wawa8223

Did you apply a sanding sealer? ...Use a catalyzed poly finish? Take a look at my recent post post on my repair that I did to my Fernandes Ravelle (Guitar Repair - Color and Clearcoat). It tells you what I used and has a few pics. You'd probably do better re-sanding, staining/sealing, then clear-coating. I actually mixed some color stain with the sanding sealer for my repair. It matched up quite nicely. wawa---------

OK. I'm submitting some before and after photos of the repair. The camera flash tends to bring out the flaws, but in normal light...to the casual observer, you really have to LOOK to see that there was a fix! I'm pretty happy for a first timer! OK. After sanding it back, I used Zinsser all-purpose SealCoat. I mixed in a little analine Dye (mixed with denatured alcohol) with the Seal coat. For the clear, I used DuPont Chroma Clear HC-7600 with HC-7605 Catalyzer. I sprayed that with a small air gun. I sanded to 2000 grit. I had a hard time trying to remove the line where it overlaps the original clearcoat. Catalyzed poly doesn't 'melt' into the original finish. After polishing, though, you really have to turn it under the light to find the line. I polished with Meguiar's Diamond Cut compound 2.0 and a cotton buffing wheel. It almost instantly brought the finish to a glowing clear! Well, here it is! Before: http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e181/wawa8223/9986c96c.jpg http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e181/wawa8223/48d590f2.jpg After: http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e181/wawa8223/Gtr3.jpg http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e181/wawa8223/Gtr1.jpg http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e181/wawa8223/Gtr2.jpg Thanks for the help! Comments appreciated.

Well, I think I have found a catalyzed poly finish that will work, and I'm getting an airbrush. My next issue is the type of sand and sealer to get. I've read that there are some issues with catalyzed poly sticking to certain sand and seal formulas. Any suggestions??? If anyone has a brand in mind, that would certainly help. Thanks!

Yeah, I've been hearing that method a lot today. Unfortunately, it's too late for that. The area has been sanded, and the chip in the wood has been filled then sanded again flush with the wood. Any ideas where to go from here? Oh, and the clearcoat is Poly...not Nitro. The question now is...Is it Polyurethane or Polyester??? I'm thinking, polyester. Where do I find a comparable clear coat that I can spray on? Keep in mind, I don't have access to a spray gun. Thanks again!

I have a Fernandes Ravelle that has a significant ding in it that goes through the clearcoat and down to the wood. It's located near the back edge of the lower horn. I have already resolved myself to doing the repair work myself, and the prep work has gone OK. I want to begin refinishing the damaged area soon, but I can't find ANY info about the materials used for the guitars original finish. I have sent inquiries to Fernandes. They weren't really any help, and it's hard to even get them on the phone or get a response e-mail from them. I've been all over the net looking for specific info on the finish. Nothing. Is there anyone hear that could provide me some technical assistance. I don't need to know exact color names, etc. I just need to know things like... ...is it a nitrocellulose lacquer??? ...a poly type finish??? ...is the color coat a stain, dye, or a transparent type of paint??? I'm just at a loss, and I'd hate to start going at it with the wrong stuff and melt the finish off the rest of the guitar... Thanks, Wawa---------