MaxRossell's Nitro Tele Refinish. Pics!

Tex Mexico

I just got another AVRI tele and I've decided to refinish it.

It's this one:


Anyway, I want this process to be as painless as possible, so I don't want to take it down to the bare wood. I'm thinking of sanding it back enough to take most of the colour coat off (it's Fender's "flashcoat", whatever that means, over white primer), then just respray it shoreline gold and give it a topcoat. I'd use Rothko & Frost cellulose rattlecans.

Any reason I shouldn't do it?

TTony

Tex Mexico said:

 I'd use Rothko & Frost cellulose rattlecans.

I'd ask @RothkoAndFrost for their opinion.

mart

Meanwhile, somebody will probably come along and say you can't do it because the Tele looks great as it is, and that a Tele in shoreline gold would be an abomination.

Sassafras

The Tele looks great as it is and a Tele in shoreline gold would be an abomination.

timhulio

Why ruin the existing finish? Can't you buy a fresh Tele body from GuitarBuild and swap bodies? Then you'd have a blank canvas and wouldn't have to strip or sand this one.

Gagaryn

If I was refinishing that in gold, I'd go for a gold sparkle like Dick Dale's start. That would be immense! 

topomorto

Just buy a bunch of glitter pens and get a few neighbourhood six-year-olds in...

impmann

Tbh, refinishing it will kill the resale value. A home refinish rarely looks as good as a factory one (there are exceptions, I accept) and I think you may ruin the guitar. Plus as ICBM has rightly said on a couple of occasions, changing the finish can affect the sound...

It's not often Mr Hulio and I agree but I'd say his idea is best. That way if you don't like it or it gets ballsed up, you can put it back as it was.

SteveRobinson

Tex Mexico said:

I'm thinking of sanding it back enough to take most of the colour coat off (it's Fender's "flashcoat", whatever that means, over white primer), then just respray it shoreline gold and give it a topcoat. 

I'm not familiar with "Flashcoat" but if it's anything like earlier AVRIs then there is a polyester sealer coat under the lacquer. You can strip the nitro down to the sealer using cellulose thinners which won't touch the sealer. The sealer then makes a nice flat base for the lacquer.

Test first in a cavity!

Tex Mexico

*sigh*

How about we assume I'm aware that the resale value won't be the same and I don't care, I'm not interested in spending hundreds more on a whole other body to end up with a completely different guitar just to have an LPB body sitting around doing f**k all, and that I'm not some complete bell-end who will inevitably balls-up anything I attempt with a rattle can, and instead approach this from a perspective of I know how to refinish guitars, I don't like LPB but I like shoreline gold, and I'm looking for reasons why I would encounter technical problems with this combination of paints?

You know, one of the reasons I don't go on guitar forums as much as I used to is that you ask a simple question that should have a ten-word answer and instead you get a dozen guys telling you you're incompetent and your taste sucks and your idea is stupid and the only way to get right is to spend ten times more money doing something completely different.

1. I'm going to refinish this guitar, in a colour of my choice.
2. I don't give a shit how it affects the resale value.
3. I won't screw it up because I know what I'm doing, but if I did it would be my problem.
4. I'm asking if a specific type of paint requires more preparation than I currently plan to do.

Now does anyone have anything helpful to add to that, or do y'all want to keep telling me that the most important thing is what happens if I decide to sell it?

Tex Mexico

SteveRobinson said:

Tex Mexico said:

I'm thinking of sanding it back enough to take most of the colour coat off (it's Fender's "flashcoat", whatever that means, over white primer), then just respray it shoreline gold and give it a topcoat. 

I'm not familiar with "Flashcoat" but if it's anything like earlier AVRIs then there is a polyester sealer coat under the lacquer. You can strip the nitro down to the sealer using cellulose thinners which won't touch the sealer. The sealer then makes a nice flat base for the lacquer.

Test first in a cavity!

Thank you Steve! Exactly the the kind of info I was after.

Tex Mexico

By the way, do you do also shoreline gold in rattlecans?

Tex Mexico

Gagaryn said:

If I was refinishing that in gold, I'd go for a gold sparkle like Dick Dale's start. That would be immense! 

I had a sparkle gold tele not long ago, one of the 72 Deluxe FSRs, and it was nice but a bit too blingy for me.

SteveRobinson

Tex Mexico said:

By the way, do you do also shoreline gold in rattlecans?

I certainly do.

http://www.manchesterguitartech.co.uk/shop/shoreline-gold-metallic-nitrocellulose-lacquer/

I can probably sort out a forum discount too.

Tex Mexico

Oooh, that's cool.

Question: for lacquer thinner, what do you recommend? I have some nitromors (recent) lying around and can get hold of acetone pretty easily, would either of those do? I've only ever stripped urethane before so not sure.

jd0272

I used acetone for nitro.

Tex Mexico

Do you know if acetone would have an effect on the poly base coat they put on these guitars?

jd0272

Couldn't say Max.

impmann

Tex Mexico;717401" said:

*sigh*



How about we assume I'm aware that the resale value won't be the same and I don't care, I'm not interested in spending hundreds more on a whole other body to end up with a completely different guitar just to have an LPB body sitting around doing f**k all, and that I'm not some complete bell-end who will inevitably balls-up anything I attempt with a rattle can, and instead approach this from a perspective of I know how to refinish guitars, I don't like LPB but I like shoreline gold, and I'm looking for reasons why I would encounter technical problems with this combination of paints?



You know, one of the reasons I don't go on guitar forums as much as I used to is that you ask a simple question that should have a ten-word answer and instead you get a dozen guys telling you you're incompetent and your taste sucks and your idea is stupid and the only way to get right is to spend ten times more money doing something completely different.



1. I'm going to refinish this guitar, in a colour of my choice.

2. I don't give a shit how it affects the resale value.

3. I won't screw it up because I know what I'm doing, but if I did it would be my problem.

4. I'm asking if a specific type of paint requires more preparation than I currently plan to do.



Now does anyone have anything helpful to add to that, or do y'all want to keep telling me that the most important thing is what happens if I decide to sell it?

Ok fella.

Only trying help.

Not being funny but if you "know what you are doing" then why ask in the first place? Especially in view of the question you asked at the end of your initial posting... How are we to know you are an expert?

Good luck with it.

SteveRobinson

Tex Mexico said:

Do you know if acetone would have an effect on the poly base coat they put on these guitars?

Acetone is a major component of lacquer thinners and will do the job. It's probably a bit cleaner to use than Nitromors and neither will affect a polyester sealer.

But do check in a cavity first!

Tex Mexico

SteveRobinson;717488" said:

Tex Mexico said:

Do you know if acetone would have an effect on the poly base coat they put on these guitars?





Acetone is a major component of lacquer thinners and will do the job. It's probably a bit cleaner to use than Nitromors and neither will affect a polyester sealer.

But do check in a cavity first!

Nice one Steve. I'll be in touch about the paints.