniture and Floors has long been part of the Gilly’s range of furniture care products.

In many instances, furniture or floors don’t need to be fully restored – they just need a little spruce up. Regular use for all floors and furniture, no matter how carefully we protect them, can result in scuffs and scratches that are unsightly.

Provided the damage is on the surface of the timber (damage to the waxed/oiled/lacquered finish), our Scratch Cover is a wonderful way to blend and cover the blemishes.

Using a lint-free cloth (our bamboo polishing cloths are lovely but old t-shirts are equally effective!) simply wipe on and wipe away any excess. The oil will penetrate dry (pale) areas and blend with the surrounding finish. You can even polish the resin in the oil to a sheen if you leave it overnight before wiping back. It is designed to be used on specific areas of damage, rather than wiped over the entire floor or piece of furniture.

Choosing Light or Dark Scratch Cover. Generally speaking, the Light version is suitable for pale timbers such as pine, ash, beech and Tasmanian oak. The Dark version is suitable for darker timbers such as jarrah, mahogany, cherry and merbau.

However, there are many timbers with a variety of colours in the grains. Bearing in mind that where a finish has scratched and exposed the porous fibres underneath, if you use the Dark version, the scratches will be accentuated if they are across the pale areas of the timber. For this reason, we usually recommend you select the Light version for the multicoloured timbers.

We have had many restorers telling us that they have been able to revive pieces of furniture with our Scratch Cover, without having to use any other finishes.

Deeper Damage

If scratches have penetrated the finish of the timber, so that there is damage that cannot simply be blended with the oil, there are two options depending on the depth of the damage.

Cracks, crevices and splits that are less than 1mm in width can be filled with our Cabinet Makers Wax, which is a firmer wax designed to be driven into very small gaps in wood. It is available in Clear or Dark. Simply apply with a cloth and press the wax firmly into the cracks. You may need to add a little more in a day or so; it will shrink slightly as it dries.

Larger damage and flaws in the timber over 1mm in width are best treated with our Beeswax Filler Sticks. These are available in six shades, ranging from the pale, which contains no pigment and is simply the colour of the beeswax right through to black. They are made from pure beeswax with pigments and a hardening agent to ensure the longevity of the repair.

 Pale | OrangeBrown | RedBrown | MidBrown | DarkBrown | Black

The sticks can be rubbed over gaps like a crayon in their cold state, however, the adhesion is never as good as when the wax is actually melted.

There are a few ways to soften/melt the wax, including a soldering iron, a hot knife, double boiling or even a heat gun/hairdryer. Extra care needs to be taken when exposing the wax to a naked flame as it is moderately flammable.

The colours can be blended to closely match any timber and once soft, the wax is easily pressed into the gaps using a plastic spatula or similar (credit cards work well). Scrape away any excess.

If the residual is still a little rough, you can easily sand the wax back so that it is flush with the timber. The hardened wax can be polished to a sheen if desired.

You can then use any of Gilly's waxes or oils over the repair, to complete and protect your repaired piece of furniture.

If you are ordering from us online, it's well worth selecting Express Post as it's only $2 more and generally, much faster.