Former smoker, and long-arm quilter here. Most of those responding have no idea how LARGE these machines are - you can't just throw them in the back of the car and take them to a sewing repair shop, LOL. Use rubbing alcohol on a cloth. I usually keep it mixed 50-50 with water in a spray bottle, but you can just dump some on a cloth. Change the cloth frequently. That will remove the nicotine residue from the outer cover of the machine. You can't clean the interior, of course, unless you want to completely repack the gearbox and bearings. What kind of table do you have? Alcohol may work, but you may be better off using Clorox wipes - NOT straight bleach!! But the disinfecting wipes for all surfaces should clean the table.

I lived in a house that had been damaged by a fire when I was in my teens and later lived in a mobile home that had been damaged by a fire. I am pretty sure it is cigarette smoke. I have friends who smoke and a daughter who unfortunately smokes so I think I got the smells right. I will try the baking soda and see if it does it. I also had the thought of hanging them outside, but they smelled so strong when I took them out of the washer (and it was raining off and on all day yesterday) I hated to dry them that way. They have been washed a couple of times and it seems to be worst at the seams and in the really thick clothes, like heavy jeans. I put them back in for a soak cycle (I have a front loader). I hate to say it, but I almost wish the smell had been wood smoke. I don't mind it as much. Maybe part of the problem is that I am sensitive to cigarette smoke (allergies) and therefore notice it more. I will give it a try. I have at least three more loads to do. I will try making the loads smaller. Maybe with less clothes the washer can clean them better. I haven't overloaded, but it can't hurt. Most of my clothes come out clean and smelling great. Oh, well. Can't win 'em all. At least not in the first battle. LOL.

I know this is an old post but since there is a current question about this, thought I'd share what worked for me. I had a healthcare worker that was helping with my Dad who I hired and didn't know she smoked. She was great except for that but she reeked so badly I could not even stand next to her. My DH found a larger version of an Orek air purifier we'd used before and we put it right by the chair she sat in and there was no more smoke odor!! Problem solved! (Worked even faster than the smaller one we had used before to get rid of paint VOCs) It was amazing. Room smelled of fresh outdoor air and was wonderful. Then I used the same Orek later on to clear cigarette smoke and moth ball smell from several expensive leather purses that I'd gotten a good deal on in eBay. It took about 2-3 days to get rid of both smells, and I thought I'd leave it a few more and I was pleasantly surprised to even have the smell of leather retur! Had I not known what to do, I would have had to trash them. And just recently, helped my sister with very strong VOC odor from a huge brand new cat tree that was about 6-7 feet tall. It was particle board and sisal and her cat was starting to get sick and was giving them headaches. It was in a room by itself and it had improved in a day and was totally cleared by day three or four. She was so impressed. So I've never done multiple large pieces of furniture, but it it can clean the smells from several rooms of the VOCs from new paint smells, cat trees, purses and chairs, it would probably do great with yours. I would leave it several days to a week but you should smell improvement in 1-2 days I would think. Oh, and I always put the side that pulls air in, towards the item to clean and not the side blowing out. The brand is Orek and no I don't work for them or anything. Just pleased with a product that worked on this difficult problem and sharing it. The larger one we got that worked so well for us is called Orek DualMax and it even has a small remote. If you try it, hope it works for you as well as it has for us, our family and friends.

>Will mineral spirits take any of the finish off the wood? Generally no. It will dissolve waxes. It can also dissolve Gilsonite, a tar-like substance that is sometimes used as a stain, but usually that's sealed in with a finish. In the tens of thousands of pieces I've worked on, only one had any reaction to mineral spirits. It was a rustic black piece, probably from Mexico, and mineral spirits pulled off some color. Not enough to effect it, but I stopped there. It was restoration from a fire, so it may have been smoke or some of the colorant. Varnishes, though thinned with mineral spirits, cure by polymerization and mineral spirits is not a solvent for them, it's a thinner. Big difference. (In the odd world of finish terminology, though, Lacquer Thinner is the solvent for lacquer. Because part of it is alcohol, it will also dissolve shellac.) But the real test is to try it out on an obscure place.