Part 2

Hi y'all and thanks for coming back to see my progress.....

As I mentioned previously, I got 2 boxes. I thought, as this was my first build, I'd leave the nice one aside and use the basic Romeo & Juliet Box. 

It was not in the best of condition and the Irish Government Health Warning was very unsightly. I decide to strip it back. I removed all I could by hand. 

A bit of a mess but I got off quite a lot of it. I then used some lighter fluid to help loosen the glue and sand paper to remove the rest. Warning... the sandpaper I used was too course. I used 60grit as it was what I had lying around. If you are going down this dusty road, use higher grit paper. The wood under is very fine, so course sanding really cuts into it. Try also to rub (where possible) with whatever grain is on your box as you do not want vertical scratch marks across your box, but hopefully using higher grit paper will minimise this.

This process is a wee bit time consuming but don't rush it. Easy said in hindsight but hey, thats what this Blog if for. Don't fall into my pits. This will be the face of you CBG so take your time.... Sure whats your hurry. As Dave Coverdale says "Take me down Slow'n'Easy!" 

So squirt, rub, squirt, rub.... You will not effect your box if you get a bit too much fluid on your box. It evaporates pretty quickly. After a little bit of time (and a few shots of Jim Beam later...) you will end up with some akin to the pic below. Hopefully yours will be a bit smoother than mine.

Ok guys'n'dolls,

Have to get my 2yr old daughters brekkie ready before she gnaws through me leg!

Take it handy and I will have part 3 up real soon.

Bottoms up,

Col