I’ve now refurbished quite a few wood and metal benches, but a few weeks ago I got asked to do one which turned out to be all metal.  A different challenge.

The poor bench, at a local care home, had definitely seen better days and was not at all suitable for such a venue.

Interesting angle to the back!

Whether by design or years of use, the back was more like a laid-back deckchair than a garden bench and would have been really difficult for older people to get out of.  So that was task No 1.  As you can see from the photo above the back leg was bent under and …..

unsafe

the opposite front one broken.

There were so many layers of paint on it that I arranged for a sandblaster to clean it off, which then revealed a makers name: J.E.Nott, Brecon on both arms.  This dated it apparently at around 80 -100 years old.

After sandblasting repairing and re-aligning the back it looked a bit like this.

Repaired and ready to paint

Priscilla then decided that an extra arm would be useful, so it was off to the forge again to make a new scroll that matched the originals.

Some years ago I invested in a compressor, but hadn’t really used it much.  With so much metal to paint I decided that spraying was the best option, so with the manual in one hand and the sprayer in the other, I set about covering everything in sight   making a lovely job, three coats, and barely a run.

Now it’s back in it’s place waiting for some warm weather so the residents can enjoy the views towards the Sugarloaf.

all finished and tidy!