Replies

1. 
   _mj_ | Apr 28, 2021 09:06pm | #1

   It would not surprise me if they were commercially available. Many makers bought the add on items like carvings and their metal equivalents. If the remaing ones are exactly the same they were likely from a parts manufacturer.

1. 
   blstep | Apr 29, 2021 08:57am | #2

   Thank you for your comment. I’ve been looking online but can’t find those long curved pieces. Plenty of the piece in the middle, though. Do you have a source that would sell these?

   
1. 
   _mj_ | Apr 29, 2021 09:25am | #3

   Sorry, I do not. If you can't find what you're looking for that would be a pretty simple item to make a casting of... of course you'd have to figure out a faux finish. have a look at http://www.smooth-on.com

2. 
   blstep | Apr 29, 2021 12:45pm | #4

   Yes, I could easily make a silicone mold, but matching the oak would not be easy, especially to match such a visual piece. That's why I want to see if anyone can replicate it out of wood.

1. 
   Rob_Sp | Apr 29, 2021 01:24pm | #5

   You can try decorators supply. They use a very old process to cast these. The detail is extreme, down to the wood grain of the original carvings used to make the molds. They are easy to apply by steaming over a piece of canvas stretched over a pan of boiling water, which activates the animal glue in the material. They can be stained and finished like wood.
   https://decoratorssupply.com/

3. 
   _mj_ | Apr 29, 2021 03:57pm | #6

   Looking at them again, they might be easier to make by cutting them from straight-grained stock and bending to shape on a hot pipe.

1. 
   blstep | Apr 29, 2021 04:35pm | #7

   Could you do something like this?

4. 
   _mj_ | Apr 29, 2021 06:38pm | #8

   Most likely. I'm pretty sure you could do it though. Give it a shot! You have the originals to work from, and removing them to give someone else what they'd need to work with would risk the intact ones.

5. 
   blstep | Apr 30, 2021 12:44pm | #9

   Hi - I am not a woodworker and don't have the resources to do this - would you be interested in working on this?

6. 
   _mj_ | Apr 30, 2021 03:25pm | #10

   If you happen to be in NYC I'd be willing to take a look with no promises. From a distance with no access to the original I would not. My shop is not a business, it's a place for me to hide from business. That said, I have helped others with such things in the past, most of us probably have.

   Wherever you are, I'm sure there is a restoration shop you'd be able to get to. A quick search just now for " larkin soap desk restoration " gave this as the top result: https://scottdoyleinc.com/larkin-desk-restoration/

1. 
   blstep | May 01, 2021 10:45am | #11

   Yes, I have looked at Scott Doyle but he is a year out on doing new projects.
   I am planning on traveling to Bedford, NY, in the next few weeks, and could bring the drop-down piece to you in the city. Or, I could cast a replica of the complete piece from a mold and send it to you to copy, along with on of the broken pieces to match the wood color. And I would completely understand if you decide you would like to keep your refuge a refuge.

7. 
   _mj_ | May 01, 2021 05:30pm | #12

   Make the 2 castings, one for a top and one for a bottom...they are not the same parts. The castings will have value for you whether we end up working together or not.

   I'll drop you an email and we can discuss further w/o boring the rest of the forum.