Is it an enamel?

[JIO]

Interesting... would this stuff be appropriate? 100g Schellack Blond Schellackflocken Blätterschellack Flocken Wachsfrei A+ | eBay

I'll translate it
"Finest dewaxed shellac for the restoration of antique furniture,
musical instruments, valve radio's etc.
Shellac- blond is suitable for treating all kinds of wood."

"French polish: mix 60g shellac with 250ml ethanol"

I've tested some ethanol in the pickup cavity and it seems to actually melt the color..
But I'd really love to do it this way without the nasty fumes!



Unfortunately I'd have to pay overseas shipping and shooting outside is no option until next spring (german fall/ winter is nasty, cold and wet).

I think the product you linked would be for raw wood, not over a finish. To keep things simple - you could 1) leave it as is, or 2) wet-sand it smooth and dulled and leave it as that. If evenly wet-sanded to a matte finish - it will buff to a shine where it's played/touched the most. I like this look because it shows the instrument was played. It's like sanding a gloss neck to satin - it will progressively buff back to gloss where it's played/touched.

 

[TortCult]

2) wet-sand it smooth and dulled and leave it as that. If evenly wet-sanded to a matte finish - it will buff to a shine where it's played/touched the most. I like this look because it shows the instrument was played. It's like sanding a gloss neck to satin - it will progressively buff back to gloss where it's played/touched.

Probably gonna do that, if I don't find any other solution. Maybe I'll go to some hardware stores this week and see what they got, sometimes they have products that aren't available online. By the way, the color coat passed the fingernail test (can't make an impression or scratch, no matter how hard I try) but it still smells a bit. Is it fine to sand at this stage? It's been two days since I put on the last two coats.

 

[JIO]

Probably gonna do that, if I don't find any other solution. Maybe I'll go to some hardware stores this week and see what they got, sometimes they have products that aren't available online. By the way, the color coat passed the fingernail test (can't make an impression or scratch, no matter how hard I try) but it still smells a bit. Is it fine to sand at this stage? It's been two days since I put on the last two coats.

The big tip with finishing is patience. The longer you allow it to cure the better - to accelerate the off-gassing you can hang it outside in the sun/air. Once it doesn't smell so much, you can wet-sand it. To achieve the best results, use one of those hard-sponge sanding blocks with fine-grit (400-) emory-cloth wrapped around it. You can use it free of the block on the rounded edges and gingerly as the finish will be thinner there and you can break through to wood if overdoing it. Wet-sand, stop, inspect the surface to see your result, and continue if needed. You need to be aware that the finish is thin and the more you sand to thinner it will get. If you break through to wood - you may need to stop and shoot another thin coat of finish, let it cure and continue. It's a process and once doing it you will learn how to avoid the common pitfalls.

I would avoid hardware store spray lacquer - they might stock it but it's not the same as instrument grade - softer, less likely to cure correctly.

 

[TortCult]

The big tip with finishing is patience. The longer you allow it to cure the better - to accelerate the off-gassing you can hang it outside in the sun/air. Once it doesn't smell so much, you can wet-sand it. To achieve the best results, use one of those hard-sponge sanding blocks with fine-grit (400-) emory-cloth wrapped around it. You can use it free of the block on the rounded edges and gingerly as the finish will be thinner there and you can break through to wood if overdoing it. Wet-sand, stop, inspect the surface to see your result, and continue if needed. You need to be aware that the finish is thin and the more you sand to thinner it will get. If you break through to wood - you may need to stop and shoot another thin coat of finish, let it cure and continue. It's a process and once doing it you will learn how to avoid the common pitfalls.

I would avoid hardware store spray lacquer - they might stock it but it's not the same as instrument grade - softer, less likely to cure correctly.

Great tips, thank you!

I thought they might have some wipe on poly at the hardware store but even if, it would probably be in no less than 500ml cans.

 

[TortCult]

So here is what I ended up doing...
After letting it dry further for a couple of days, I began wetsanding the front and back, which went fine, but as soon as I startet doing the sides I got sand throughs before even getting the surface flat. I sprayed on another good coat and after doing a bit more testing with ethanol, I figured the paint got more resistent to it, the longer it dried, so I decided to try the shellac. Got my hands on some flakes, watched a bunch of videos on french polishing and after a week and applying about

a billion thin coats

I think it's done. Did the final spiriting yesterday and hanged it up to dry.

Don't know if you can see it, but it added a slight amber tint to the color, which I really like. At some point during the process I decided to sand everything flat, as I created some ridges during the first session (used too much shellac) and sanded through to the color on some areas at the edges. They're still slightly lighter in color, even after applying many more coats but overall I'm happy with it. The shellac feels really slick and smooth like a real finish and most importantly, it SMELLS good!
Wouldn't suggest this method to anyone, as it just takes up to much time and effort, but if you have no opportunity to spray and still want something clear coat'ish, this is a possibility.

Thanks to everyone for your suggestions and special thanks to @Ripthorn for bringing up the shellac thing!

 

[wraub]

I'd call that finish a success.

Well done.

So here is what I ended up doing...
After letting it dry further for a couple of days, I began wetsanding the front and back, which went fine, but as soon as I startet doing the sides I got sand throughs before even getting the surface flat. I sprayed on another good coat and after doing a bit more testing with ethanol, I figured the paint got more resistent to it, the longer it dried, so I decided to try the shellac. Got my hands on some flakes, watched a bunch of videos on french polishing and after a week and applying about

I think it's done. Did the final spiriting yesterday and hanged it up to dry.
View attachment 3607161

Don't know if you can see it, but it added a slight amber tint to the color, which I really like. At some point during the process I decided to sand everything flat, as I created some ridges during the first session (used too much shellac) and sanded through to the color on some areas at the edges. They're still slightly lighter in color, even after applying many more coats but overall I'm happy with it. The shellac feels really slick and smooth like a real finish and most importantly, it SMELLS good!
Wouldn't suggest this method to anyone, as it just takes up to much time and effort, but if you have no opportunity to spray and still want something clear coat'ish, this is a possibility.

Thanks to everyone for your suggestions and special thanks to @Ripthorn for bringing up the shellac thing!

 

[TortCult]

I'd call that finish a success.

Well done.

Thank you!

 

[Ripthorn]

Glad it worked! I did shellac indoors during a brutally cold upstate new York winter. It does take a while, but it's a traditional finish.

 

[TortCult]

@Ripthorn
And it's always nice to learn a new skill! Maybe this will come in handy, who knows.