Hello everyone, This is my 3rd bass refinish/assembly project and I've run into a snag right at the tail-end. In buffing both the body and the neck I've found that the polishing compound has collected in the wood grain in many small areas- too thin to reach. Does anyone know how I can get it out without ruining the finish? Here's some more info that might be helpful: Neck- Warmoth Wenge wood finished with 3 coats of Tru-Oil. Body- Warmoth Padauk wood, with 2 coats sanding sealer and 10+coats of aeresol lacquer. Thank you for taking the time. Ben
I'm a little lost here, there should be no grain exposure or indentations on the body if you've sprayed and sanded between as you went. I'm hoping you only used the polishing compound on the body. Oil finishes aren't compatible with polishing compound IME. Can you post pics or describe your process in a bit more detail?
A wood like wenge has some giant pores that will show through the finish if the grain isn't filled prior to finishing. It actually makes for a nice look IMO. My first suggestion would be to wet the polishing compound with water and use a toothpick or needle to get it out. One other option I have tried is to wet the bass (to loosen the compound) and blow it out with an air nozzle. If you do this make sure you have a clearcoat finish (I wouldnt try it with an oil finish) that is fully cured. Set the air low and work your way up to the lowest pressure you need to remove the compound. Good luck.
On the last guitar build I did I polished the frets with compound. I had taped off the board, so I thought everything was fine. However, in removing the tape I neglected to clean it off first, and filled the pores in the sides of the rosewood board with the stuff. I tried everything including a naphtha soaked toothbrush and a wire brush( unfinished rosewood board). The only thing that worked for me was to put on my magnifier headset and painstakingly remove the stuff from each pore with a needle. It wasn't as bad as I thought, but I won't make that mistake again. Good luck.
If I had to guess, it sounds like you sanded through your topcoats in a small area and that is where the finish compound is collecting. Can you post a picture of the problem? Lonnybass
Thanks everyone for your input. Here are some pics... http://img59.imageshack.us/i/img4342medium.jpg http://img16.imageshack.us/i/img4390medium.jpg http://img707.imageshack.us/i/img4368medium.jpg
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