Then you can finish off with rottenstone. First make sure the wood is sanded down with 400 grit sandpaper. If you want to then give it some minor gloss (like a vintage look) you can buff it up with furniture polish. And you can practice using a fine-tooth metal file on an old broom handle, as well . The Finishing Process with Nitrocellulose Lacquer. How to build a bass guitar - Finish sanding the neck part 1. Dip the sandpaper-covered end of the eraser in the warm soapy . 2000 to 3000 grit: for buffing. Most people though do 30 - 40 coats and sand with 320 between every 3 - 4 coats to even out the finish. In this build step, we begin finish sanding the neck. Repaint another 2 coats and re-sand. Start to as low as 400 grit of wet sanding process and gradually increase it to 600, 800 until 2000, especially when you're hitting on the hardened finish part of the guitar. . Answer (1 of 12): I've been playing for over 20 years. Don't over sand! What does the grit number on sandpaper mean? But using three grades is standard. I dry sanded to 220 then went to wet sanding with 320, then 400, then 600, then 1000 grit,using the Antique oil as my wetting agent. Sand lightly with 240-grit sandpaper between coats, then let the last coat dry for at least 24 hours. Once the "grain filling" coats have been applied, I give the entire neck of the guitar (which I'm finishing clear) a light sealer. "Nonsense," I thought, "I'll just use some 60 grit to get out the larger defects, and then some 220 to smooth things out.". Don't skip grits between spray coats Here's Todd Sams (Sams Guitars): "When you're spraying build coats (building a finish), use 320-grit Fre-Cut first, then spray and sand again. After leveling, we spray one final coat (that is nearly perfectly level) and sand starting with 1000 grit going up in increments of 200, stopping at 2000 (i.e. When I do a high gloss finish I will sand the guitar up to grit 600. If I'm content with a satin gloss or a soft glow finish, I'll go as far as 320. I did not use one for this project. Sand the filled area with 320 grit sandpaper before applying another coat. Use the lighter grit until the grain is slick feeling, then move to the next higher grit paper. The grit of sandpapers is a rating of the size of abrasive materials on the sandpaper. Fine; used to roughen surfaces for painting or as a first passthrough for later sanding with ultra-fine grits. If your surface is thick enough but still uneven, you may want to first sand with 800-1000 grit paper. The orbital sanding method or hand sanding method is the most suited for an acoustic guitar. Now we need to apply layer after layer of colorless nitro gloss finish. The sides of the guitar are a little bit harder to get. I did this quite a bit a few years ago, and don't remember what I used. Maybe you'll use 120 grit sandpaper, then the finer 200 grit paper. Begin with a round of coarse-grit sandpaper (about 120). You will need to repeat this many times, sanding every few layers with 400/600 grit sandpaper (gently), and when finished, sand over the whole thing with 600, 800, 1000, 2000 grit sandpaper (USING . Purpose. . By varying your sanding stroke with each grit of sandpaper, you can easily tell when to change grits and eliminate fine scratches in your guitar's clear coat. Blow the dust off and out of the tuner holes. It's about the only dry sandpaper we've found that sands dewaxed shellac and other hard-to-sand finishes without corning immediately. Sandpaper clogging is a thing of the past with this material. Didn't see any 600 grit. Maple and poplar generally need only a coat or two of the filler, but woods with open grain require 3 or 4. In the workshop, we use coarse (80 grit), medium (120), and very fine (240 & 320) grades. As more finish is removed and the wood is exposed, fine grit papers should be used. 320 to 400 grit: for light sanding between coats of finish, or to sand metal and other hard surfaces. When you wet-sand, use a squeegee to check your progress, and check that progress often. Keep sanding until the entire surface is at the same level, and there are no low spots. You can use a sanding . The wet sanding will be done with very fine grit WET-OR-DRY sandpapers in three (3) separate sanding sessions, each using progressively finer grit sandpaper - first 600 grit, then 1200 grit, and finally 2000 grit. The final stage here is fine sanding with 1200-1500 grit paper. Currently, I'm using a heat gun to strip the thick black poly finish off my guitar, which is going ok. Wipe down the treated section of the guitar's neck with your dry cloth. It looks fantastic , and has looked great for many years . Any tips on how to. When it