TL-1H.....Tele Deluxe

[OliSam]

Oh....... that's just te undercoat. I have a kind-of Olympic White to go over it.
How many coats of that should I put on?

Then i have a clear coat. I think I have to do 4or5 of that one...no?

[Dedman]

A white tele with a 70's head stock, ...you show great taste! LOL ( see mine around here somewhere)

I tend to go with quite a few coats and then sand most of it back off.

[OliSam]

Thanks Dedman!
How long to wait till it is hard enough?
I am guessing a few days.

[corsair]

You know, this is starting to gently push my build switch, and I thought I was done and dusted. Love the idea of a Telecaster Custom with the late seventies big headstock so watching this one with interest....

Paisley? P-90s? Andy Summers early 80s style?? Anyway, nicely done so far, OliSam!!

[Simon Barden]

Drying time depends on the spray you're using. As you are using and undercoat, I'd say its either a poly or acrylic paint. I'm not sure about poly, but acrylic paint can take a lot longer to dry than you think - and you can get the surface hard but the paint underneath still soft if you put on too many layers in too short a time.

I'd have put on two coats of undercoat, let it dry and then rubbed down (with wet wet 'n' dry) to a smooth surface with no small dimples. If I got down to the wood, then another coat or two, then a light wet sand back to flat. Again, giving the coats time to dry well before each application e.g. maybe a coat in the morning, then one late afternoon, and then wait a couple of days before doing anything else. It's not a process than can be hurried, and time is your friend.

The guitar's surface should now be flat, so the main main colour spray can now go on. Two coats should be sufficient. Just let this dry well and I wouldn't sand it at all, as it's easy to sand back to the undercoat. If there are any small paint blobs or dust stuck to the surface, a piece of dry P240 or P320 grit paper lightly dragged over the surface (not pressed down at all) should pull those off. But only do it when the paint's been dry for at least two days. Any sooner and a piece of dust or a small hard lump of paint can drag a lot of still-wet paint from under the surface with it, leaving a deep hole that you'll need to go back and fill.

If you've got any paint runs in the colour coat, then you need to remove those now. You can try strip-sanding to remove the worst of the run (cut some sandpaper into finger-wide strips, hold the sandpaper down with one finger over the run/bump and pull one end the paper with your other hand - so that the paper moves but its only making contact with the finish under the finger). Gentle wet sanding with fine grit well-soaked wet 'n' dry paper on a flat pad in that area should finish the job. If in doubt, use water or turps to wet the surface to get an idea how it will look when the clear coats go on. If you can't notice the run any more, then leave it. If you can, then it's back to the sanding. You may have to do a localised spray to patch up the area.

Then I'd probably do a light sand with P400 paper, just to key the surface ready for the clear coat. I'd do 4-5 clear coats, maybe two er day with a two-day gap in between. You need enough depth so that you can sand back the clear coat to flat without breaking through to the colour coat. Make sure any sharp edges get a good depth of clear coat on them, as they are very vulnerable to break-through when you start sanding.

The clear coats need to dry really hard before final sanding and polishing, so the longer you can give it, the better. Two weeks minimum, but three is better. If you can smell the paint when you hold it up to your nose, then it's still drying.

[OliSam]

thanks Simon.
I wouldn't have known to wait as long between.
But it makes sense - if I can smell it when I hold it to my nose then still drying. Good point.
back to the guitar on the weekend!

[OliSam]

thanks Corsair
those flamboyant headstocks are a scream. you just gotta have one in the quiver.

[OliSam]

that expression.....waiting for paint to dry......
this painting thing is slow work
neck is coming along well too. just used tung oil and fine buffing oil.

[phrozin]

oliSam what paint are you using there ?

[stan]

This looks great, what a lovely finish