finish experiment Nitro and filler

[tippie53]

It has been a while since I posted but that is typical of a nitro finish. I had allowed this a set and cure time so today I started the level sanding process .
One think I do want you to understand that sand through is not our enemy and in this case with rattle cans I am looking for it. Please let me explain why

Often we do over coat a finish. The key to a great guitar is a nice even surface and not too thick of a build. When you spray from a can there is a lot of thinner and other Volatiles in there . So here was my process today.

Yes I did use Random Orbital sander. 600 grit WET
by wet I mean spray a bit of water as you sand and not so much you have everything soaked. A small amount of water goes a long way.
So here is the beginning photo
as you can see the finish dried and appears like a matte coat but I assure you this is normal as the finish shrinks into each and every pore and sink

[tippie53]

As I start to sand I am looking for a build up on the paper and when you see that get fresh paper. As the heat builds it will fix the finish to the paper.
I didn't take a pic of that but will in the next process later.

So today was my level sanding process and using water here is the surface as I started and you can see the paste I am building with the process. I do that for a while then wipe off to see what the surface looks like. If you do this right you can see the pores go away.

[tippie53]

here is the surface as I processed through. Again water sand wipe . This is not a fast process it took a good 2 hr . As you can see I just sanded through a small area. This was the worse of the sand throughs. Now to the untrained you may thinkg OMG I ruined it. The reality is that this is a good thing to know that you are level and not too thick. This is the beauty of Lacquer that it welds together and will build into the previous coats.
So once that I know I sanded through and I have the surface leveled I wiped it down and let dry for a few hours. Not with the coat level I gave another 3 coats and will let hang a few days. Since I don't have a heavy build the cure time is not as long. You can now see the nice shine from the leveled surface and all the area is filled and ready to produce a great shine.

[tippie53]

here is the last 3 coats while it is curing You may notice I didn't do the top I will spray that later tonight

[tippie53]

Ok I want to give an update on this project
I found that for spray can finish this did as well as anything I have every used. So here is a process I used that gave great results
NEEDED
Filler ( I used the LMI filler )
Stain I used Minwax Chestnut oak
6 cans of minwax gloss nitro lacquer I used 2 cans of satin for the neck

I sanded everything level. On the neck I used the stain to help color match the rosewood.

Then I filled . On the body I sprayed a coat of lacquer then filled.

Spray cycle was one coat every hr for 8 hr and let sit. for 2 weeks
On the neck it was stain ( minwax is also a sealer ) filled

both got the same spray cycle but on the headstock I did use gloss.

After the 2 weeks I used my Random orbital sander 600 grit and leveled . I also did some wet sanding to see if there
was any advantage one way to the other. I did find that a wet spray on the ROS worked the best. I worked the surface to get it level. In this process as stated above I had a few sand throughs. No biggies, so also I used this time to drop fill and then overspray . I did about 6 coats to get it all covered. The sand throughs took a bit more finish but was worth the extra effort.
So today was final level sand and buff , I did the wet with 600 grit on my ROS and then used my buffer. I used the pictured Mazzerna product and the buffer has 2 different sized wheels. I use the smaller one with the 204 ( medium ) and the larger one with the 16 fine It took me about 2 hr of buffing time.

[tippie53]

I started on the sides and then back and did the top last.
Process is simple but the hard part is to read and hear the buffer with the surface. You can see and feel the buffer cut so pay attention to that. keep the wheel loaded with mezzerna and you must play with this to get the feel. I use a heavier hand to do the roughing in and then touch off for that wet look.
NEVER PUT AN EDGE INTO THE WHEEL
if you do it can throw the guitar out of your hands so keep an eye on the . You want the wheel to roll off the edges. As you start seeing the shine watch close for burn through and you are removing so little but at the same token your buffing in the shine.
If anything it is to show that you can get a good finish with a little time and PREP. There is a process and a feel to this. As with the Wipe on Poly the final buffing process can make or break the end result.

In both cases you can always go back to touch up. It isn't so much what you put on but what you leave on.
I wish you all the success in this endeavor.

[Danl8]

Really nice polish with the wheels. But with hours of effort, this isn't an insignificant amount of work. The finish is really looking nice, though.

[Guitar Goomba]

Beautiful work there. How many working hours do you estimate you have in this one?

[tippie53]

less than 40hr took about 8 hrs to finish

[phavriluk]

Just used Minwax rattle-can satin on a cherry neck. The neck was sealed with three applications of finishing resin, the first two squeegeed on, scraped and sanded back. The third application was a padded coat to mostly make sure that the sealing resin was on everything. And sanded with 220, and for the sake of education, a pass with 320. Today I applied two coats, a couple of hours apart, on the neck. Wonderfully smooth. Rosewood headstock needs much more applied and sanded to fill all the pores.

Question of the day from someone who is not a woodworker: How many applications, sanded between, is needed? I realize enough to fill the pores and provide a level surface, yet my cherry neck is starting to look nice after two passes with the can. This stuff is a dream to apply. Earlier John mentioned two cans of satin clear on a neck. I need education as to how we get to two cans and I'm getting to a good start after two coats. Two cans on a neck is something I can't process. I'm sure I need some education about finish, and I'm mystified.

Thanks very much.