Guitar #2 1/2 White Spruce/Cherry (Start Over)/FINISHED!!!

[Randy]

Your 50% done only 90% to go! Good job Dian and coo dos for not giving up. It really is the sign of who will end up making world class guitars. Every one there, has there horror stories. I'm not sure we quit making mistakes as much as knowing what to do when there made. I believe all art is recovery from mistakes!

[Diane Kauffmds]

I got a lot done and I finally feel like I'm making progress. I profiled the neck. Since having surgery on my right hand and being scheduled for my left in January, it's clear that I need a profile that ergonomic. I've looked at several patterns and I finally decided to do something that fits me, which is outside the norm.

I call this my ergonomic thumb groove profile. I have problems keeping my thumb in the proper location on the back of the neck. As a result, it puts a lot of stress on my wrist/hand. I have small hands, so I modified the regular "D" profile by moving the flat area of the "D" up. I also made a bit of a "dip" which fits the pad of my thumb perfectly. When I hold the neck, it automatically faces forward as it should, rather than tipping back with my thumb slipping to the top.

The profile is hard to see since it just happens to follow a grain line in the wood. The neck is very fast.

neck profile.jpg

neck profile 2.jpg

[Diane Kauffmds]

I got the neck set. It only took me 3 days instead of 2 weeks this time. Now, time for the pain of finishing to begin...

[Diane Kauffmds]

I've got the guitar prepped and ready to finish. I'm going to try french polishing. I made my first attempt tonight. The finish is hard, but I can see some pores. Since its cherry, it shouldn't need pore filling, but I think it would benefit from a little pore filling.

I stripped the shellac off and am in the process of putting a coat of Aqua Coat on.

[tippie53]

pretty from here
can't wait to see the end result

[Diane Kauffmds]

Thank you John.

I decided to strip the first coat of shellac and pore fill with Aqua coat. What a difference! It was a good decision. From here on out, I'm pore filling all woods, even those that don't "require" it. I went ahead and pore filled the sides as well.

Here is the result of my first fp session, after a single pore filling:

first attempt 1.jpg

first attempt 2.jpg

hanging.jpg

[johnnparchem]

The finish on the guitar looks good. I like to pore fill most back and side wood as well.

[Diane Kauffmds]

Thank you John. I wasn't sure if I was doing it right. I just completed session #2. The shine has increased; hopefully the reflections will start becoming more focused.

session 2.JPG

session2 2.JPG

[MaineGeezer]

Wow! You're doing a lot better than I did with my French polish fiasco. Nice work.

[Diane Kauffmds]

Got up at 6 am and worked for 1 1/2 hours fp the back (coat 4) and now the sides. French Polishing certainly hardens the shellac quickly. I held the guitar firmly in my lap while working, which meant that the side that I'd just finished was in my lap. There was no impression left from my clothing, or any damage to the new finish. 2 more sessions to go today. I drip sweat. It's a great workout!

Now I can see how it's going to look. It's a good thing I stuck with the blond shellac and not a darker color.

1 left.JPG

1 right.JPG

1 wedge.JPG