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Here are some pics of the body after 5 cans of nitro clear coating:

That's going to look really nice!

I think you were wise to use a lot of clear on there... with that thin color coat (so the grain shows through) it would be really easy to sand through to the bare wood (or sealer) if you didn't have a lot of clear on there.

So... when do you plan on doing the sanding? Are you going to try to hold out and wait another week?

Waiting is the hardest bit. From start paint to start RAWK on my Musicmaster project I think it was maybe a few days.

PS:::::
Phill, i've just realized you live in Riverside, you poor bloke.
Godspeed

Phil O'Keefe wrote:That's going to look really nice!

I think you were wise to use a lot of clear on there... with that thin color coat (so the grain shows through) it would be really easy to sand through to the bare wood (or sealer) if you didn't have a lot of clear on there.

So... when do you plan on doing the sanding? Are you going to try to hold out and wait another week?

Tomorrow will be a week since the last coat went on. Saturday will be the earliest I could possibly touch it. While I am nervous about it (sanding virgin), I am anxious to get this thing playing. It has been good to step away from it for a couple of days. Obviously every day I let it sit is better, but I definitely want to start to finish this up. Every time I lay the parts on the guitar, I am blown away buy how well it has turned out. I still have shielding,wiring, and final assembly to do before I can let my tech get it setup for me. My tech offers guitar building classes including a setup class for $150 which I need to take so I don't have to take every guitar to him when they need a setup.

Paint that switch tip WHITE

Haze wrote:Paint that switch tip WHITE

Can you buy them in white?

you can buy a can of white krylon paint Chances are you have a can laying around. Sand it down a tad, shoot it up with some paint then a dash of clear
sexy tiiiiimes

Here's one

http://cgi.ebay.com/3-4-5-Way-METRIC-Te ... ccessories

yes, you can buy them, but you should just paint it.

The can of paint might be more expensive as the just buying the knob.

take it to wallmart's spray paint section! One-Two and your done. They usually have a hunk of cardboard you can test it out on, why not a piece of plastic?

If you can manage it, it would probably be better to wait until next weekend to do the sanding and polishing.

Search ebay for "white tele switch tip" - you can find them for a couple of bucks in both "tophat" and "barrel" styles.

I looked at my schedule and next weekend is going to be really busy so I think I will have to polish today. I got sandpaper soaking and I plan to give it a whirl later.

OK... but don't rush it. Make sure you allow yourself at least two or three hours to do it... GO SLOW!

Phil O'Keefe wrote:OK... but don't rush it. Make sure you allow yourself at least two or three hours to do it... GO SLOW!

I have reread the Reranch 101 and I have plenty of time tonight. I got a little experience when I had to sand a little between coats because of overspray. I plan to be extra cautious and take my time tonight when it's cooler. It's been over 100 for the last 2 weeks.

I am about to start polishing the clear coat. I will take photos at each level and post them later. I hope I put enough clear coat on The #600 and #1000 paper have been soaking since 1pm in water and I will start soaking the micro mesh right before I use each one. These have values of #1500, #1800, #2400 all the way up to 12000. I probably won't use all of them, stop somewhere between #2400 and #3200 pad.

I finished 3+ hours of sanding. The guitar is nice and smooth. I didn't sand through or make any mistakes so I am happy. Started with #600 and #1000 wet sandpaper, then moved to the pads (#1500 - #12000) The pads were awesome and you could still sand rough areas without being scared to sand through the finish. I will polish the body tomorrow. Anybody recommend a good guitar polish?

I use (and recommend) 3M Finesse-It II. You can get it at most auto parts places. It will buff it out to a nice high gloss and remove any ultra fine scratches that are left over from the micromesh pads. After buffing it out, I'd also recommend giving it a month or two to finish fully curing before you apply any "guitar polish" to it - especially any that contain wax or silicone. If you use the Finesse It properly, you won't need anything else - it will be plenty shiny.

And finally, I would also recommend being cautious about cranking down the hardware when you assemble everything after you finish the buffing. The paint may appear hard, but it's still soft underneath, and you're probably going to get some "embedding" of the parts into the soft finish. The harder you crank things down, the worse that is likely to be. You can't really avoid it with the neck plate, and to a degree, with the bridge... but I'd recommend going easy with how hard you crank down the pickguard and the control plate to help reduce that.

I'm glad to hear you dug the micromesh pads. I'll have to give those a go next time I do a refinish.

Phil O'Keefe wrote: And finally, I would also recommend being cautious about cranking down the hardware when you assemble everything after you finish the buffing. The paint may appear hard, but it's still soft underneath, and you're probably going to get some "embedding" of the parts into the soft finish. The harder you crank things down, the worse that is likely to be. You can't really avoid it with the neck plate, and to a degree, with the bridge... but I'd recommend going easy with how hard you crank down the pickguard and the control plate to help reduce that. .

I know what you mean. My Musicmaster body I bought from Cooterfinger had the exact problem you describe. The finish around the bridge, pickguard and neckplate bubbled up and left a noticeable outline.




Is it safe to leave the body outside in the heat? Would that speed up the hardening process?

Phil O'Keefe wrote:I use (and recommend) 3M Finesse-It II. You can get it at most auto parts places. It will buff it out to a nice high gloss and remove any ultra fine scratches that are left over from the micromesh pads. After buffing it out, I'd also recommend giving it a month or two to finish fully curing before you apply any "guitar polish" to it - especially any that contain wax or silicone. If you use the Finesse It properly, you won't need anything else - it will be plenty shiny.

I can't find the 3M Finesse-It II anywhere. I tried AutoZone and O'Reillys and neither carry it. Any other ideas where I can get it or maybe an alternative? I know Taylor guitar used Turtle wax on their guitars. I will see what guitar polishes I have laying around the house as well.