Eric Johnson Signed My Ej Strat!

[turunturun]

So through a freak occurrence and the extreme kindness of a professional acquaintance, I was able to hang out with Eric Johnson at his studio a while back as he was wrapping up his latest CD sessions. (Talk about amp drool city....it was out of control...the usual stage setup was there, plus a virtual catalog of about 20 other amps that would make up the "most revered amps of all time list". you name it and it was there.)

I had some advance notice, so of course I brought my EJ Strat in hopes that he wouldn't think it impertinent to request a signature...he was glad to oblige!!! Killer!!! (I stopped short of asking if I could plug into his stage setup....now THAT would be rude. But believe me I had to choke back the urge to blurt the request out when I saw the glowing lights of two plexi stacks hanging out off to the side. Of course there was the whole thing about playing guitar in front of EJ also.)

So back on topic: He signed the back of the guitar with a silver sharpie I brought. Its mostly stayed in the case since then (a partscaster and my PRS are the main go-to's for my current project) so the sig has held up fine. So Jack White signed my iPod with red sharpie (sat next to him on a flight) and after an irresponsible evening recently, I awoke to find his signature completely vanished from the back of the iPod with a red smudge in my jacket all that was left... bummer. And now, finding a way to clearcoat over EJ's signature is a high priority :-)

SO! I found the following thread on here about coating over sharpies:

http://projectguitar.ibforums.com/index.php?showtopic=39248&st=0&p=405360&hl=+signed%20+guitar&fromsearch=1&#entry405360

But I am hoping for more specific advice for building up a finish on top of smooth nitro. Possible?

Option 1: my guess at how to get the signature embedded in a nitro sandwich:

1) "Dust" a few coats of nitro over signature

2) Lay on more coats of nitro after dusting

3) Sand/polish new nitro buildup

Option 2: just coat over it with something that will adhere to smooth nitro and won't make the sharpie run. Hope it doesn't end up milky or hazy.

Any advice or recommendations?

[turunturun]

Oh yeah - show photos or it didn't happen

[SwedishLuthier]

http://frets.com/FRETSPages/Luthier/Technique/Finish/CelebSig/celebsigsig.html

[Our Souls inc.]

http://frets.com/FRETSPages/Luthier/Technique/Finish/CelebSig/celebsigsig.html

wow.

Finishing is one area that I'm sorely lacking experience in. That link taught me a lot, so while I wasn't the intended reader, I do thank you for posting it.

[SwedishLuthier]

There are a lot more to be learned from Frank Ford:

http://frets.com/FRETSPages/pagelist.html#Luthier

[DarkAvenger]

+1 shellac

Shellac uses alcohol rather than harsh volatile solvents and it sticks to about everything. HOWEVER, sharpie will generally begin to dissolve in alcohol so test and practice first. I liked the roll-on technique from the above link. It always helps to mix from flakes and use de-waxed or remove the wax yourself.