+1 for the card scraper. I also often use a pop stick (ice-cream stick).
+1 for the card scraper. I also often use a pop stick (ice-cream stick).
PitBull Builds: FVB-4, LP-1SS, FBM-1, AG-2, TB-4, SSCM-1, TLA-1,TL-1TB, STA-1HT, DSCM-1 Truckster, ST-1, STA-1, MBM-1, MBM custom, GHR-1 (Resonator), FH-5V (Acoustic).
Scratch Builds: Pine Explorer, Axe Bass, Mr Scary, Scratchy Tele's.
The little voices in my head keep telling me "build more guitars"
Has been a hectic month already.. Couldn't do much wrt Guitar build
Just small updates
Have finally leveled off the neck shim area with Timbermate. Unfortunately the timbermate that was sent was white and not natural colour. Will have to see, How it looks after grain filler and staining
After what @fender3x said, I was worried about the glue from painters tape sticking to the veneer. At first I thought I could finish everything soon. But since it has been very hectic at work, I first need to Grain fill the sides and back, sand it and then get on with staining the top, i thought I will remove the painters tape from veneer and then cover it with newspapers and then anchor that to the body using painters tape. Finally all the masking is done.
Things to do
1. Try trimmermate stained with ebony on the Steam Beech scrap and sand to check if all is well and then go ahead and fill the back of the body and sides
2. Try various dilutions of black stain on scrap to see what dilutions should I base stain
3. Try the actual fade on scrap wood to see if it looks good and if I can pull it off or just go for single colour with Burst pattern
How are you all doing?.
Cheers,
Drashkum
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Last edited by Drashkum; 11-07-2023 at 03:15 PM.
My builds are among the slowest here. Life tends to interfere with my guitar building. A common issue I think ;-)
At least the filler flattens and sands well even if the color is a bit off. You still have options. My only successful stain job had a number of issues (mostly my mistakes). I had to work pretty hard not to get streaks or blotches...or more accurately to even them out. I had problems with the fill and problems with the initial clear coat as well. This resulted in some light spots where I ended up adding more of the General Finishes dye stain that I was using. Once I got it as flat as I could I used a gel stain (Craftnique) over everything to even out the color a bit more. That went over original stain, clear filler and some clear coat. Once I had everything as even as possible, then I clear coated again.
I am mentioning this because some stains seem to work well over finish, filler, or clear coat. Usually these are not the dyes, but if you can't get the color the way you want with dye stain you might try something else to even it up. I don't necessarily recommend Craftnique, but there are gel stains, and translucent paints that are designed to go over old finishes and filler that might work well. I think there are folks here who have even drawn in "grain" over filler with a sharpy type pen. Worst case scenario you can still add a veneer "cap."
Thank you. I will keep that in mind. The problem in india is that most of these gel stains are not readily available as in US, UK or Australia. If i have to source i may have to order from websites that ship world wide and also pray that they don't levy any customs duty. Most of stains are not shippable outside continent. I was lucky that I was able to get hold of Timbermate in india.Originally Posted by fender3x
Right now I have to do the guitar with fountain pen inks and stains available here. Hope I pull this off
Today had some time so tried practicing grain filling on a piece of wood that was porous and had enough rough surface to level. Stained the timbermate but it became a bit runny. So added some more in such a way that it was of right consistency of Chocolate sauce. Made use of the expired Train card to scrap the timbermate after applying on wood. I have let it dry. Will sand and see how it looks and then try to Stain one last time before I go on the guitar.
How do u guys take care of the mess that grain filler creates. I somehow have to find a way to prevent the filler from even accidently touching the veneer despite my masking. It becomes a mess all around too
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I have never used Timbermate. Hoping folks who have will chime in...
I did see this vid...which may be of some help?
If your slurry is too thin it looks like you might be able to just let it dry some before applying. It also looks like you can stain over it. I am not sure how you keep it from re-activating if your stain is water based, though. That can be a problem using a water based product over another water based product. Someone here should have experience with that thought!
Thankfully the stain I want to use for back is solvent based. I did sand back the mud and stained the scrap today. Will try to do a sealer and then clearcoat and see if everything is compatible and post back
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I use a 1 lb cut of dewaxed platina shellac as a sealer. It can pull a bit on water based finish below it, but I think it does so less than something water based. Alcohol is a better solvent than water, but evaporates quicker, so I try to put it on in long strokes so as not to stay long in any one spot. I see a little color on my applicator...but mostly the color on the guitar looks OK, so I use it between water-based products pretty much all the time now. I've never tried it with Timbermate, but it might be worth an experiment.
You might ask the Timbermate folks how and what to apply over it for minimal pull. Different products react differently. There are a number of water based products that will not reactivate with water. The MTN94 rattle can paint I use dries hard and will not reactivate. The water based clear that I use (General Finishes High Performance) dries hard and will reactivate a little with water, but only a little, so if I am careful I can still wet sand with water. Shellac does not reactivate with water, but will reactivate with alcohol. Water based stains I have sealed by putting shellac over them tend to pull a little but not enough to mess up the color.
It occurs to me that it might be a good experiment to try using tinted shellac rather than staining. The shellac I use is from India so it ought to be readily available. You can tint with the alcohol based dies you already have. It should work nicely even over something that has product under it. I haven't done this yet, but one of my next projects is to finish a paulownia body, and I am thinking of using either garnet shellac or tinted shellac to avoid the blotchiness that you can sometimes get with stains on an open grained wood.
The "best/worst" advice I have gotten is to spray shellac when used between coats. If you do that it shouldn't pull (best). I don't have spray equipment (worst). ;-)
Last edited by fender3x; 14-07-2023 at 04:20 AM.
Finally had time today to grainfill the back and sides of body and back of the neck and headstock.
It was a sloppy work. The stained slurry turned out to be thicker than expected. So the costing became a bit thicker. I am trying to sandback the thick coat with hand with 220 grit and it's proving to be a tedious process. But a good learning.
Next will be to stain the back and sides of the guitar, neck and headstock
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For better or worse, many have paid the price of tedious processes for their learning. Some of us continue to use the tedious processes because we can't seem to learn a better way (this would include all my efforts with clear coating). Keeping fingers crossed for you!
Hi guys, Need your advice as usual
I am sanding it down using a 220 grit sand paper. I am not sure when should I stop sanding. Should i go till the wood?. How to prevent sanding through the grainfiller to wood. Also there are these whitish patches seen. I have tried to wipe with a brush but not able to get rid of it. Should i wipe down with alcohol?
https://youtube.com/shorts/lzjd6c2xIFE?feature=share
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