Surface restoration

[KARL]

I have acquired a table with a rather nice wooden top, it may be old but also may just be a replica type. The surface has a very good, flat finish that in itself has a shiny surface but the finish is cloudy so the wood grain and marquetry is substantially obscured. I am unsure which type of finish is involved, but it may be what is sometimes referred to French Polish. Obviously the finish can be stripped off to start from the beginning again but I seem to remember reading about a method for infusing oil or something into a finish to restore the clarity (remove the cloudiness) but I can't remember any more about it. The visible effect is not the result of heat, such as the ring marks that sometimes occur from hot food vessels/containers or other being put down onto a surface without a mat in between. The appearance is more like the initial build-up of a slightly amber fog not unlike the first signs of condensation on the inside of a car window (but amber) - ageing, I would say. Before I dive in to experiment, does anyone have suggestions as to where I might learn what is best to try, or even have direct advice to offer ?

[The Builder]

Hi Karl ............ might be a silly suggestion, but, have you tried "T-Cut". The kind of thing used to remove the "bloom" on car bodywork?
"Brasso" is very similar ........ a light abrasive.

[Frank97]

Have a look on youtube there's lots of vids about restoring french polish.

[KARL]

Thank builder, but car finish has the obscurity at the surface of a pigment (which can be removed to expose unaffected pigment) whereas my problem is that a clear/transparent finish is turning cloudy right through the layer. Thanks for your suggestion, D, will see if I have the patience to do a bit of trawling.