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Private member DiscussionFinish New Builds

Airbrush attempt went South

Just joined the group and have only built 3 guitars so far but just ran into trouble on my latest project. Long story short: I built a '57 LP Jr that came out fantastic but the neck was set incorrectly and was nearly unplayable. I cut off the body and made a new one and applied the burst and a few coats of clear before gluing in the salvaged neck. To finish up the neck joint with a bit more black, I dusted off my 20 yo Paasche airbru…

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I'm new here, so I'll have to figure out what/where that is, but if that's where it should be, then absolutely.
Private member DiscussionFinish New Builds

Finish inside cavity?

Hey there folks - putting together a couple of StewMac ukulele kits and my partner asked a great question about whether to apply finish to the inside surfaces like we do the outside. We will be staining and applying wipe on poly for protection. The logic seems reasonable - protect from moisture inside and out. Only concern I could think of was trapping moisture between the layers but that was it. Anybody have experience with applying a…

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I do a light coat of Zinser spray shellac on the back and sides, mostly to keep it clean and make the wood pop a little bit. I don't do the top and I would suggest not doing it. It's going to add a…
Private member DiscussionFinish Repair

What causes these pits?

Hey All I am finishing a ukulele and I am getting all these weird pits. I was able to drop fill a lot of them but most of them do not want to stay filled and it is driving me mad! Anyone have an idea as to what may be causing these little pits? I used StewMac's dry power pore filler and their lacquer. I'm about to strip it and start over because at this point I've been chasing my tail so much I'm going crossed eyed. Thoughts?

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Yeah it's just the physical properties of the wood. Some more porous woods might need a second pass at pore filling or a sanding sealer after pore filling, before applying lacquer. I've even used vi…
Private member DiscussionFinish Repair

Everclear

I have a friend who lives in Georgia and has offered to bring me some Everclear grain alcohol so I can start to explore French polishing. What proof should they get for me? I’m planning on upping my membership to Ding King status, but it’s not in the current budget. I’m sure it’ll be an enlightening experience once I do. Thanks in the meantime…

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Anything 190 proof or above is fine. I use Everclear for most all my shellac and resin mixing and find it easy to procure in NY. By definition, if it's 190 proof it has no more than a 5%water content…