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Building my Fenderbird
- Thread starter kbakerde
- Start date
Consult the Rattle Can Refinish Club here at TalkBass.
One thing the club is a bit light on is wood fill. I've done a lot of acoustic finish work and yes, wood fill is crucial, so be very thorough. Apply, wipe as clean as possible, scotchbrite, repeat if needed. Try not to be too dismayed at how many sanding scratches you see. Since you're going with a solid color, flatness of the surface is more important.
One thing the club is a bit light on is wood fill. I've done a lot of acoustic finish work and yes, wood fill is crucial, so be very thorough. Apply, wipe as clean as possible, scotchbrite, repeat if needed. Try not to be too dismayed at how many sanding scratches you see. Since you're going with a solid color, flatness of the surface is more important.
Love mine! Gotta lotta mileage! The pups used to be black! Go get 'em!
The Bar Band Bassman
Just some random thoughts from the cheap seats:
I'd also recommend checking out Mark Murray over at GuitarGuts YouTube channel. Mark does a TON of refinishes and he pretty much uses rattle cans exclusively. I think he even did a full video on his setup and technique. I'll second checking out Brad Angove as well. A lot of rattle can experience there and he uses Oxford. I think he even did a spray painting tips video just recently too. It's kind of a bummer, because I think Brad even has discount codes for Oxford stuff, or at least a discount code when ordering it through his sponsor Solo Music Gear. Don't quote me on that tho.
I don't know that I'd stress about the neck pocket. Keep in mind you are gonna add a few mills of thickness to the pocket when you finish the body, it may come right into line.
Love the project!
I'd also recommend checking out Mark Murray over at GuitarGuts YouTube channel. Mark does a TON of refinishes and he pretty much uses rattle cans exclusively. I think he even did a full video on his setup and technique. I'll second checking out Brad Angove as well. A lot of rattle can experience there and he uses Oxford. I think he even did a spray painting tips video just recently too. It's kind of a bummer, because I think Brad even has discount codes for Oxford stuff, or at least a discount code when ordering it through his sponsor Solo Music Gear. Don't quote me on that tho.
I don't know that I'd stress about the neck pocket. Keep in mind you are gonna add a few mills of thickness to the pocket when you finish the body, it may come right into line.
Love the project!
That looks like a good rig. I think there’s 2 different versions. Unfortunately, I don’t have a dedicated spray area, I have to clean and rearrange the garage when it’s sprayin’ time and I don’t really have room to store that the rest of the time. I suppose I could get my wife’s stuff out of the garage…
That looks like a good rig. I think there’s 2 different versions. Unfortunately, I don’t have a dedicated spray area, I have to clean and rearrange the garage when it’s sprayin’ time and I don’t really have room to store that the rest of the time. I suppose I could get my wife’s stuff out of the garage…
So I watched a video on it. And you can disassemble the rig and store it in a box when you're not using it!
Ok. Wiped the body with a damp cloth and raised the grain, then proceeded to sand down with 600 grit. Next step for me is grain filler. I’m using Oxford natural oil based grain filler.
So far I’ve done one coat on the top and bottom. I used a brush to paint a thick layer of filler onto the body, then used an old credit card to scrape the excess off. I still have to do the sides, but I’m thinking of a slightly different approach.
I think for the sides and for a second coat, I’ll get some unreal spirits to thin the filler, and some latex gloves and work it by hand. I’ll scrape the excess again, but I won’t try to get it down to the wood like last time. Leave a bit more in. After that I need to decide to do a third coat first or sand.
So far I’ve done one coat on the top and bottom. I used a brush to paint a thick layer of filler onto the body, then used an old credit card to scrape the excess off. I still have to do the sides, but I’m thinking of a slightly different approach.
I think for the sides and for a second coat, I’ll get some unreal spirits to thin the filler, and some latex gloves and work it by hand. I’ll scrape the excess again, but I won’t try to get it down to the wood like last time. Leave a bit more in. After that I need to decide to do a third coat first or sand.
Here is the front after a coat
So far the front I can still feel the grain a bit. The back feels more flat. But I will do probably two more coats of filler. Then I’ll check with my hand and with a light to see how I’m doing.
So far the front I can still feel the grain a bit. The back feels more flat. But I will do probably two more coats of filler. Then I’ll check with my hand and with a light to see how I’m doing.
