JM-1 By Nitroburner1000

[nitroburner1000]

Really nice mate. Love that colour

Thanks Grubta, was a real challenge.

[nitroburner1000]

Headstock Decal arrived at last from the States.
Aslo ordered some Humbrol decalfix from Sydney, it arrived to.



So the process is...... cut out with just a small amount of edging, soak in the humbrol mixture for 3-5 mins.
When loose, thoroughly wet the headstock surface with the Humbrol to help it slide.
Place in position ( i used clear masking tape to help with positioning) and gently slide off with a small soft brush.
After 15 mins gently wipe off excess liquid with a paper towel.
After 20-30 mins put the paper towel over the top and gently press down over all the surface to squeeze out bubbles and excess liquid and Bobs your uncle, ready for clear. The Humbrol helps the decal to meld to the headstock contours, like it was painted on.



EDIT.. Ditching the official logo, and doing a custom one. My guru advised me..lol

[nitroburner1000]

Finished product with emphasis on REPLICA so i dont infringe on copyright. Will also put "M & M Customs" on back.

[nitroburner1000]

Trouble with the headstock decal. Its very fragile.
After applying, i sprayed it with 3 mist coats of clear then a heavy top coat. Apparently that wasnt enough, 10-15 fine mist coats are recommended so as the solvent wont affect it. Received 3 decals, 1 for practice, 2 is ruined, and one more to go. Fingers crossed.
I peeled it off before it had set really hard but scratched the paintwork in the process. Back to sanding, spray primer, body filler, base coat and red coat, decal the final clear, again...SIGH.

decal has cracked and crazed.



removing the clear

[nitroburner1000]

So its 4 days later and im at the last stage.2 coats of clear to seal it then decal time...

Clear is patchy until its dry, at the moment its still very wet.

[king casey]

Some of those ebay decal sellers are downright dodgy IMO.

I've had decent results buying the decal paper and creating my own.
Best if you have a good clear coat coverage for it to stick to.
I'll use a damp cotton bud to carefully squeegee out the bubbles and let it dry out.
I've been lucky with clear coating but Tru-Oil has provided good results.

cheers ,Mark.

[Simon Barden]

But you need to apply a lot of Tru-oil over the decal before rubbing back. Tried it on a decal on a replacement neck for a mate's guitar. Was very careful but 4 coats wasn't anything like enough and I sanded some of the decal off. So it was sand back and apply a new decal time. A lot more coats going on now!

[nitroburner1000]

Some of those ebay decal sellers are downright dodgy IMO.

I've had decent results buying the decal paper and creating my own.
Best if you have a good clear coat coverage for it to stick to.
I'll use a damp cotton bud to carefully squeegee out the bubbles and let it dry out.
I've been lucky with clear coating but Tru-Oil has provided good results.

cheers ,Mark.

I hear ya mate, need a lot more thin mists coats before applying the final full coats.

[nitroburner1000]

But you need to apply a lot of Tru-oil over the decal before rubbing back. Tried it on a decal on a replacement neck for a mate's guitar. Was very careful but 4 coats wasn't anything like enough and I sanded some of the decal off. So it was sand back and apply a new decal time. A lot more coats going on now!

Never used tru oil, just single pak and 2 pak poly. But a lot more mists coats for me this time round.

[nitroburner1000]

So after removing the tape from the headstock i could see the paint layers showing through. TOO MANY COATS!



The edges were smudged and i could see where the silver basecoat was showing through. You can actualyy see the bottom layer of red, then the grey primer, then the silver basecoat then the clear red overlay. With just a solid colour you would not have these problems.

This is the mess too many coats makes of the headstock, fretboard join..



YUKK.

so the sad conclusion, remove and start again.