Q: I usually finish the soundboard of my classical guitars with dewaxed shellac. It has no color at all and therefore the soundboard ends up being very pale. I noticed all classical guitar sound boards are more toward a brown tint. My question is, do you think luthiers stain their soundboards only by using different [...]
Q: I need to put a brand name on my guitars. I’d like to use a stencil or ink stamp under the clear coat. What do you think? A: Either will work, provided you choose the right medium for your stencil or ink stamp. What’s important is to use a paint or ink that is [...]
Q: I’m finishing a guitar in Krylon Special Purpose clear Lacquer over Satin Nickel Metallic over gray primer. The clear coat has some orange peel. I’m afraid to wet sand and buff it because I previously sanded through the finish at the edges and had to start over with bare wood. Since the finish looks [...]
Q: Can I add dry pigment to lacquer to color it? A: In theory, yes. In practice, it is almost impossible to get pigment powders to disperse uniformly in liquids. When we add them in the industry we use tools specifically designed for forcing pigments to combine with liquids, such as ball mills and high [...]
Q: I have a lot of tubes of various oil paints on hand. Could I use oil paints as a pigment to add to lacquer? A: If you are talking about concentrated oil colors in paste form in tubes, yes you can mix a small amount into lacquer, but don’t try to add too much. [...]
Q: I am using McFadden nitrocellulose through a standard spray gun. I just successfully shot my first guitar and am working on another which I would like to tone with a dark opaque to light translucent wine red on the headstock veneer and carved maple top. I am having a hard time determining if I [...]
Q: I’ve been using cellulose sanding sealer on my woodturnings. What’s the difference between it and Zinsser SealCoat, and which is better? I normally use wipe on polyurethane as my finish. A: Better is a personal judgment you must make, but I can certainly tell you the differences. Cellulose sanding sealer is lacquer laced with [...]
Q: Any word on the Lawrence McFadden Seagrave deal? A: The decision of the bankruptcy court that must approve Seagrave’s purchase of Lawrence McFadden has been postponed until February first. I will get back to you via this blog once that is finalized, but in the meantime, I spoke at some length to Peter Tepperman, [...]
Q: I sprayed a very thin final coat of lacquer on a guitar when it was cold and humid, and the finish blushed. I had to spray another coat of thicker lacquer and the blushing went away. I think I understand the reason why blushing forms, air trapped, but what I don’t understand is why [...]
Q: I turned Christmas ornaments of cherry wood. On one small spot about the size of a quarter, I can not get lacquer to stick to the wood. I did not get glue or oil of any kind on the wood. I used acetone to wipe down the ornament before I started spraying. A: That [...]
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