Official Luthiers Forum!

Owned and operated by Lance Kragenbrink
It is currently Wed Nov 27, 2024 12:27 pm


All times are UTC - 5 hours





Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 6 posts ] 
Author Message
PostPosted: Thu Oct 01, 2020 3:51 pm 
Offline
Walnut
Walnut

Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2020 10:41 am
Posts: 2
I picked up a 90's Spector bass with a nasty crack running from the headstock half way down the neck, which I'm in the process of repairing. This is an all maple through-neck in "transparent red" color that covers the body and the neck. As I understand it, the factory achieves this finish by layering tinted polyurethane lacquer on bare wood. My questions about how to repair the finish:

- In places where the finish has chipped to the bare wood, I am thinking I could mix some super glue with alcohol-based red dye, and use it to spot-fill the area. Then I would sand with a foam block and increasing grits and polish/buff.

- There are some significant pick scratches near the pickups. If this were a clear coat over paint, I could have easily just fill/sand/polish, but because this is a dyed lacquer, wouldn't sanding lighten the entire area? How do I correct this?

Attachment:
IMG_20201001_152120922_small.jpg


Reference photo (not my guitar)

Attachment:
5__74433.1412785786_sm.jpg


You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Thu Oct 01, 2020 6:19 pm 
Offline
Contributing Member
Contributing Member
User avatar

Joined: Fri May 18, 2012 8:35 pm
Posts: 2660
Location: Austin, Texas
First name: Dan
Last Name: Smith
City: Round Rock
State: TX
Zip/Postal Code: 78681
Country: USA
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
Standard Super glue will not mix with dye.
Epoxy can be dyed. I’d try an epoxy that dries hard like zpoxy finishing resin.
Best of luck!

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Thu Oct 01, 2020 6:36 pm 
Offline
Contributing Member
Contributing Member
User avatar

Joined: Wed Oct 08, 2008 11:36 am
Posts: 7378
Location: Southeast US
City: Lenoir City
State: TN
Zip/Postal Code: 37772
Country: US
Focus: Repair
Check out Glue Boost products. They have CA and tint. I've used their products since they came out and they work very good.

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Thu Oct 01, 2020 8:56 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Thu Nov 04, 2010 1:46 pm
Posts: 2150
First name: Freeman
Last Name: Keller
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
Since I had never heard of "polyurethane lacquer" I had to do a search, still don't know what it is. My experience with solvent lacquers is that I can more or less fix them and I have shot a couple of guitars with a transparent red finish. My experience with all the various polys is that I usually can't. GlueBoost is about as good as you can get (check out their videos).

I've reached the point where I turn down repairs with poly-whatever or tell people that I won't be able to hide the damage.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Thu Oct 01, 2020 9:13 pm 
Offline
Koa
Koa
User avatar

Joined: Wed Jan 14, 2009 3:14 am
Posts: 992
Location: Shefford, Québec
First name: Tim
Last Name: Mullin
City: Shefford
State: QC
Zip/Postal Code: J2M 1R5
Country: Canada
Focus: Build
Status: Professional
+2 for Gluboost fill n finish and their tints. I do rather a lot of these. Tape both sides, fill the crack in stages. Use a small hard block to level, switching to transparent tape to protect surrounding paint, then remove all tape and final levelling with P400 and fingers. Wet sand and buff. Maximum one hour labour start to finish. I always warn clients that repair will not likely be invisible, especially with transparent colours, but should be smooth to the touch. With that in their mind, they are invariably very pleased with the result.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Fri Oct 02, 2020 9:59 am 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Fri Aug 19, 2005 4:02 am
Posts: 3263
Location: The Woodlands, Texas
First name: Barry
Last Name: Daniels
Gluboost even has a red tint about that color. Play with the mix ratios until you get the right amount of transparency. Razor blades with a turned edge work well during leveling of the glue.

That is a pretty nasty crack in the neck. Get that well repaired before you start touchup.


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 6 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 5 hours


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 22 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Jump to:  
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group
phpBB customization services by 2by2host.com