[Zeke]

I like the lighter tone of the wood w/o finish. Goes very well with the red. You might try a light bleach before the new finish. I've done a lot of wood refinishing, but if you have good advisers, I'd go with what they say.

BTW, I just refinished a front door with spar varnish. Great material if you can find it in CA. However, it dries really slow, so keep your workplace clean and don't let the breeze kick up any trash. I added Japan dryer from the art supply, but it didn't move the process along as well as I remember.