Sanding Down To A Satin Finish

[kiko]

Has any got any information on sanding down a standard Fender poly finish to a satin like nitro-esque looking finish?

I've found this before;

http://www.nymphusa.com/tele/relic_strat_std_e1.asp

Bit hesitant, is he talking about 2400grit-3200grit wet/n/dry papers?

I really hate the high-gloss finish on my MIM tele

[thegarehanman]

0000 steel wool will work perfectly for this application. However, I'd advise you to remove your pickups (or at least put tape over the magnets) before hitting the finish with steel wool. If you don't, the pickup polepieces will get covered in dust from the steel wool.

peace,

russ

[kiko]

Ok, spent an hour giving it a good allover with some 0000 and car wax, is there something im missing?

Starting to look nice and mattish, but there's some very fine scratches now, how do I get rid of that?

I've been scrubbing it along the grain (vertically)... that's the correct way, yes?

Edited August 21, 2007 by kiko

[thegarehanman]

Well, the whole nature of getting a matt finish from a gloss finish is putting (very fine) scratches in it so that light is scattered rather than being cleanly reflected. The only other way to get a matt finish is to either 1) apply no finish to something that's already not glossy or 2) apply a specifically matt finish (which typically can not be leveled or polished as that will make it glossy). However, in my experience, a good waxing should fill the fine scratches left by 0000 steel wool while still retaining the matt appearance. Keep in mind, you'll likely never get rid of 100% of those scratches without bringing the finish back to its original high gloss. Don't know that that explanation helped your problem, but at least it explains the situation.

Edited August 21, 2007 by thegarehanman

[GregP]

just in case it wasn't clear-- you weren't supposed to use the wax. The wool alone would have 'scuffed' up the surface, creating the matte finish. The wax was counter-productive to your goals.

[thegarehanman]

Greg, actually, you can apply wax to a scuffed up finish, and as long as you wipe it off instead of buffing it out, you can cover a lot of the tiny scratches without bringing it back up to a high gloss again. With the wax it's more of a satin look than a matt look, but I actually prefer the waxed scuffed surface over its non-waxed counterpart.

peace,

russ

Edited August 21, 2007 by thegarehanman

[thegarehanman]

double post

Edited August 21, 2007 by thegarehanman

[GregP]

Very cool. I did not know that.

I've always used the steel-wool scuff, and I can't imagine adding any "finish" (including wax) back to it without ruining the satin feel; however, you've actually tried it and like it, so I should do the same some day. I might discover I like it, too.

[WezV]

i was also going to suggest 0000 wire wool and wax, but yes - thats definately satin rather than matt.