Sonics first build JMA-1: ShoeGazer MK1

[Sonic Mountain]

Actually I think its a deleted scene in T2.

[wokkaboy]

ah ok cheers Sonic, still a cool pic

[Sonic Mountain]

OK another question. Silly me didn't pay attention to the bridge post receiver thingy's (excuse the technical language) and which way up they go. Top or Bottom?



And here are some pics of paint drying. Can't wait to cut it back.

[Andy40]

Chompin' at the bit to shine!!!

[Sonic Mountain]

Hi Sonic,
The top one is right way around.
The narrow part of the anchor goes in the hole first.
And best to rub some wax on to assist in getting it in without splitting the body.

Excellent, thanks for that - yes a bit of lube seems wise.

And great paint job!

Cheers, I'm really happy with it so far.

Chompin' at the bit to shine!!!

You know it. it's unbelievably hard not to fiddle with it, but its got a lot of paint on it, so I really need to patient so its hard enough to polish properly.

[Sonic Mountain]

After a lot of messing about I finally have my headstock decal on. It's been years since I've used those things, but I'm happy with this. A few coats of clear and I think it will look great.

[JB RETRO]

Noice. Don't get too eager! Wait for it to dry

[Kick]

Looking great!

[Sonic Mountain]

Noice. Don't get too eager! Wait for it to dry

Yeah it was too cold to spray last night anyway, I gave it a few coats this morning.

Otherwise.. major stuff up today

I was happily cutting back the body after patiently waiting all week. Everything was going fine until...I broke through near the bridge holes. I thought there might have been a slight run.. but nope.. every hole that has been drilled has allowed some water to get in under the finish and the wood is swelling. It actually looks worse now than when I took the photos.

So freakin' annoyed. Thats what I get for using automotive techniques I guess. When wet and dry sanding for polish you try and keep it as wet as possible to constantly be washing away the sanding dust. This has obviously backfired on me here with the wood.

So that's set me back a couple of weeks. I'll leave it now to really dry out and then re-assess, but there is definitely going to be some sanding right back in a few spots and refinishing.

Sigh.

I'll let you imagine the choice words I am muttering under my breath at the moment.

[Sonic Mountain]

Alright. So I knocked the top off all the new ridges. Its seems to be worse where there were joins in the body. There is quite a long lift/crack where I know there is a join in the back. After being in the sun all day they have shrunk noticeably. Actually they are now depressions as I sanded them while raised. This is a good thing as I can fill them back up again and then top coat and it should all be good.

So less a tragedy and more a setback / learning experience. Dry sanding is the go!

I'll leave it in the sun again tomorrow and then try and get a primer coat done. I'm away next week so it'll have plenty of time to dry, then hopefully I can sand back and top coat again. Then neck is looking great. I didn't get a pic, but apart from a slight sag around the tuner holes I got a nice coat on. I might give it a light knock back and do another coat in a couple of weeks.



As annoying as it is, it might be a sign that I need to switch back and get the valiant running again so I can get it out of the shed so there is more room for guitar work.

I am really enjoying the scale of this work. A lot of it is things I've done before, but never specifically like this. The difference between knocking back a coat of primer on this compared to an old car is crazy.

The scope for modification is huge and so much cheaper than cars as well.