Another finishing question

TheOtherDennis

Dither, dither, on the wall...

I recently started collecting the parts for a partscaster.

I've been acquiring the bits over the past couple of months and have a Mighty Mite maple neck and a guitarbuild.co.uk two-piece swamp ash body. I have some tuners and a bridge from Axetec and I'm aiming to get  some Oil City Triple Blues for the pups, with some Eric Johson style wiring from North West Guitars.

So I know what I'm putting together, but what will it look like when I'm done? Well...

I'm planning on a deep wine red colour. Not purple, a really deep Bordeaux or Beaujolais sort of thing. I'd love to do a Wudtone, but they don't have anything like that currently. I've emailed Andy to ask what he thinks about putting something together for me and as he hasn't replied yet (a week), I'm guessing he's on his jollies.

So while I wait for him to come back, I'm pondering the possibilities should he respectfully decline.

I could do it with the same old same old car paint style, but I've never yet managed to get a nice shiny finish out of those. Nothing wrong with a matt finish per se, but I'd quite like to have a shiny finish for once, it makes a guitar look like it's a proper job.

However, I'm not great with the sanding between coats thing, as all I ever seem to do (despite using the highest grades of papers I can find, never less than 600 or 800) is remove the coat I've just put on or scratch the bejaysus out of it in a way that's impossible to fix without spraying over it again.

So what I'd like is an idiot-proof way of getting a nice colour with a shinyish finish.

Are there any other types of paint/finish I could use to get that nice shiny look, or am I fated to either change my colour preferences to something that Wudtone actually does? (A Claptonesque Blackie is a distant second option atm, but I already have two black guitars and I want summat different.) I'm not keen on another natural one as I already have a natural Stratparts and a natural Teleparts. Besides, the swamp ash in this case is very light coloured indeed and the two parts don't match very well, so going natural wouldn't really work this time.

Any ideas at all?

4114Effects

It's all about the prep. Grain fill the body, sand the hell out of it until the surface is lovely and smooth. I go all the way from 120 to 600 grit for this. (I use abranet sanding sheets with a foam pad, much better than plain old sandpaper.) Then two or three coats of sanding sealer, with a quick sand of 400 or 600 after that's cured.

Then I don't sand again until the clear coat, unless there's a really obvious flaw in the finishing - speck of dirt etc. Just spray primer (or not if you want the grain to show a little) then colour coats, then clear coats. If you're spraying right you don't need to sand between colour coats at all.

Once the clear has cured flat it back, go right the way to 2000grit wet and dry paper with a block, then use a good polishing compound, applied with a microfiber cloth and a lot of elbow grease. I use Farecla G10, buffs to an amazing shine.

It's a really all about patience though, I've lost count of the amount of finishes I've ruined by sanding too soon after spraying!

4114Effects

I was getting pretty despondent too , by the way. I had almost given up on trying to get a nice solid colour, just thought it was beyond my skills.

I have body I'd finished badly and fully sanded back about 8 times, must be a good centimetre thinner than when I bought it!

Buying good nitro paint really helps I've found, the cans may be £12 each but the pressure and fan of the nozzle just makes it so much easier to get a decent result. It really is worth paying a bit more for them. I was originally using plastikote, and car paints.

TheOtherDennis

Maybe that's the problem, I'm trying to sand too soon after spraying. I should be more patient and leave it for a bit.

You're right, I was using the cheap plastikote and car paints, but not because they were cheap - I don't know where to get the proper stuff. Besides, I'd heard that nitro paints aren't great for tone (like it'll matter with my sausage fingers anyway).

Is it the stuff like this for example?

paulnb57

Theres nothing wrong with car paints,its just the ones from Halfords or similar contain a lot of solvent and not much paint, If using cellulose car paint (which by the is nitro-cellulose that the big manufacturers used to use) get it from your local spray shop supplier, it might cost more but it covers better, as said above I would prep the bollocks off it then prime 2/3 coats quite thick let it dry overnight then gently sand with 1000 grit, just to knock it back a bit in case of specs,then spray your top coat in very thin coats, giving 1/2 to 1 hour between, don't try and cover it in one go! Patience is the key. Spray the first coat side to side, the second up and down and keep alternating. Keep going until you have used 1 or 2 cans, build that paint up, 1 coat is very thin, when you are done leave for a week, then rub down with 1000 grit then 2000 grit wet and dry (buy it when you buy your car paint) I use washing up liquid and a bit of water as a  lubricant, take your time, don't take lots off, use a flat block of wood or similar to wrap you wet and dry around. Then polish with t cut. You should now have a finish to be proud of! 

4114Effects

This guy sells some decent stuff. And he's got some helpful tutorials too. http://www.manchesterguitartech.co.uk

I also use wood finishes direct for their Morells nitro clear, good price, great nozzle and really fast initial drying time.

Andyjr1515

If it is a decent bit of wood underneath, you could always stain it @TheOtherDennis.  I use red calligraphy ink.  With standard clear varnish, it comes out like this:

Ref the application of the varnish, I would fully endorse what's been said by the wise sages above 

Andy

hywelg

You need to be aware of the correct technique for using a buffing compound. Farecla G10 is a bit coarse and the way you use its is to use fresh compound on one piece of the body, rub until it starts to break down, as the compund is used it becomes finer, so dont add new compound to an area already rubbed.

I've found the David Dyke's Burnishing Cream to be superior to G10, its finer to start with and will rub out scratches easily and is a lot less fussy about technique.