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cost of painting?


jacksonsxrule

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If you're going the ratlle can route (a nice finish can still be done this way especially with lacquer) it can be done under $50.00.

Going the pro way using automotive paints, starting with nothing can run you $200.00 easily. Buying in the smallest can they'll mix (1/2 pint or sometimes pint or quarts on primers and clears) is expensive, but you can do quite a few more guitars or whatever after. If you count the cost of spray equipment and a buffer, the sky is the limit.

Reranch sells a lot of the Fender and Gibson colors in rattle cans and they have a lot of how-to info. I never tried them as they won't ship any product to Hawaii. :D

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Well, so far I have just over $10 in for the finish of my latest guitar.

India Ink... $2.50

Minwax gloss Polyurethane (small can)... $2.60

Side note: no rattle cans, every bit applied with a cheap brush, a lot of wet sanding, but it's sweeeet.

crappy brushes (5 for $1)

packs of 1/3 sheet 320 grit, 1000 grit sand paper for wet sanding. $1.80 / pack

Turtle wax polishing compound. $2

Total $11.70

The body isn't done yet, but the headstock is. Feels like a showroom shine.

This is the only pic I have posted of the body so far...

PG3034-body.jpg

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Wow, I love the quilt pattern on that!!

Very nice job!

Dave->

Thanks Budman. :D It's Nigerian Satinwood. Once I saw it, it was THE choice for my next project. I still have about 8 book matched sheets of it. B)

I should add that I wasn't trying to be cheap on this finish. I just wanted to use polyurethane. And I already had this can around the house. I had no idea that they even sold it in spray cans. :D So, after tons of reading, and sniffing through the minwax site, I found out about the "stain and thane" technique.

The india ink tip came from someone on the minwax site. It's basically just a water based opaque black stain. Piece of cake.

I need to post more pictures of it.

I will say that I'll never go back to lacquers. PolyU is awesome. There's an added bonus that it adds a slight amber tint to the wood. It's litteraly "vintage tint" and it's less than 3 bucks!

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Very nice bro...tell us more about the India ink...you did'nt use it on that quilt? Or am I not seeing the black? Yeah, if you have patience and some skill, the old sand and hand rubbed finishes can look awesome...some antique Japanese lacquer ware has so much gloss and depth it's nuts...no spray guns or buffers centuries ago either...more pics of that body would be sweet.

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The veneer came from an ebay auction. I couldn't believe that I paid 20 bucks for 10 sheets of the stuff. It was really a stroke of luck. I've long since deleted the emails from that transaction. I seem to remember that there was an ebay store set up to sell veneers and other bits of wood. If I find the link or the store again I'll link to it and let y'all have the benefit of a good source for figured veneers.

As for there being no black on the figure, you're right. I experimented with several different tints and dyes before deciding that it really just looked better with a simple PolyU coat. Anything else just made it look dirty. So, I just put the clear coat on and kept building the finish. It's soooo close to being done.

As for the India ink, it's only on the back and sides of the guitar. I think it looks great with the neck which has an ebony fingerboard and a maple back.

I seem to remember from back in college (when I was majoring in electives) that you could buy India inks in different colors. I also seem to remember that they were alcohol based. I'll need some orange ink for the NEXT project. :D

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