What Is Your Drop Fill Procedure?

[Darryl Young]

I'm curious how you go about drop filling.......how you control the amount and location of the drop fill etc. I'm sure I've seen this discussed but I don't recall it. I'm sure the method I used can be improved. Appreciate your thoughts.

[tippie53]

This is a fit and finish issue . What are you drop filling ? I use Nitro and I allow some to thinken . This I keep in a special bottle . I just simple place the drop on the finish allow 48 hrs to cure , sand and polish . Most non lacquer shellac finishes I will use thin or med thin CA same thing drop allow a 24 hr cure time level sand buff and polish .

[Bruce Dow]

I'll ask the dumb question....

What is "drop filling"?

[Tony_in_NYC]

I'll ask the dumb question....

What is "drop filling"?

Its when you "fill" in the dents caused after you "drop" the guitar.



OK...so it is really when you have finished the whole guitar with lacquer, shellac, varnish, tears from baby penguins, guano, or whatever other finish you choose, and you notice you have little voids, or holes in the finish.
These can result from any number of things, including, but not limited to small gaps in the binding, not completely filling the pores, a soft spot in the wood absorbing more finish, poor finishing technique, poor prep prior (Alliteration is fun!) to finishing, and so on.
If left to their own devices, these pesky voids/ holes, will live on your guitar forever. Thus, modern man has devised procedures for dealing with these voids. The most common way to do it is to take some of the finish you are using on the guitar and let is sit on a plate of glass (The Bone China you got from your wedding registry also works but could result in a divorce) until it thickens to a gel like consistency. You then take the applicator of your choice and "drop" some of this gel into the little voids to "fill"them so the fill is proud of the rest of the finish. It could also be named "drop filling" because you fill the voids with little drops of finish. I am not 100% certain as to the origins of the term, but I do know that using the fine China you never eat from and just sits in a cabinet for months on end until some family from out of town shows up to mooch a meal, is a good way to lose half of your belongings. Comprende? Anyway, you leave the drop proud so that when the solvents gas off, and the resultant shrinkage occurs (this type of shrinkage should not alarm you like the type caused by swimming in cold water, or if any women happen to be reading this, the type of shrinkage that results from washing a wool sweater because your "helpful" husband thought he would do some laundry to get back in your good graces after he spent the last several weeks in the garage working on some guitars...but forgive me, I have gotten off track) The shrinkage I am referring to is when the solvents in the finish evaporate out leaving behind the solids and the fill that was once so proud (and not overly proud in an annoying way, like Donald Trump, or that jerk from accounting who won the lottery and rubbed it in everyone's face by showing up in a Ferrari to quit) will now be only a tiny bit proud, or could still be too low and require another fill.
You would then proceed with level sanding and polishing.
I hope you understand "drop filling" better now Bruce. If only someone would have explained it to me when I first started posting here, I wouldn't have intentionally dropped my guitar thinking it was part of the process because now I was "drop filling" like the other guys. One of the members here recently made the same mistake. Twice. He should have asked about drop filling.
For what its worth, my work is effing FLAWLESS and my guitars do not require drop filling. Also, I am full of baloney. But the info on pore filling is good.

[Bruce Dow]

Thanks, Tony.

Due to my skill level, I have been tempted just to "drop" finishing all together. (grin)

#3 is waiting for the 12 coats of EM6000 to harden... Does this same technique work with water-based finishes? There are a few small gaps beside the binding.. If so, I think I'll run down to the shop and try this.

Heck... if it works, maybe I'll see if I can make #1 and #2 a little more presentable too.

[kencierp]

One of the problems with (most?) water borne finishes is that within hours the "burn-in" feature is gone --- there are no solvents in the coatings that are able to melt the cured surface (burn-in) this is one of the reasons I still prefer nitro lacquer, especially when it comes to repairs. As a matter of fact years ago when GM went to WB coatings, the repairs we done with solvent lacquers. So whether traditional drop fill will work with Target or other WB coatings is a very good question for a real tech person -- Jeff Weiss at Target would be my recommedation.

[Tony_in_NYC]

I have only used nitro lacquer, so I would do what Ken says and call or email Target Coatings.

[Bruce Dow]

Ahhh.

So it sounds like the "I wish I knew then" nugget was to do this "drop fill" thing as I built up my spray coats.

Sh*t.

Oh well.

I'll post something over on the Target Coatings forum.

[Tony_in_NYC]

Yes. This is information you could have used a little while ago.
However, I think there is a way to get the EM6000 to burn in after it has dried. I remember reading something about scuffing and denatured alcohol. I am sure the guy at Target Coatings can help.

[tippie53]

Finish Chemistry can be a pain . What works for one finish may not work on another .