TLA-1 Factory Second Build

[moosecrab]

Cheers for the advice [mention]king casey [/mention].

Wish I’d know this before applying... oh well, live and learn.

Do you know if this is still a problem with lacquer-based paints? Given that timbermate is water-based, perhaps I might be okay... otherwise I’ll just spray on a layer of primer, let it dry, sand it back and go from there if it does present any problems.

[king casey]

I used ebony Timbermate on my last build to highlight the grain as you have.


Never tried 'laquer' based paint so can't help there. would possibly test it in an inconspicuous area (like under the scratchplate).

cheers, Mark.

[McCreed]

...otherwise I’ll just spray on a layer of primer, let it dry, sand it back and go from there if it does present any problems.

That's probably a good approach. IF you're getting your Duplicolor from Supercheap, their Primer Surfacer works pretty well.
I've problems with it spattering a bit, but it has always sanded out just fine I think it may be due to a higher solids content.
Just be sure to shake often (even between passes) and wipe the nozzle after a couple of passes.
I complained to SCA about this and got no reply.

FWIW, I have painted over Timbermate (and primer) and had no shrinkage issues that others have. Maybe I was just lucky.

[moosecrab]

Thanks for the tips guys.

So I haven’t painted this kit yet, but I decided while in the middle of servicing one of my other guitars that I didn’t like the finish anymore and stripped it back to repaint it.

Thought it would be a good chance to try the paint before using it on my kit build, so tried using a can of dupli-colour primer filler... unfortunately it was absolute garbage. I tried warming the can for 10 mins, shaking the can for twice as long as directed and shaking between every pass and still got spluttering. It also provided appalling coverage after 2 cans!

So after $30 blown on this stuff I tried the supercheap auto SCA primer filler (much cheaper at $13 for 400g vs. $15 for 150g of dupli-color), and pleased to report that while it did splutter a bit, it provided much better coverage and a more even coat.

So I went through a can of that and have sprayed this other guitar in a metallic black, and it’s looking pretty sweet, so keen to get cracking on the kit now.

Here’s a picture of how it’s looking after two passes:

[McCreed]

I don't think I've tried the Duplicolor Primer. Guess I'll stick with the SCA. (I use the Primer Surfacer though, not the Filler).

What kind of guitar is that? It looks like a 2 x mini-HB with a TOM bridge. (???)

[moosecrab]

Would certainly recommend steering clear of the dupli-color one. Was very disappointed with the result.

So this is a custom guitar I bought about 5-6 years ago from a guy who made guitars out of reclaimed timber. This guitar was originally a pine water-bed frame, which was styled into a telecaster with two P90 pickups, a (knock-off) bigsby and sprayed in a flat black finish.

For whatever reason I didn’t take a photo prior to sanding it down, but I do have this old picture from the guy who sold it to me:


I’ve kept with the black theme for the respray, but adding a white pearl pickguard, replacing the bigsby with a new one (I broke it after taking it apart), replacing the tuners with some black PBG ones, refinishing the neck and will probably replace the decal on the headstock.

Pretty strange guitar, but it’s good fun to play.