• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Refinishing - help me with colors

#22
Here's a page I started putting together for the first bass I stripped a month or so ago. I really need to finish it one of these days (the page and the bass!). Like I said earlier in the thread, this is a poly finish, and the pictures were all taken within an hour of each other. The heat gun makes short work of it and if you are really dedicated (no breaks) you could probably have the body ready for finish sanding in less than a half hour. I took several breaks for pictures, a quick soda and a sandwich.

http://silentcircus.com/refins/Jazz_Refin.htm
 
#24
After a lot of searching, it seems that there are a couple strippers that will take off the polyester finish, but they are pretty dangerous. A lot of people seem to have good results with a heat gun (one guy described using an iron and a towel to heat the finish).

rusty, did you have any problem with scortching the wood?
 
#25
I decided to give Citristrip a shot at the finish. I put a small dot on a place that the pickguard would cover (in case I abandoned the idea). After 6 hours, I wiped it off and I didn't see any signs that it did anything. Then I caught a glimpse of the top in the light and noticed it looked less glossy and when I touched it, it felt tacky. The bottle says to leave it on the finish for 30 mins up to 24 hours. So I slathered it all over the top and sides and left it for a whole day. The next morning (around 12 hrs after) there were small bubbles appearing and the orange goo was turning red around the edges. After 24 hours, I scraped it off and I had removed all of the red and the black had holes in spots. I applied it again and this evening there most of the black is gone and there is a lot of bare wood coming though. I plan to take pictures when I do the back.

As for the guitar, I am now wondering if I can glue a veneer over the finish on the top and back and then apply a clear gloss over the whole thing. Since the sides are already black, I could put the veneer on and then dye the edges black and feather the color in a bit. I found a gorgeous redwood veneer on eBay for pretty cheap.
 
#27
Looks like I won't need a heat gun. The citristrip is working, albeit very slowly. In the evening, I just scrape off what's there, wipe the body down and then apply another layer of goo. It's taken a while to get about half-done, but I'm not doing any real work yet. Also, I'm still sourcing veneer
 
#28
Yeah, I kinda figured that but decided to answer your question anyway.

Strangely enough, I think I'd go bonkers waiting for that stuff to work. On the other hand, I've got a set of Charvel pickup foams that I've been waiting over a week to expand. So far they've gone from about 1/8" to about 7/32". Slooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.o.o.o..o..o..o...o...o....o....o....ow progress.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back