comes to totally removing the previous finish, there are a few options to consider. Hey there, was hoping to get a little bit of help regarding sandpaper grits and what I should be using. Strip and Prep. This should be effective in removing the varnish. Lower grit numbers represent coarser abrasives that scrape off materials much quicker. Here's a recipe I used to get an acceptably good result on a very very rough strat body: 1) Sand down finish to wood. Grit. The best way I know to remove a polyester finish is to sand it, by hand, with hard blocks and 60 grit paper. Then sand to level the paint. If stripping to bare wood, a sealer is recommended. you'll be using these to rub the finish into the wood with each application. There is a reason that woodworking sandpaper stops at about 280 and you have to shift to metal or paint type paper. You're going to want to work over the entire body of the guitar with a medium grit sandpaper (120 grit) and go back over again with the entire body and use an even finer grit of paper (220 grit). The water in the finish is going to raise the grain so if you get rid of much of that as possible in the prep work the finish will go easier. Final sanding and buffing the finish. Sanding a guitar with paper and a sandpaper block is the most effective way to do so. 4) Use 180 grit sanding sponge to finish smooth - bondo is very easy to get smooth. At over 280 you aren't really sanding you're burnishing. Tung oil is one of the easiest wood finishing techniques. The fine wire wool was working too slowly for this hard lacquer. After you've sanded the finish down how you want it, you may find sanding lines on your guitar. -- sand body to 600. Hi all, being attracted by the vintage feel of very older strats, I decided to relic my squier following a guide found on the net. One alternative is to use paint or finish strippers, which is speedy but potentially hazardous. 4) A bucket of soapy water. 180-220. 10. First of all you need to take a 320 grit sandpaper and brush your guitar's neck gently. Wrap the sanding block in the paper and rub the block along the surface of the guitar to remove all of the finish off the instrument. The trick is to sand lightly, with very light pressure, in straight lines. Went to the store, 400 grit seems a little rough, 800 grit and 0000 steel wool seem a little too light. Sand down the original finish using 150 and 400 grit sandpaper. Then allowed it to set briefly then buffed with lintel free cloth. You don't want the sandpaper to become dry. Where a solvent coating 180 grit is good enough using a water based I would sand it to 320 grit. Sometimes you might even use up to five different grades if you end up using ultra-fine sandpaper. If you want to go from two string trees to one, fill the D-G string tree hole with DAP "natural" color wood putty and let it cure before you sand the face. The sandpaper works perfectly and it is strong. After that coat, move on to 400, 600, and 800-grit. Sand a bevel into the backside—the side closest to the headstock—of the nut using P320 and P400 grit Stikit sandpaper on a flat sanding stick. 1.- PREPARATION OF THE GUITAR. Medium grit; good for general purpose sanding. Wrap this strip around the short end of your standard rectangular eraser. Sand just enough to open the finish—don't try to sand out every shiny spot or sunken area in the lacquer at this stage. 1) Rags. Tape off the headstock and guitar body near the neck. These 3000 grit ultra-fine-cut sandpaper discs are ideal for finishing sanding on all types of surfaces. Use a sanding block, not the flat of your hand. During that time, I've done it all, from sanding and refinishing acoustics and electrics, as well as getting bare electric bodies and building my "own brand of electric guitar" i.e.changing the shape, completely wiring it all myself, instal. After the main color has dried, finish with around 5 clear coats to seal the paint. You'll need to do a 220 then 320 and finally 400 grit final sanding before . In this photo only the back has been sanded. The guitar should go from a shiny orange peel texture to a dull sheen. What do you guys use, if you do this sort of thing? Plus 400 for ultra-fine work. Brush the dust off the bottom of the paper every couple of strokes. If you apply to a perfectly slick surface, you actually increase the likelihood of finish failure. The bevel should start at the back of the nut and come forward about one-third to one-half the thickness of the nut [ Photo 12 ]. Final coats have cured and are ready for level sanding and buffing. Preparing the wood - Sand all the surfaces and remove the sanding dust. Start with a round of coarse grit sandpaper (~120). Like I said, it looks like a little oval which is "different". Wet sand the gloss finish with a 2400-grit Micro-mesh sheet. The sanding is actually going quite well, the poly is off on the back, now I've got some stubborn cherry wood stain that won't come off unless I sand . This is to replace the orange peel with finer and finer scratches, which will eventually be filled in with polish. For fine crevices and curved areas, you can use the coarse grit or coarse grit sanding sponge. They have been coming back a year or so after being sprayed with two major issues. If you don't have the sander, simply use the hand sandpaper. In my experience, using any grit higher than this to cure a high fret just takes too long. But it is now visible to me. Big finish checks and the satin finish is also creeping at the edges. As it turned out, I was the chump. I ended up cutting the steel wool into circles and used a car buffer to polish the body, worked AWESOME! Because they have foam behind the paper, it makes polishing the flat side of the pick pretty difficult. Not enough sanding. Even finer grit papers should be used as more finish is removed and the wood gets more exposed. I sand the flat surfaces down to 1200 grit and the curved surfaces to 800 . Give it a rubdown with 1200 grit sandpaper to finish. If you want to smooth out the wood on your guitar, you can use fine grain sandpaper. The clear coat should be wet-sanded with 400 grit sandpaper. You can use high-grit sandpaper for this (between 3000-5000 grit or higher). If the surface becomes dry, just spray a bit more water on it. For a small project like a guitar, I'm happy to pay the $15 for a can of premixed. If you don't get these first two steps right, no finishing method will help you except maybe 30 coats of lacquer. This is standard practice with any wood finishing job, and is nothing out of the ordinary. 5) Rubbing compound. . These are shipped sanded to 150 grit. Once you have finished with the 320 grit it's a good idea to dampen the timber a little with a rag. The sanding steps help diminish the clear coat until the entire surface is smooth. Once all the finish has been removed, it's time to smooth the surfaces with fine sandpaper. For a solid color, apply 2-3 coats, let each coat of paint dry before moving to the next. That said, sanding bare wood beforehand to create a smooth foundation is key. 60 or 80 will charge through the thick layers of paint and clearcoat with gratifying speed. Then at the end if you want a gloss finish you have to graduate sand paper grades up to about 2000 grit. Gradually move up in grit until the desired finish is reached. Once we have left it to dry 24 hrs we can sand with 400 -800 grain. Sanding Blocks You don't want deep scratches in the wood—you're only trying to remove a layer of clear coat and bring the wood back to a smooth finish. Used this way, it can be a grain filler for a finish of nitrocellulose clear lacquer. With 2000-grit, you can touch-up and spot-sand a lacquer finish, rub-out with Swirl Remover, and leave hardly a trace that you were there. My sanding schedule generally starts with 220-grit paper, followed by 320-, 400- and 600-grit. Les uses both a scraper and chisel often. Edited by surfwhammy, 23 November 2010 - 09:43 AM. Chips, Nicks, and Dents At this stage, the guitar will look a bit worse, but we're not done yet. Take your time and make sure the sanding is even, hold the neck up to the light to check the reflection. There's an endless list of choices available when it comes to guitar finishing. Then cover the sound hole and the fingerboard - Use 220 grit sandpaper on the hardwood surfaces and 320 grit sandpaper on softwood surfaces. Congratulations! You can use a fine grain of sandpaper of to smooth out the wood on the guitar. Now on to the sides. Then take the 1500 grit strip of sandpaper out of the water. Then, sand the Tru-Oiled surface with 400 grit sandpaper, using more Tru-Oil as a sort of lubricant, and using circular motions over a small section at a time. If you're doing kitchen cabinets or a set of furniture, this saving likely adds up. 60-80. 000 and 0000 / grey and white scotchbrite pads. Odies recommend sanding higher up to 1200 for maximum shine. Here's the deal, I think I left an oval shaped "speck" on the back of my guitar, I was dumb enough and thought that 8000 grit will help me remove some scratches, so I tried it on a very small part, fairly unvisible. Then we rub on an automotive wax to remove the super fine scratches and to make it slightly more vivid. The original finish with heavy grit paper - use 220 grit sandpaper you & # ;. 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