Bushidoka Posted May 28, 2008 Report Posted May 28, 2008 Picked up a solid body Charvette last week guys. This was a well used guitar, for sure, for sure, the bridge block was broken off, a few dents and dings in the finish, etc. Well....The body has been stripped and primered at this point(have taken pictures all along the way, I will post them for you all this weekend). It is being painted with a green to purple color shift paint. That part is fine, with a small side note, DO NOT use mineral spirits to sand out your primer!!! A little information is a dangerous thing I read that you could use the spirits when sanding to help keep the paper clean. If I had given it a seconds thought, I would have realized it would not work on primer (DUH!) lol. Any ways... The real question. The fretboard is a nice dark wood, I believe it would be maple on this specific guitar, with lots of character. I want to keep it, but it is worn in about 1/16 in all the usual notes. What is the best way to fill these before refinishing? And do I urethane or clear coat over the fret board? (will it make it "sticky" I guess is my question?). Thanks guys. This is my first post here, though I read for a bit first, then joined last week. I like your board, nice and simple, good info, etc. To tell you a bit about myself, I am in Ontario Canada. I know guitars and music. I buy/sell/collect guitars, But usually only axes that have a floyd rose, or are Jackson/Charvel (or Krammer here and there), USA or imports, I don't care. So if I can help out in these areas, let me know. Usually, my rebuilds are electronics, neck swap, Jem grips etc. I don't repaint them, so thanks for any help! Quote
ihocky2 Posted May 29, 2008 Report Posted May 29, 2008 Anything you try and use to fill in the worn areas is is going to stick out like a sore thumb or chip off really badly. The only thing you can really do is replace the fretboard. And a Charvette is not known for being a quality guitar. Most are plywood with a few being basswood. Quote
Bushidoka Posted May 29, 2008 Author Report Posted May 29, 2008 Yes, I know what they are. This one is solid body, that's why I figured I would refinish it. Some one has replaced the tromolo with a lic floyd, and it still has the j-50 bc by jackson in it. Figured I'd restore it a bit. If I can't fix the neck, I'll just swap it out, but there goes the profit quotient so to speak. Could you fill with crazy glue, level and urethane? Quote
syxxstring Posted May 29, 2008 Report Posted May 29, 2008 The only way you'll fill it and have it not be noticed is if your paint it first a color and clear it. Which you can do over maple easily. Bolin did it on Billy Gibbons guitars with rosewood, but it would be more work. Quote
SwedishLuthier Posted May 29, 2008 Report Posted May 29, 2008 The fretboard is a nice dark wood, I believe it would be maple on this specific guitar, with lots of character That part, I don’t get. Dark maple? As in really vintage golden dark maple? Or really dark as in rosewood or ebony? If the first case..well I have no good suggestions. But if it is the later: http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/Luthier/Te...fboardivot.html I have done exactly this on a 50’s acoustic Levin with surprisingly good result. The fix is visible (mostly due to the really tan rosewood) but acceptable. Quote
Bushidoka Posted May 29, 2008 Author Report Posted May 29, 2008 Right on, thanks. I checked out frets.com like you suggested Luthier, and I like the process they show there, be a bit of work & time though. If it were a keeper, I'd go that route for sure, I could see that working nice. I didn't want to re-fret the neck really, I might try that down the road, but not right now. I was thinking more just a clear fill, like a drop of urathane, let it harden, add couple more drops till I'm board level, then a layer right over the board between the frets. I don't even mind scuffing the neck and doing it at the same time. Not the greatest solution, I know, But how bad is it? Will it chip off? Guess it would definetly change the way it feels. Never tried anything like that before, so I just don't know. If it's too much time, I'll just file the frets and leave the neck be. I Don't want to make it worse by trying to fix it lol! Just curious, how long would it take an amateur to re-fret a board? Tools I got and I'm mechanically inclined heh heh! thanks Quote
ihocky2 Posted May 30, 2008 Report Posted May 30, 2008 Time is probably only several hours. But getting a quality job takes practice. There is another option that is kind of a cop out but will work well to get rid of the grooves. Try scalloping the board. I have a Jackson JS-1 that I go dirt cheap to refinish. The board has a huge deep scratch in it. I don't feel like replacing the board, so I am going to try my hand at scalloping on it. If I don't like the feel, it goes on ebay. If I like it, my wife will kill me. Quote
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