First Ever Build - SV1

[a_novice]

Hi All, finally found the time (and weather) to start my first ever kit after having it for 4 or 5 months! Here is what i've done so far and some of the things i've found. I have a few questions moving forward as well so any help is appreciated.

First of all i did the check of all parts and did a mock build. The pictures don't show it but i put the tuning pegs in and ran some thread down to check the neck alignment etc and i must say the kit was so much better than i anticipated, very happy with it.

Then i started the sanding process. The wood was in pretty good shape to begin with so didn't have to sand too much. I watched the sanding video from here (i'm not much of a handyman so needed all the help i could get) but ended up sanding with 240, 600 then 1200 which turned out to be too fine for painting! So on advice i sanded back with 400 just lightly to get some grip.

Once that was done, i tapped up the neck pocket and filled a couple of key holes and made a makeshift spray booth. I purchased the SCA Primer / Filler, White and Clear acrylic paints for the next step.

I sprayed around 5 or 6 light coats of the Primer / Filler leaving around 15min between coats. Left it overnight and did a light sand with 400 dry just to even out some paint blobs etc. There were a couple of spots i could start to see the wood, but for the most part was all good (enough coats of Primer). I had some gloves on while spraying and i found my finger was slipping forward and just getting in front of the spray, causing it to spray blobs! Easily fixed but felt pretty silly.

I had a two paint run issues in the colour coat on the front where the monkey grip is (i was so disappointed). Trying to spray inside the monkey grip was difficult and so i avoid it for the most part after that. I sprayed around 5 or 6 coats lightly of the white colour and besides the run issues was very happy with the first set of coats. I'm now letting that dry before moving on as the weather is too hot today to spray.

1. I do have a couple of questions though moving on from here. I noted a couple of very small dents which i hadn't picked up before and not sure how to deal with them moving forward. Do i fill before moving on and if so how? They are around the size of a grain of sand but noticeable.

2. Do you sand between coats of your final colour? If so do you wet or dry sand? I'm a bit unsure of where to from here. Wasn't sure if i should just continue on with the coats until i'm ready for the clear and then sand before the clear and after the clear etc?

3. For the monkey grip, thinking of just using a brush as the spray can is not working for me.

I must say though, i surprised myself as i've never really built anything before, and was very happy with the SCA spray cans, highly recommend if you don't have spray equipment.

[Andy40]

A good looking kit you got there man.

Careful you don't put on too many coats too quickly

Most dents should be attacked at the sanding stage. depending on how big they are you could try and go over them with more primer?

I don't usually sand between colour coats unless there's runs.

I'm no expert with sprays, so maybe one of the other guys can give a better opinion than me.

[Simon Barden]

I try and get it as flat as possible at the end of each paint stage.

[a_novice]

Yeah, i wasn't planning on sanding again during the colour stages but with the drip run in one spot i don't have much of a choice. Can you dry sand or do you have to wet sand? Was going to run 600 over to get rid of the drip and then not sand again during the white stage.

the dents are pretty small, attached pic below. there are 2 or 3 like this one, mostly on the back but one on the front.

[Sonic Mountain]

Dry sanding the primer is fine. The big green shed sells anti clog paper for dry sanding paint, its a whitish colour. 600 is probably fine.

Before colour I would do a pass of 800.

You don't need to sand between colour coats unless there are boo boos you want to fix. It wont hurt anything, just make sure its nice and dry before you do and wipe over with a tack cloth before recoats.

It is mostly about being patient and letting the finish dry before cutting, you can block back and recoat as much as you need to get a good finish. There are some schools of thought that a thicker finish will kill some of the resonance, so bear that in mind perhaps.

[a_novice]

Thanks Sonic Mountain. I went to get anti clog paper today from the big green shed but they only had it up to 400. They are hit and miss with sandpaper i've found. I got some 400 anyway but they didn't stock anything higher. Is 400 between coats to fix an issue too course?

[FrankenWashie]

I’ve found great service, a huge range and reasonable pricing from the sandpaper man:
https://www.thesandpaperman.com.au/

[a_novice]

I’ve found great service, a huge range and reasonable pricing from the sandpaper man:
https://www.thesandpaperman.com.au/

Thanks for the website, certainly have a good range and reasonable price except delivery can cost more than the product - i guess i need to use when i have plenty to buy . Good to have a place to go to though because the green shed has been really hit and miss for me.

[corsair]

I wet-sand between every 3 colour coats, but only very lightly - just a light scuff to knock any high points down - and my colour coats are also very thin to build up a good depth.
Then the clear coats, which are also very thin and wet-sanded every three or so coats. Last sand is with 2000 grit - lightly again - and then polishing begins with ever ever increasing grit values ending up with Meguiers swirl remover and polish. I've found that there's no short cuts to a really great paint finish - elbow grease and the correct technique do the job.
I hasten to add that this is for a painted finish; I'm not not terribly familiar with timber finishes like the lads in here, eh!!

[a_novice]

Thanks corsair. Thats cool, i'm doing an acrylic paint finish (not quite up to a timber finish yet, maybe my next kit!). Looks like something i can only learn from trying, but that's what it's all about though.