1969 Yamaha fg 140 finish

Even if it ain't broke you can still fix it.
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Chardo
Posts: 43
Joined: Sat Jan 24, 2015 1:20 am

1969 Yamaha fg 140 finish

Post by Chardo »

Is have a 1969 Yamaha fg140 that I am fixing up for the original owner. First is a neck reset, a re fret and clean up the fretboard. The finish is in rough shape but I don't know that I want to strip and refinish it.
So my questions are:
How do I make the old finish look... better?
If I do refinish what's the best way to remove the old finish?
Any help or direction would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
If it's to loud ...
Diane Kauffmds
Posts: 3246
Joined: Sun Mar 09, 2014 8:13 pm

Re: 1969 Yamaha fg 140 finish

Post by Diane Kauffmds »

Sometimes, plain old naphtha and elbow grease go a long way, so start there. Naphtha won't hurt any type of finish. Depending on any damage to the original finish, such as crazing, check with your client before doing anything beyond simple cleaning. Some folks prefer that the damage remains on the guitar. But, always start with a good cleaning with naphtha.

I've minimized some wear and tear by hand polishing with Novus #2. With old finishes, I do not use any type of polishing equipment or drill attachment. If the finish is nitro or shellac, you can easily go right through it. But, after you clean with naphtha, you can lightly spritz the guitar finish with water, then apply the Novus with a soft cloth, like a tshirt. Use very little Novus. I shake the Novus well, take off the cap, and turn it upside down 1 time only, on the cloth. Then polish in gentle circles. You don't want to use to much pressure, just a good, gentle polishing. It'll help with small scratches, and generally clean the whole guitar up, without going through the finish. The light spraying of water dilutes the polish, and acts as a lubricant, so the polish has little cutting power. You'll be surprised at how much better the guitar looks.

There are other techniques involving chemicals to deal with scratches in lacquer and color match techniques for lacquer, but I think the naphtha and Novus #2 trick will do what you need.
Diane Kauffmann
Country Roads Guitars
countryroadsguitars@gmail.com
Chardo
Posts: 43
Joined: Sat Jan 24, 2015 1:20 am

Re: 1969 Yamaha fg 140 finish

Post by Chardo »

Thanks Diane, that's really what I'm looking to do. A very deep cleaning and a gentle polish to restore some of the luster. I'm familiar with the Novus products i used them as a teenager when I worked at a small country airport. The product I used a lot was Parco plastic polish for polishing plastic windshields of airplanes and helicopters. Great suff. I'll have to see if it's still available.
Thanks agian
If it's to loud ...
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