nosleeptilmetal Posted January 21, 2007 Report Share Posted January 21, 2007 Hello everyone, I must admit I am pretty new to the idea of refinishing guitars. I have an old Schecter that I sanded down and repainted in a green/black burst (with an air brush), which turned out to be okay but recently I decided to redo it with oil paint (rubbed in like a dye) and that appears to be going well. But anyways, I thought it might be fun to try and redo my Ibanez RG with some kind of leafed, or holoflash finish. I read on this website that it can be done without even stripping the guitar down to the wood, does that mean I can leave the finish as is, and go over what's there?. Are there any tips/words of warning for those attempting this type of finish? I'm open to any other materials as well, as long as it gets a depthy and colored metallic finish. Thanks in advance, with any luck if this turns out well I hope to keep refinishing guitars in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calibration1 Posted January 24, 2007 Report Share Posted January 24, 2007 Hello everyone, I must admit I am pretty new to the idea of refinishing guitars. I have an old Schecter that I sanded down and repainted in a green/black burst (with an air brush), which turned out to be okay but recently I decided to redo it with oil paint (rubbed in like a dye) and that appears to be going well. But anyways, I thought it might be fun to try and redo my Ibanez RG with some kind of leafed, or holoflash finish. I read on this website that it can be done without even stripping the guitar down to the wood, does that mean I can leave the finish as is, and go over what's there?. Are there any tips/words of warning for those attempting this type of finish? I'm open to any other materials as well, as long as it gets a depthy and colored metallic finish. Thanks in advance, with any luck if this turns out well I hope to keep refinishing guitars in the future. I can tell you what I know about GOLD leafing cuz I ve done it much. If u go with gold you have to use the real thing, not imitation gold or you will do it over in 3 days. Its not that expensive but I guess it depends on the size. It would be easier to do without removing the first finish because raw wood releases gasses that can cause bubbles. Most important is that you use the right kind of varnish, which is simply a speed varnish that you buy at the boat store. You put on the varnish first in a small area, then wait till it dries , (30+- min) , till its tacky to the touch but does not catch your finger tip enough to show the finger print. If you can see your print in it, then its too early and you gotta wait a few more mins. DEFINITELY dont put the gold on while the varnish is too wet. it takes practice , so practice first. Use a soft paint brush to lay in and burnish the gold. Your big problem is that youre gonna have to seal that GOLD with something when your done, since its a guitar. I dont know what to use to seal it with since Ive never had to do it with sign lettering. Check around for more info. Calibration1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SG3390 Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I know Fender has a special edition or something where they use silver leaf, so I say, read up on leafing techniques, and go for it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I have tried it once with moderate success but that was on a pretty curvy body, i am going to try it again on a telecaster shape soon - i think i will get better results. I didnt use varnish to stick it too because it needs a protective finish over the gold and i didnt want compatability issues. So heres what i would do from my experimentation so far - but bare in mind i havnt got it perfect yet, but if you are willing to live with a bit of texture that doesnt matter. 1. paint/spray the body a colour that matches the leaf - this makes the process a lot easier since you dont have to worry so much about gaps. 2. brush clear lacquer (that is compatible with the gold undercoat) onto the surface you want to leaf and wait a few minutes. 3. When lacquer is sticky apply the gold leaf to it. I use tranfer leaf not loose, the stuff with a paper backing. Obviously you apply the gold side down 4. Brush the back off the gold leaf with a soft brush then remove the paper. It should stick nicely to the lacquer 5 repeat as neccisary 6 Spray, final clear coats over the whole thing, buff as normal. You will need to practice to see how long you will have to leave the lacquer and how much you need to brush the leaf to get it to stick nicely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nosleeptilmetal Posted January 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Thanks for the advice and encouragement you guys. Now I'm curious, does anybody have any pictures of leafed guitars (especially ones that they've leafed themselves)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted January 28, 2007 Report Share Posted January 28, 2007 Here is my first attempt - its very rough and hasnt been sprayed with more lacquer yet. This was my first time working with gold leaf, but the flat portions of the guitar were quite easy to do and came out nice so i am sure with a bit of practice i could get it perfect This was my inspiration: gold leaf SIMS strat You can see they have some texture in theres but apparently the finish over the top is glass smooth so it must be quite thick, i decided to leave mine feeling a bit 'gold nuggety' in the rougher places edit: i should add that i chose this body to work on because it was never perfect and we had major finishing issues with it due to contamination - practice on scrap, not your best PRS! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nosleeptilmetal Posted January 29, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2007 (edited) Wow! That came out really nice, especially for a first try. The only thing I'm looking to do differently than what you guys have mentioned is use a different colored leafing, probably one of the exotic colored ones I found on http://www.tolehouse.com/supplies/papers/goldleaf.htm. But I'm also wondering what kind of finish should I use on the fully leafed guitar? Edited January 29, 2007 by nosleeptilmetal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted January 30, 2007 Report Share Posted January 30, 2007 How about this Ellie Erickson Varigated Gold-leaf violin I am going to try a silver leaf finish next on a telecaster body. I think i will try blue lacquer over the top. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Radiotrib Posted January 31, 2007 Report Share Posted January 31, 2007 How about this Ellie Erickson Varigated Gold-leaf violin Or these ... http://www.ritter-royals.com/detail-pictur...golden-seal.htm http://www.ritter-royals.com/detail-pictur...cept-golden.htm http://www.ritter-basses.com/ritter-basses...instruments.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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