Ready To Finish

[whoofnagle]

Well I am about to begin work in the next week or so on my first finishing job. I have sanded to 220, but have a bit more to do around the horn and neck joint area. The guitar has a maple top and mahogany body.

After I have sanded, wiped, and sanded again I plan on doing a clear finish on the binding (Faux). I was planning on spraying with cans, but as Myka suggests - a brush would work as well. I assume this will help protect (allow sanding) from potential over spray.

Step 2: This is where my question comes in. SHould I do the top or body/sides first? Does it matter and if so why? Also, is reranch the best place to buy the spray cans or is there a better resource?

For the top I am hoping to try the sundurst method described on the reranch website. Also, I might stain the mahogany just a tad because it is fairly light colored.

Any advice on order would be appreciated.

Bill

[Myka Guitars]

The way I figure it is if there is a part of the guitar that is not going to be stained then seal that first. Then you can apply dyes without fear of getting nay on areas that you do not want colored. If you are staining both the back and top then you have to one areas first. I usually will mask off everything but the binding and lacquer that first. Then I will unmask and stain the back/sides and then lacquer it. Then I will unmask and concetrate on the top dyeing and/or lacquer. If you are doing a spray can burst on the top then you have to mask off the sides and back before you spray.

Using a brush is tricky stuff because it is difficult to get an even layer of lacquer. If you do use a brush then go a little heavier since you will inevitably have to sand out the brush marks and that will thin your finish out a bit. Better to be a little thicher than sanded through. My adviece is to use the spray cans if you can. The brush comes in handy for masking small, defined areas like binding. A spray setup is good for larger areas like the rest of the guitar.