How badly damaged is it? All dents where the cord of the wood is not cut or broken can be steamed out (raised) with a wet patch and a plain electyric iron. Then the stock is sanded, and you need to "rasie the grain" by wetting the stock and drying it over an electric stove burner. You can feel the "whiskers". Then sand it smooth. Repeat this process until the grain stops rising. Then finish sanding with 400A wet-or-dry paper. I always doa final polish with OOOO steel wool, but some "experts" say not to use steel wool. I do though.

Next, fill the pores. A good varnish will do this, let it dry then cut it down to the wood with fine sandpaper, leaving the stuff in the pores.

Once you get all the pores filled flush with the surface of the wood, sand smooth with 600 or 800 paper. Then apply four or five coats of Tru-Oil, cutting each one down to the wood with 0000 steel wool each time when it is thoroughly dry. You can leave the last coat uncut or polish it with powdered rottenstone with a felt pad to remove the gloss, leaving thedull sheen of a"London Oil" appearance.