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New here...need advice


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Hello everyone. I'm new here. This is a great site. I could have used this site years ago :D

Here's my deal. I am currently in the middle of refinishing a 1984 Ibanez Destroyer, and I want to do the fabric thing on the front, using a red stained looking cloth, almost like a swirl but not quite. It's kind of a medium to light red.

I have been experimenting with lacquers and clear coats (on scrap wood-that's ONE thing I have learned thru trial and error :D ) to see what will work the best, but everything I have tried has made the fabric so dark that most of the definition is very hard to see, which is why I picked that fabric in the first place.

Is there anything I can use, or techniques I can try to keep as close to the original color as I can? Will putting the paste sealer recommended in the tutorial on first before clear coats prevent this darkening? I had envisioned a clear coat making the visual textures stand out and be bright and vibrant, but so far I'm having no luck B)

And a second question about inlays. I'm also putting a 3D vine on the fretboard using the acrylic method, and I want to use the same fabric underneath the acrylic. Will the epoxy used for that darken the fabric as well, or should I just go for a plain red backing?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Skot

P.S. Sorry about the typo in the topic :D

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Yep, it's staying dark, even after it has dried. I hadn't thought about the gloss over satin thing. I'll have to try that.

Okay, I have another question: In your opinion, what's the best clear coat to use? I have refinished a few guitars, but every time I try a different clear coat (and even paint, for that matter) it stays soft so long that EVERYTHING leaves a mark on it. I could stick my tongue out at it from 3 feet away, and it'll leave a mark :D

Thanks. Your tutorials rule B)

Skot

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Welcome Skot!

Have you tried wet sanding the satin and polishing it to get a gloss? I've done this before and it worked great. My understanding of flat vs satin vs gloss is in how the material dries. It's hard to explain without a picture but basically flat dries with a lot of bumps or edges in the surface to prevent light from reflecting. By wetsanding you remove these bumps and end up with an even surface for the light to reflect off of.

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Hey, guys. Thanks for the advice. I think I know what my main problem is. I tend to get really impatient and try to do things too fast. I just tried spraying in thin coats, and so far, I'm not seeing a tremendous amount of color difference. I think I was just putting it on too thick to start with and the fabric was soaking it all up. Of course, it'll probably take till March to finish it this way, but I want it to look good, ya know? :D

Thanks, y'all. If this doesn't work, I'm just gonna find a poster to glue on there or something B)

Skot

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