.02 worth, I refinished all of my trim pieces 1978 300CD burl wood I used airplane paint stripper from auto refinish supply shop. CAUTION: this stuff is serious and toxic use thick rubber gloves in a well ventilated area. 1) remove all wood as exact matching can be difficult As Spencer said the stain is in the clear. 2) remove any plastic parts (they won't make it) the bezel for the shifter is glued in so take your time and carefully pry it off it will be glued back later. 3) use the brush on type as the spray on does not seem to work as well, place trim pieces in an tin cookie sheet (for catching exess)brushed it on, it has a slimmy texture, be generious, and let sit for 1/2 hour, it should start bubbling off in places mainly the cracked areas as the stripper needs to get between the wood and varnish. 4) take plastic scraper and scrape off gook, look at pieces to see how it is working, some pieces may need to sit longer (45 min) but over allying will only waste product as the reaction is between the wood and varnish.5) reeat process untill all clear varnish is stripped. the wood will be fine not being affected by stripper (metal/wood fine plastic melts) 6) lightly test wood with 1600 grit sandpaper GOING WITH GRAIN ONLY. my burl didn't have any directional grain pattern so I was delicate with the sanding. 6)clean off pieces with a tack cloth and air (if possible) 7) choose similar color of stain picking more towards the lighter than darker as more coats can be applied for proper richness NOTE: the clear will make the stain seem brighter and richer 8) apply stain with an olw cotton rag for uniform coverage again don't slop it on and let sit as uneven coverage will occur. 8) repeat process until proper coverage and color is attained, again the clear will bring out the color, (would have stained mine darker had i known the clear brightens the finial result) 9) clearing, I used a teak wood boat finish clear, that I sprayed on with automotive spray gun, it has uv protection, and stays flexible with the wood. make sure the pieces are very clean at the begining and between coats. I lightly sanded with 2000-1600 between coats to knock off the high spots. How many times you clear and sand is up to you I did 4 coats, but make sure that you clean the edges of the switch cutouts between coats as it must stay the same size perimeter. (tooth pick!) TAKE YOUR TIME! the better prep you do the better the results, I did this over a period in the evenings of a week as there is pleanty of down time between steps. NOTE: if your actual wood so bad that it is cracked or swollen nothing will fix this as the wood (zebrano/burl) is a type of lamination and sanding it out will wear through the laminate. I had one spot like this and although the clearcoat pronounced this area overall I am very satisfied with the results, not bad for $40.00 in supplies, easy labor, and lots of patience.

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