@rocknroller912 Indeed , If I decide to add a layer of veneer, I will have to remove 0.5mm from the top anyway, since indeed, it would make the headstock too thick. I 'll leave everything as is for now, it is not disfunctional, I am not too worried about it for the time being. 👍
Neck finishing... I decided to go for a shellac only approach.
I did buy a bottle of clear filler, but when testing it, I was not really convinced I could use before having extensively tested that stuff. Smells nasty too. So Shellac only for me , except for the neck, I did use Rustins Mahogany grain filler for that too.
Step 1 Grain filler
First coat of Shellac after sanding down the grainfiller as much as possible
4 coats of shellac, a bit of scuff sanding after coat 3
The heel also shows the difference between 1 coat and 4 coats.
I am really happy with that result.
The body, on the other hand.. It aint gonna be pretty I am afraid.
Too many missed glue spots on the sides, I cannot get rid of, without sanding too deep.
But the worst part is, that putting on even coats of shellac is not easy, it gets sticky very fast. I always end up with runs and bumps. They are also really hard to get out, without removing too much.
After , what I think was a perfect layer, upon inspection, I find larger parts where I did not seem to have applied anything, and parts where it seems to have way too much.
I am trying the same technique as the French Polish technique with a stuffed pad, made out of cotton. I made my own shellac .
Could it be that my ratio shellac/alchol is wrong? ( it now has the consistency of molten butter, perhaps a little less viscosity )
Now I am not trying to achieve a french polish yet, but I do regard this as a first exercise on that path.
Any tips on getting things smoother and more even?
It sounds like the finish is soaking into some parts of the grain more than others, giving the appearance that there is nothing there. I’ve seen professional French polishers apply a first thick coat with a brush to get a solid base layer before a light sanding. Then use the thinner coats with a cloth rubber.
Some people call me a tool, others are less complimentary. Tools being useful things.
@koendb First of all I’ll say that the neck looks amazing, great finish. I can’t help with an answer for you unfortunately, I have never used shellac so I can’t offer any tips. It is something I want to try and French polishing is right up my street one day.
I think what @rocknroller912 said makes sense, maybe look into that.
Also, maybe @darrenking could know a little more on this subject, not sure.
Make guitars, not war 🌍✌️🎸
I think I remember Mark saying that he doesn’t use shellac, so here is a builder who does live streams that you can follow. Think he uses pumice powder as grain filler. It’s only a screen shot but you should be able to find him.
Some people call me a tool, others are less complimentary. Tools being useful things.
so here is a builder who does live streams that you can follow. Think he uses pumice powder as grain filler. It’s only a screen shot but you should be able to find him.
haha funny, I was just watching his live feed at this very moment on Facebook
Well, I think I am slowly getting better results. My shellac/Alcohol mix ratio is probably better. Before it was way to thick. More alcohol seems to be the right answer in this case 😉
It is nowhere near perfect, but it s already miles better then my first attempts.
I think I am getting closer and closer to where I need to be.
12 coats of shellac ( max 3 coats a day ), sanding back, shellac, sanding back.. etc..
Especially yesterday, after starting to wet-sand ( Thx @rocknroller912 ) it started to look like something.
I wanted to test what it would look like if I would start polishing after my last coat of shellac( applied yesterday morning ), so during lunchbreak, I used Menzerna 400 heavy cut with a clean cloth.
After a bit of rubbing, the spots I just rubbed got shinier and shinier.
Here is a bit of a multiple step view:
The part on the right side, before the bridge is sanded back while, still on the right side, behind the bridge is already done, with a light rubbing, while on the left side, behind the bridge has already more of a finished look ( Still only rough cut Menzerna, Once I really polish with medium cut and super finish, I assume it will look even better )
While my technique is not yet very refined and I am sort of 'mixin and matchin' different tips and techniques. I think I am heading into the right direction. What do you guys and girls think? Am I just kidding myself, or is does this look good to you?
@koendb It’s looking really good, that’s a nice lustre. Just think that each grade of sandpaper puts finer scratches in the finish than the last one. The same goes for compounds and polishes, they are still abrasive so go through them in the right order too, just like the wet and dry papers. 👍 Time and patience is the key, just take your time. 👍
Make guitars, not war 🌍✌️🎸
I’m just home from the pub and have to agree
Some people call me a tool, others are less complimentary. Tools being useful things.
I am going to call this back done.
Went over it with 1000, 1200 and 2000 grit, then rubbed menzerna rough cut twice, again 1200 and 2000 grit to get almost every speckle out, then again Menzerna 400 Rough cut, followed by Menzerna 2500 Medium cut and finished off with Menzenrna 3500 Superfinish.
My arm is now falling off, but I am pretty happy with that result.
There are still a lot of scratches and mainly little dings if you look closely, but you have to really look in a certain way to see them.
I assume I should have done a better job at filling the pores and get it to level before beginning the shellac finishing ( or use the pummice technique, during applying the shellac )
During the week, or next weekend, I 'll try to buff out the front as good as I can get it. Luckely the front does not have so much dings in it so It should be doable to get this shine on the front as well.
I am not sure if I want to put as much energy in the sides, as they are the worst and I will definitely not get as good as a result as on this back. But I ll probably try anyway .
