Sanding the cutaway end grain

Hi All,

So, after the second coat of Wudtone base coat the colour was starting to look nice and rich, but I noticed two big scratches I had missed sanding out right on the front of the body near the 'top' cutaway.

Having worked a bit with timber before I knew these would likely only get worse with gloss coat, so decided it was 'now or never' to sand them out. So, 15 mins later and I've pretty much got two coats of wudtone off in that area. Oh well.

I also noticed quite a few scratches 'in' the cutaways. To be honest, we were a little lost when sanding this area, as it's a little hard to tell which direction to sand in given it's effectively rounded over end grain of the timber.

So, any tips on how to make sure these areas are scratch free .. and also if my plan of just starting wudtone again is going to work??

Cheers

Todd

PS I suppose all of this should be in my build diary, which I still haven't started! Will include problems and fixes when I get around to starting the diary!

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As you layer the Wudtone and use steel wool between coats these should disappear....

You need to get it as smooth as you can beforehand though.

Todd - think you've done the right thing - with those tooling scratches on the end grain, I had to go down to 180 grit sandpaper, wrap an eraser with it (thanks Gav) and then give it a go - then you need to go back up the grits and start the staining again. For a consistent colour, you may need to bring the whole top back to the same level of colour - unless you're going for the distressed look.

Thanks guys - so, are youy saying that the the deeper scratches in the bottom pic need more sanding, but the light scratches on the top pic will likely disappear with coats of wudtone? Because it seems whichever direction I sand in (side to side inside the cutaway, or front to back 'over' it) I end up with some degree of scatching.

Thanks also for the reminder about sanding the whole top to the same level of colour,definitely planning to do that.

The hard decision in these things is whether to leave well enough alone or whether it should be better.

Cheers

Todd

You need to make a determined effort to get rid of all the scratched. Around the edges if you can get rid of the scratches to the point where they are minor by going from possibly 80 to 120 to 180 to 2220/240 grit then any very minor channels will be filled with Wudtone. Wudtone does level as it cures and hence the reason why you do not need to apply filler to more porous wood. This is also the reason why DB and I suggest the 48 hour curing time between coats. If you don't rush the process, you will see terrific results!

So SAND properly! Get that body looking terrific before starting to paint. Wiping the Basswood with a damp cloth will not only raise wayward fibres but will also highlight scratches and glue spots.
Only when you have a smooth surface free of hindrances should you start painting. I almost feel that DB should not send out the Wudtone for a week to encourage this patience! :)

Thanks Gavin ... and the bit that has been frustrating me - do I go side to side or front to back in the cutaways?

I generally follow contour of the cutaways. Use the eraser wrapped in sandpaper. Works a treat!

I typically sand in one direction only though...from both peaks down to the trough on both sides.

Hope this helps

Thanks Gavin, my wife's out tonight, so once I've got the kids to bed, I'll be out in the man cave giving it a good crack!

I agree with following the contour in the cutaway. If the finer grit paper is not getting rid of the deeper scratches, you need to go to a course grit. I had some deep scratches on the base of my ST-1 (where the strap pin goes) and I had to go back to 80 grit to get them out.

Thanks - and how smooth is smooth enough? If I run my finger over it and can't feel scratches is that a good guide, or do I need to go by sight?

Go by sight - if you can see them, you'll know that they're there... Ultimately you need to be happy with the guitar though so whatever makes you happy. Personally though - I'd rather know that they're gone.

Quote:

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/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from Brendan on June 25, 2013, 18:19
Go by sight - if you can see them, you'll know that they're there... Ultimately you need to be happy with the guitar though so whatever makes you happy. Personally though - I'd rather know that they're gone.

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agreed!

Sand, sand, sand again. then when you are tired of sanding sand again.
Just when you though you had sanded enough, sand again!

Ok. Great. Thanks. So, you're saying to keep sanding then. Hahaha.

Thanks all. Sand I will.

I forgot to mention that when you are sick of sanding, get the wife to do it :)

Ha!

Just spent an hour sanding, and I'm already much happier (both with the result and in general!)

I reckon another hour and I'll be done ... And then 1 hr more by DBs calculations!

Thanks all for the help. Not happy I wasted two coats of wudtone, but happy I sanded back.

So, I've sanded, sanded and sanded some more. I thought I was going to be ready for Wudtone last night. Then I sanded some more. I thought I'd be ready this morning, but on further investigation I decided to ... well, sand again.

Now, I'm pretty sure just a little more sanding and then I'll be ready to wudtone when I get a chance over the weekend.

Just a quick follow up question - I have a fairly consistent colour across the body (which is basically the original colour of the basswood with just a yellowy tinge hint of the golderod). there are some areas around the edges that are back to the raw basswood, a few spots that are a little darker, but the differences are a lot less than in my original pics in this thread.

I've seen a few threads on the forum about trouble with over-sanding spots that won't take wudtone, so the question is, a couple of coats of goldenrod, followed by a coat or two of saffron cover up the inconsistencies ... or should I, umm, keep sanding?

Ta

what grit have you finished sanding with?

I've been using mainly 240, but yesterday I went back to 120, then 180, then a light rub with 240 and just tonight I gave her a once over with 320 and a very quick 400. I then wiped her down with a wet cloth, and it looks like she's going to take colour ok everywhere ... And hopefully uniformly.

Well, for those of you waiting with bated breath (!) I've put the first coat on, and the good news is there aren't any spots that wouldn't take the colour. What is interesting is that the cutaways (and to a lesser degree the bottom) are actually darker than the rest of the body, which may have been the way I applied, or may even up with following coats (which may prove to be a problem given I now look to be running very low on base coat after the two wasted coats). Time will tell, and my build diary will document it. :-)

End grain will take more of the finish, this is why it is darker...
If you do run out, I can be persuaded to send you out some more.... but only if you are nice to me :)

Thanks DB, I wondered if that was the case. It's a bit splotchy on the end grain also, which doesnt help, but I'll pay special attention next few coats and hopefully get a good result. Thanks on the Wudtone also, will keep you posted (literally!). 8-)

Just wanted to say a big THANKS DB for the top up Wudtone you sent me! Next coat has gone on, and it's looking great. Now that I've got the extra Wudtone I'm very excited about the next coats! Cheers. Brilliant service, the likes of which you just don't see anymore!

So, I've finally managed to get my build diary started, which has got me up to he last coat of Wudtone we put on Thursday night - they're looking good , but we've both got a few dark patches, because the third coat was saffron 25%, and it seems some bits have taken the dark coat more (which I'd expect if it were endgrain, but it's actually on the arm contour - see pic below. Fingers crossed tomorrows coat of 75% saffron will sort this out - just not sure if I should steel wool the arm contour less hard, harder, or the same as the rest as the body?
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