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Repair knob gouges/scratches?

G

GregDunn

Jan 8, 2009
689
13
#1
Picked up a lovely used bass at GC yesterday ($99!); I looked it over carefully for damage and was satisfied I could deal with what I saw (minor scuffing, easily buffed out). But I would like to ameliorate the gouges made by the volume/tone knobs. Apparently the prior owner pushed them down all the way and spun them a lot... :(

Not a big deal but I'd enjoy fixing them. Normally with pick scratches, etc., I'd use my suite of scratch remover and polish goop; but these are fairly deep gouges (probably not clear through to the color, but enough to catch a fingernail in).

Suggestions for filling it? I can post pics, but it's a fairly recent Ibanez factory "clear coat" over color finish, and as long as I fill in the grooves and it doesn't look too obvious I'll be happy.
 
#2
Before you try anything, just know that finish repair is some tedious work and is rarely 100% invisible.

I am pretty sure that Ibanez sprays all their stuff with poly. You can test this by applying acetone with a q-tip in an inconspicuous spot on the bass to see if it eats the finish. If it doesn't then its poly, if it does eat the finish then its nitrocellulose lacquer.

Assuming the scratches aren't into the color coat (and that the finish is poly), you should be able to drop-fill them with super glue. After the glue has cured you can sand the fill(s) flat with 150 grit sandpaper, polish with 220, 320, 400, 600, and 1000 grit automotive sandpaper. After that you can buff it with compounds to your desired shine.

If it is a nitrocellulose finish, you can do the same drop-fill procedure but with a 10% thinner 90% nitro mix. However, nitro shrinks as it dries so expect to have to drop-fill several times. Also be careful to only drop-fill where the scratches are as the solvents in "fresh" nitro cause it to melt into cured nitro (which isn't necessarily a bad quality).
 
#3
I believe you're right, it's polyester/polyurethane. This is in a spot that's hard to see anyway, I just want to fix it since it's the only spot where the coating is really scratched. I'm going to try my coarse polish on the worst spot and if it's too deep for that I'll do a fill. Just wanted to see if there was a better filler to use; I'll wait a bit to see if anyone else chimes in. Thanks!
 
#7
Super glue drop fill is the answer.

  1. Remove electronics.
  2. Apply medium viscosity CA glue into scratches.
  3. Spritz with accelerator.
  4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until there is a mound of glue built up.
  5. Level with files, sandpaper, scraper, or any combination thereof.
  6. Rub out with 400 through 2000 grit sandpapers.
  7. Do not skip grits in the series.
  8. Buff by hand or with a machine.
  9. Reassemble electronics.
  10. Setup
  11. Play.

A handy scraper can be made from a single edge razor blade by turning the edge. This can be accomplished by running the edge against a hard steel rod. The resulting shape will have a miniature J hook.

Ibanez clear coats are thick. They will stand up nicely to machine buffing.
 

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