PBG-2F build. First guitar kit - here we go

[normrepa]

The two white 'bricks' are the 12"radius sanding blocks I printed. STL files are readily available online. These are printed out of PETG so they're thermally stable and have a strip of 1200 and 800 grit paper for running up and down the fretboard to level things out once the big lumps are gone.

The block in the background (white on the bottom, blue on top) is a 3d printed clamping block or support block for the neck, the blue is printed from TPU (similar to what your clamp pads are made of)

In one of the pictures you can also see a bunch of red 'wings' on a white board, theyre the non marring plastic sockets printed to minimise the chances of me rounding bolts or stripping threads.

[fender3x]

That is just like magic! I don't have a 3D printer, but if I did, what do you figure it costs you to print a sanding block?

[normrepa]

depends if you include the capital of the 3d Printer ;-) if you already have one then material only is probably close to $3-4 aud, which would exclude time, design, electricty depreciation, equipment replacement.

[fender3x]

depends if you include the capital of the 3d Printer ;-) if you already have one then material only is probably close to $3-4 aud, which would exclude time, design, electricty depreciation, equipment replacement.

Great answer! Pretty sure the cost my wife will object to is the initial investment. Time and design are probably not issues if it keeps me out of her hair. Might have to negotiate about bringing more stuff home, but if I can do that, I am pretty sure she'll late me skate on the depreciation ;-)

[normrepa]

Great answer! Pretty sure the cost my wife will object to is the initial investment. Time and design are probably not issues if it keeps me out of her hair. Might have to negotiate about bringing more stuff home, but if I can do that, I am pretty sure she'll late me skate on the depreciation ;-)

Well depending on what your Boss needs - 3D printing opens up a range of options. From custom shelves and brush cleaners for cosmetics, to kitchen utensil organisation - or ammunition reloading accessories and wargaming mini figs if that's her jam. I'm sure there's a library of files available for whatever she's interested in. Best time of year to buy has been Black Friday sales - so you have a little while to do nemawashi (Japanese expression for preparing the soil in anticipation of planting a tree). Good luck!

[fender3x]

Well depending on what your Boss needs...

I like the way you think ;-)

[normrepa]

Been a combination of forward progress and regression the last couple of weeks. Found this UBeaut polishing compound in the finishing cupboard and thought it might be perfect for the job...turns out it wasn't. Tried by hand in tiny sections and also with a cordless buffer and just couldn't get much beyond 'cloudy'.

After quite a bit of degreaser being wiped on and off I managed to get most of the ubeaut stuff off, put in an order for some car cut and polish and figured I'll have time to sand back, paint and sand back again before applying polish.

Mustn't have got ALL the 'polish' off as there's still a little cloud present around the horns of the body. Sanded back with 2000 and busted out the auto cut and polish. This was another learning experience - I'm glad I wasn't learning on the car as I'd a been particularly miffed! Still managed to introduce scratches with the cut and polish.

Time for a 'goal refresh' - pivot from 'showroom' to 'partial relic' finish and bank the learning experience.

[fender3x]

Not sure what the problem is. We don't have U-beaut products here, but folks in Australia have had success with them. That said I don't recall anyone using their polishing compound, and I think folks here usually use something more viscous like a polishing paste (Meguires is popular) or something more brick-like (like a Menzerna compound) if using a polishing wheel.

Whatever you use on cars *should* work on guitars too... but a couple of other things jump to mind... The first is whether the clear-coat is fully cured. With the water based finishes I have used (currently Crystalac BriteTone) the instructions say to wait 30 days before final sanding and polishing. As a rule water based finishes require longer cure-times than oil based, but even then there are some Australian products that seem to cure pretty fast. If that's the issue you may just need to wait a bit longer and try again.

The other thing that occurs me is that it looks to me like the surface may not be completely flat...which can make polishing a bit tricky. IIRC your neck is maple. Closed pore woods like that tend to flatten easier. How did it do compared to the top?

If that's part of the issue you could sand a bit more with the course grits until it's flat. The danger in that is getting a sand-through to the color/wood below the clear. Easy to do on an archtop, particularly if you have some uneven grain.

An alternative would be to add more clear to make sure that you have enough material over the color/wood so that you can safely flatten the finish without sanding through. A test to see if this might be viable would be to de-grease and add a coat or two of clear. If that removes the cloudiness this might be a viable option.

All that said, I don't hate the idea of a relic'd look. The finish you chose might be good with a bit of an aged look. Particularly with the sort of classically colored sunburst (which looks great, BTW).

[Trevor Davies]

I have not used the U-beaut polishing oil. I am a big fan of their coloured stains/dyes and their sanding sealer.

What clear coat did you use?