I scrape off any finish. It isn't as difficult as it may sound and is a lot less messy than liquid strip products. Doesn't cost anything other than the sharp edge of a couple of common blade knives.
Won't hurt you like the chemicals unless you get careless.
Just a nice sharp regular edge to the blade and use it as a scraper. No need to turn the edge over and form a cabinet makers type finishing scraper though they can be used too in the process.
The common blade used carefully will curl the old finish right off and down to the wood smoothly. Then you can go further if you want to and remove some scratches and marks too.
Work from any direction.
Careful how you 'enter' the work so the blade doesn't leave a mark on the surface. You want to gradualy come down onto the surface and begin scraping the surface.
Using your thumb to back up the blade works well one handed as a gauge of sorts. Your thumb feels the surface before the blade hits it and allows a soft landing onto the surface.
Two hands on the blade, one on the tip, will allow good control that way when scraping in heavier cuts into the thicker orig finish.
The work goes quickly. Ready for a some sanding afterwards but very little generally.
Some of the orig finish may still be in the pores of the wood depending on how deep into the surface you go. But that'll help fill the grain for the next finish and will disappear especially w/ wet sanding (if you use that method).
Clean up is a broom and dustpan.
How do you deal with that in the checkering? Recut it? I'll bet it's tough on checkering cutters.
SRH
