Sunyside Posted February 16, 2015 Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 I have a 1979 Alvarez Yairi DY 45 and the back and sides have a milky looking finish in areas. I have been trying to find out what caused this and if I can repair it myself. Any help would be appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted February 17, 2015 Report Share Posted February 17, 2015 Moisture can get trapped in the finish when spraying nitro and cause it to go milky--it's called blush. But based on the age of yours, I doubt that is the case unless it has been recently refinished. Pictures would help. You could try buffing out a small area and see if that makes any difference. Hit a small spot with super fine grit paper and polish that back out and see if it affected the milky area any at all. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunyside Posted February 18, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 First of all, thank you for responding. However, how can I post a photo to this message. I have tried copy/paste, dragging, and finally I am doing what no man likes to do, asking directions. I have used Virtuoso cleaner and polish to no avail but I have not tried to sand and buff. I have sandpaper up to 3200 grit. I started to use lacquer thinner to remove the finish but was unsure whether or not the stain/color would be damaged. Once again, thanks for your help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 This is what the site has set up: I personally use Photobucket, because the pics are bigger. There you just upload, go to your library and hover over the icon in the upper right hand corner of your pic and pick share links from the resulting drop down menu. go to the bottom choice on the new menu and click on "img." it will change to read "copied" briefly. Then paste that into your post. Do you know if this guitar has been refinished? or if it is cleared with nitrocelulose lacquer? If so this stuff is made for that: http://www.stewmac.com/Materials_and_Supplies/Finishing_Supplies/Finishes_and_Solvents/Blush_Eraser_13_oz_spray_can.html You will likely have to level and buff the finish again, after using it. Normally it is used during the clear coating process and several more coats of clear get sprayed after using it. I had that problem pop up on me once and bought some. First I tried some 3600 grit micromesh and it came right out, so I didn't end up using it. The fine sand paper does not always work though.....and the blush eraser will most likely not work if the finish is not nitro. Let's see if we can look at some pictures first. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunyside Posted February 19, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Here's hoping. Can't thank you enough. This "old dog" might learn something but not sure why the destination instead of the picture is below. If this is taking too much of your time just let me know. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 I guess you see what happens to the address once you hit the post button. As for the time, think nothing of it, this is kind of the point of this forum. Now as for that guitar, that looks very much like water damage to me, although I would love to hear some others around here chime in on that. I'm betting you'll have to remove that and re-clear it. Depending on how deep it goes into the finish, you may be able to sand the bad stuff away and have enough clear remaining to buff out back to a nice shine. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunyside Posted February 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 I believe it may have sat in a case for a long time because the frets are good, the fingerboard had a few fingernails divots that I was able to steam out except for one which I repaired with ebony filings and superglue. If I had to remove the clear finish would I use lacquer thinner? Kind of scary for a 35 year old guitar so if anyone else does have an alternate solution it would be appreciated. This is the best resource I have found and it is appreciated. I have asked a lot of other online resources to no avail. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 Man, I don't have an answer for that. If the clear is some sort of poly instead of lacquer the thinner might not even disolve it. It might just etch the surface of the clear. If it were me, I'd sand it off, gently, lovingly, until I was past the damage's depth. Worst case you get back to bare wood that is already pore filled, best case the discoloration is on the surface or just barely below it and you add clear coats or just polish whats left back up. Whatever you try I'd suggest just doing a very small area to see how it reacts before diving in. Have you taken it to a guitar shop to let someone get a personal look and see if they have any suggestions? SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunyside Posted February 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 Well, I live in a rural area about two hours from the nearest city big enough to have a good luthier that I could trust. I read on www.frets.com to dip a cotton swab in acetone, blot it against a paper towel so it is barely moist, then touch it to the surface in an area where it';s easy to polish out. If it is nitrocellulose where you touched it the surface will soften and pit. If it doesn't then it is a modern poly finish in all likelihood. I am going to do the acetone test first, then decide on sanding before taking it to a luthier.. It might take me a while but I will report back when I try the sanding and acetone tests. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 Good luck. It looks to be a nice guitar. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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