Alan M Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 Hi all, I'm refinishing an old strat knock off as part of school. I've bought a spray gun hooked up to my compressor and that works alright. My problem is that I laid down my undercoat and sanded it smooth. Undercoat That was alright, but then i sprayed my gloss orange and i get an orange peel texture, Ive tried to sand it but it starts takin off the orange and showing the Grey undercoat. Orange Peel Help what am I doing wrong? Many thanks, Alan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foggy Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 (edited) Hi all, I'm refinishing an old strat knock off as part of school. I've bought a spray gun hooked up to my compressor and that works alright. My problem is that I laid down my undercoat and sanded it smooth. Undercoat That was alright, but then i sprayed my gloss orange and i get an orange peel texture, Ive tried to sand it but it starts takin off the orange and showing the Grey undercoat. Orange Peel Help what am I doing wrong? Many thanks, Alan Probably a simple case of paints that don't work together causing an adverse reaction. It's very important to make sure that all the paints, whether they be primers, basecoats or clear finishes are of the same type (with paints 'preferably' of the same brand).............or at the very least are all compatible with each other before attacking a project like this. If you're ever in any doubt at all, it's always worth doing a test piece first on a scrap piece of wood just to make sure. Jim Edited May 10, 2009 by Foggy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyt Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 please buy a proper mask Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wood is good Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 NO, orange peel is not caused by incompatibility. Are you asking why you are seeing the primer coat after you sanded, or are you asking why are you getting orange peel? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pariah223 Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 Alot of things cause orange peel, and orange peel is normal to have when you spray your finish. You have to level it down by wet sanding after it has completely cured which varies by the product you shoot. If your sanding down to your primer, you have definatly not put enough coats of clear on the guitar. I usually do not use single stage paints (as opposed to base coat/clear coat) so i cant really give any info on wetsanding and buffing out. But i can give a little bit of info about how to reduce your peel to make your sanding job easier. I have noticed that if i have the pressure too low, it results in a more peely finish. Also, thinning out your paint with the appropiate solvent can make the world of difference.. but your more likely to experience runs. Do you have more closeup shots of the finish? Its hard to tell but that picture looks like you might have some dust problems.. but it might just be the way the light is reflecting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southpa Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 (edited) It doesn't matter what you are painting, you can easily GOOGLE what causes orange peel. Orange peel is orange peel whether you are painting a stratocopy or the Queen Mary. But when it comes to guitars specifically I think the answer to your question is what is written on the can! First post for you on this forum but you should spend some more time reading what has already been written here about orange peel and painting techniques / materials and equipment. The last stuff you want to use for painting a guitar is that thick gooey enamel. And if you DO want to use it you have to thin it out a bit so it won't land on your work in big clumps and dry before it can level out. Thats the reason why you have orange peel. What to do? If you want to continue using the enamel then you have to WAIT. Thats another reason why enamel is not used, it takes a million years to cure! You will have to level sand out all your orange peel, even down to the primer or wood if thats what it takes. And practice mixing the right paint / thinner consistency, gun settings and shooting technique(s) to achieve the finish you want ...ON SCRAP WOOD! Otherwise strip it all off and use something that is more forgiving like polyurethane or lacquer. AND, as mentioned, you are using the wrong mask! That is a particulate (dust) filter mask and will not stop aspirated paint fumes, feeling a bit dizzy!!?? Go get yourself a half mask respirator with the proper charcoal filters that stop hydrocarbons. Edited May 10, 2009 by Southpa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foggy Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 (edited) NO, orange peel is not caused by incompatibility. Are you asking why you are seeing the primer coat after you sanded, or are you asking why are you getting orange peel? Orange peeling is right enough usually caused by any one of a number of factors, air temperature, the temperature of the surface being painted being too hot making the solvents dry out too quickly before the paint has flowed out, excessive paint, poor painting technique and also applying basecoats before the primer coat is fully dried..............being but a few. But you can also get that kind of orange peel effect if the basecoat paint and the primer aren't compatible, a fact I know through bitter experience and the only time I've ever had that kind of orange peel effect. The reason I suspected that that might be the case here is that from what can be seen from the pictures (although they're not that clear), it looks as though there is the same orange peeling effect even inside the body cavities, where the paint seems to be applied more thinly..................that could also indicate that the paints been applied too thickly and unevenly to the body though, and not in even consistent sweeps across the surface.. I'd be interested to know what primer you used................some primers take far longer to fully cure before they're ready to take basecoats Rustoleum Primer for example. Jim Edited May 10, 2009 by Foggy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlennon Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 From looking at the pictures I'd say the issue was some from of airborne or surface contamination such as silicones or oil and not orange peel that would polish out. This is a good link that describes paint problems and how to fix them. paint problems Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 From your pictures I noticed you are using house paint. Did you reduced it for spraying? Because that type of paint will shoot too think from a paint gun, and that is the reason you might had orange peel. Nest time you need to practice on some scraps to make sure the finish will work or look good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan M Posted May 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 11, 2009 Firstly, thanks for the advice Thanks for the mask advice, this is the first time i've ever painted anything, I didn't know i need a full blown respirator.. though i never got dizzy haha @Pariah223 I haven't clear coated it yet, im sanding down the orange, should I finish my paint, clear coat it and THEN sand in an attempt to smooth it out? @Southpa The paint is already nearly as thin as water, and I have thinned it prior to spraying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch Posted May 11, 2009 Report Share Posted May 11, 2009 If i was doing that build I would leave the orange peel and say it was supposed to look like a fruit. But you probably wont wanna do that. http://lmgtfy.com/?q=orange+peel+on+guitar+paint+ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan M Posted May 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 12, 2009 The funny thing is I kinda like it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan M Posted May 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 12, 2009 Well I have worked on my spraying technique and resprayed it twice, the texture of the paint looks like billions of shiny stars, the orange peeling isn't as large now. Here it is http://www.flickr.com/photos/36896684@N06/3524631995/ Close up http://www.flickr.com/photos/36896684@N06/3524633499/ Is this something I can sand out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToddW Posted May 12, 2009 Report Share Posted May 12, 2009 Hey Alan, Is that regular housepaint? I'm not sure how well that stuff sands and polishes, but I can't see any reason not to try buffing it. I don't think housepaint is hard enough that you need to wet sand with 600 grit, but if you do start there, go lightly. Maybe someone will comment on trying a final flow coat with a reduced mix. Also, if it's water based paint house paint, then a good N95 particulate mask is better than nothing, but a half mask respirator is really cheap insurance spraying anything. You only get one set of lungs. Best regards, Todd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan M Posted May 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2009 I'm pretty sure it's housepaint. The clear i have is a polyurethane from memory, should I leave the orange and sand it out in the clear? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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