sscovill Posted November 28, 2004 Report Share Posted November 28, 2004 I need some guidance/advice on something and I’m hoping someone will take pity on me and help me out. As I've said, I’m building my first guitar (a Les Paul). I’m doing a cloth front (black leather) and painting the sides and back gloss black. I know that I need to use grain filler on the mahogany body and have read some things that say to apply a sanding sealer before applying the grain filler. Is that true? Apparently I'm going to have to order the filler online since no one in my area seems to have a clue what I'm asking for. Like I said...I'm painting the back and sides a gloss black and want a smooth finish so I want to do this right the first time. So, I guess my questions are: 1. Sanding sealer before grain filler? 2. Water or oil based grain filler? 3. Color/tint of filler (I'm assuming black)? Thanks guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted November 28, 2004 Report Share Posted November 28, 2004 This is the grain filler that I'm using, it can be tinted to the color of your choice. http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Finishing_supp...76.html#details I'm also using the epoxy like Guitarfrenzy used on his strat. Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sscovill Posted November 28, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2004 So, is the grain filler alone all that I need? I don't need to use sanding sealer before applying the filler? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted November 28, 2004 Report Share Posted November 28, 2004 I'm not using it, so I can't say. I think that you might use sanding sealer if you are staining the body to seal it before top coating to prevent the grain from raising, but in my case I'm using ash, so the last thing to apply will be grain filler, then the tpo coats. I see sanding sealer as a primer, to cover minor flaws and hide the grain, in case of ash, I will have to apply too many coats of it, so I will use the grain filler. Hope this makes sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sscovill Posted November 28, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2004 I'm hoping with mahogany that I'll be okay with using the grain filler, smoothing that and then simply applying a primer and then the paint. Thanks for the chat... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedoctor Posted November 28, 2004 Report Share Posted November 28, 2004 Mahogany and walnut are probably the only two woods I use sanding sealer on to keep the damn grain from raising and making a fuzzy mess. I use linseed oil but that is old-school and messy. Maiden69 is problee right about this new stuff. Use some good grain filler, let it dry well and sand to perfection. After all, you are going to solid black aren't you? A little grain-mottle will not show up under black. By the way, when you get ready to rub out the black, let it "cure?" another week and use some of this old automotive compound that is back on the market. It is 3M 051131-05954 silicone-free SuperDuty. You get it at NAPA and it works great with gentle hand rubbing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sscovill Posted November 28, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2004 (edited) Excellent info. Thank you! Yes, I'm doing a solid gloss black on the back and sides and a black leather front. Edited November 28, 2004 by sscovill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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