Julien's FBM-1 L

[FredA]

Hey guys,
I got the drummer of our band on the diy guitar bandwagon and he ordered himself a lefty FBM-1.

He's gone 200% upgrade with second hand firerbird tuners, tv jones pickup, etc.

He's planning a solid paint finish and because he's super keen he primed, painted, sanded back to wood, primed again... all this without applying any grain filler.
So the grain is quite visible as you'll see on the 2 close up of the body.

What would you guys recommend? Sand back to wood to apply timbermate and then start again, or keep going with the coats of primer, then sand, then primer, etc. until flat?
I am thinking sanding and doing proper grain filling should be the best option but wanted to get your thoughts before I get him to send again!

Cheers

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[jarrod]

Hey Fred,
Now to be the bearer of bad news a few mistakes have been made here;
1. the wood needs to be grain filled yes
2. before any painting the wood needs to be sealed, If the wood is not sealed the paint will eventually just follow the grain and sink (especially acrylics).
3. a lot of sanding will be required to remove the paint from the grain and all of it will need to be removed
4. Use a completely de-waxed sealer or the paint will not stick, and ruff up the sealer with 600 grit to give the primer something to stick too.
5.do not go thick with your primer and remember to ruff up the primer for your colour to stick to0.
6. If your using automotive Acrylics give it 2 weeks before you cut and polish the finish coats.
7. Nitro Cellulose is really what you want for guitars but Acrylic will work if done correctly.
8. Keep the coats thin and allow 20 mins between coats, the biggest mistake people make is piling the paint on and wondering why it takes 6 months to harden.
9. That advice was free lol...

[FredA]

Thanks Jarrod... that's worse than I thought!

So if I understand well you're saying he should:
1. Sand back to wood to remove all paint
2. Grain fill (usual timbermate slurry?)
3. Seal (is there sealer you wouldrecommend?)
4. Prime
5. Paint
6. Top coat

Correct?

He is planning to use car paint in spray.

Thanks!

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[JohnH]

What a bugger! Although I don't know that I mind it - kind of reminds me of this table my grandparents had that I always loved

[jarrod]

John ya cracked me up lol....
Right Mr Fred here is the process.
I use a de-waxed high quality shellac to seal. Just two thin wipe on coats. The words de-waxed is the important word here as it comes in both. Leave that a week then ruff it up. This is after your timbermate ( not my favourite grain filler but it does the job ).
You then need to use an etch primer and two coats thin, just enough to cover the guitar. Then one coat of normal primer. Give your primers a day to gas out and 20 mins flash off between coats.
If your not going for metallic then a solid colour won’t need a clear coat. You can leave that for a couple of weeks then 2000 grit wet and dry and polish it up as per my tutorial video for Pitbull. Metallics will require clear coats directly on top , do not ruff up the metallic just clear coat over it.
Remember patience is the key to do the job professionally and right.
Paint with Acrylic or nitro is no quicker than true oil or Dingo tones process so don’t rush it and you will end up with a much better instrument.

[FredA]

Awesome!
Thanks for that.

I told him solid paint was the hardest... but he didn't listen...

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[JohnH]

John ya cracked me up lol....

Gotta find those silver linings!

This is after your timbermate ( not my favourite grain filler but it does the job ).

What grain filler do you prefer? I've been having mixed results with timbermate...

[Andy40]

Ohh, haven't seen a FB in a while. nice 1 fred