I need Guitar Paint suggestions please. .

[flump]

 

As a general rule, use the same brand from start to finish. Chances are good you will have success. Also keep in mind that B.I.N. shellac based primer will seal anything and allow you to paint anything over it. I don't like to use the rattle cans because it's way too thin. I use a paint gun and thin it 50/50 with denatured alcohol. Shellac is the old standby wood sealer and has been since Jesus' father was painting his carpenter projects. Literally.

 

 

I'd still suggest this also, but I have had issues with paint not sticking to it in the past. It was a specialized paint that didn't stick to it and my fault for not using the company's primer, but still a pain in the ass. Anyway, if you do end up using BIN from the can take your time. The stuff takes quite a while to dry. Wait for a couple of days to sand it after applying. Otherwise it can gunk up a little bit. BIN is probably the easiest to obtain stuff that works on almost anything.

[Belva]

I've been sanding the poly bodies to get a good tooth (180 grit). Then sealing with B.I.N. in the mix previously discussed. One coat only. I let it dry overnite and use Duplicolor filler primer. It's available in both grey and red. I use what's appropriate for the color coat (grey for light, red for dark). Then I sand smooth, spot prime when needed and go to the Duplicolor. After one can and just enough to get good coverage, I start with the Deft clear gloss lacquer. I haven't nailed down the thinning ratio with the brush on but it seems to be about 1 part paint to 1/2 part thinner. They I spray that thru the gun. I have turn time start to finish down to 3 weeks. I figure it will be 4 weeks when winter sets in. It's been dry this summer and a bit of blush remover has gone into the mix.Bbut leaving it hang in the sun does speed the drying time. I'm like many. I prefer lacquer because, while it takes some wait time, it's the easiest way to get a shine like a new dime on a goat's ass finish.

[DaveGrima]

I really want to get a paint gun. Then if i figured out the formula for pewter I could mix it myself. ,. . So CustomTele youre saying Shellac is the best primer and you can spray nitro over it?

[Belva]

 

I really want to get a paint gun. Then if i figured out the formula for pewter I could mix it myself. ,. . So CustomTele youre saying Shellac is the best primer and you can spray nitro over it?

 

shellac will prime anything. If you're working with a previously unpainted body, I'd go with lacquer sand and seal. you also may need grain filler. Go to the reranch site and read their tutorial. Good info. Much more detail there then we can possibly get into here.

[WRGKMC]

 

Basically all paints used for guitars were originally designed for cars (metal) including nitro. I see no reason he shouldn't try it.

 

 

 

Have you used it before on a guitar body? Well I have.

I got a strat body thats still not fully cured after many years.

Its the worst choice you can make for a guitar body. Its designed to remain flexable and weather resistant. Its used on stuff like patio furniture thats exposed to the elements to resist moisture and dirt.

Bad news for a guitar in my book, but some have to learn through failure so be my guest.

 

Also be sure not to leave the guitar in a stand. It will leave bad dent marks in the finish. Also do not drape a guitar or mic cord over the body for any periods of time.

 

I'm guessing its vinyl vapors contained in the rubber cord that causes the rubber to melt into the finish. Just another fail I found with that one a few weeks ago. I hadnt played the guitar in maybe 6 months and pulled it down in the studio and and found a mic cord sticking to the body. It ate right through the lacquer to

stick to the rustoleum below. That paint must still be espiring through the lacquer and its been almost 10 years since I painted it.

 

My rule of thumb is "only advise others to use things you know will work and dont be an arm chair advisor" Theres no reason to advise others to use things that even have the smallest margin for compatibility failure. Theres allot of work and cost involved in refinishing a body. Theres no reason to complicate things beyond that unless you have a wish to have others fail, and if thats the case be prepared for the flack you'll get.

 

Heres my first hand proof rustoleum sucks for guitars.

The {censored} never gets hard and remains flexable

 

Heres the mark from the cord. It was much worse before I buffed it out

[ATTACH=CONFIG]338774[/ATTACH]

 

Heres the marks from the guitar stands. These too were buffed out but theres

still evidence there of what occured.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]338775[/ATTACH]

 

This is just a shot of the body. I plan on redoing it again at some point.

Its just not a priority right now. I havent played it alot since I made the mistake of installing a roller bridge and the tone went to crap because if it.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]338776[/ATTACH]

[flump]

 

 

 

See all this information in your first post would have been great and makes sense as to why you would never use it. Just saying "its meant for metal and i would never use it on a guitar body" is a terrible reason alone as nearly all guitar paints were originally meant to go over metals as I previously mentioned. That's what I was getting at.

[WRGKMC]

See all this information in your first post would have been great and makes sense as to why you would never use it. Just saying "its meant for metal and i would never use it on a guitar body" is a terrible reason alone as nearly all guitar paints were originally meant to go over metals as I previously mentioned. That's what I was getting at.

 

I'm long winded in my posts as it is, plus if you've hung around this forum long enough I've probibly explained what works well dozens of times. It does get get old.

I figured I'd keep it short and if someone questioned it, Then I'd pull out the reasons why its not a good idea.

I dont guess on allot of this this stuff when I give advice. I've pretty much done it all over the 40 years of building and repairing them.

Even growing up my father was quite expert at paints and knew all the chemicals having been in that business working for Glidden and having owned a paint store.

Guess thats why I hate refinishing so much. When I do refinish, I make sure I use things that are known to work so I dint have to do it over again.

 

I'd be surprised if theres was something that I havent screwed up through a poor choice but I am still open to new products that will work well at a low cost.

Its when I hear some suggestions that are just not good ideas I have to give it the :facepalm:. If they are willing to learn I'll give them my best advice if not its not going to matter.

 

I've been forced to become a traditionalist when it comes to finishing because failures force you to become one. A traditional finish is the only thing that passes the test of time. Theres no reason to reinvent the wheel if it works well. Theres only excuses as to why someone doesnt investigate how things are traditionally done to get good results.

 

I dont even want to do any more builds at this point. I have 30 builds now. I have two more body necks I'll eventually complete, but I'm in no rush to start those.

I do try new things out nearly every build. The last painted body I did I tried out 4 products I thought might work. All four sucked balls and failed, so I do try out non traditional finishes If I think they might have a chance to work. I've just run the gambot on crap that you're better off avoiding.

[Belva]

Something I think all people who wish to paint a guitar, specially one that has never been finished, is to Google wood finishing. You can get ideas on alternate finishing systems. Frinstance, if you go to the My Next Victim thread, I stripped the poly clear off of that one and just went with stain and Danish oil. I could've kept with it and gotten a good gloss, but that wasn't the point. I have an easy to repair finish that I don't have to polish every single freaking time I pick it up. Tung oil is good as is Tru oil. My father used to finish gun stocks with a 50/50 mix of boiled linseed oil and spar varnish. My 30 Remington, which he restocked when I was about 12 years old, still can be made to shine like a new dime on a goat's ass.

I've taken down numerous deer with it, basically using the phuck out of it, dragging it thru the mud and the blood and the beer. There are many options. But if an opaque (painted) finish is your desire, lacquer is still the easiest. But you have to have patience enough to use LIGHT coats and let it dry before polishing. I completely agree with WRG on enamels. Not good for a guitar unless you can bake it. But you'd need to get it so hot it would potentially burn the guitar body. And you ain't Jimi.

[Gaetano Paul]

So this stuff should work great huh?

 

Also, I love the way this stuff shines and adds a nice reliced/worn type of yellowish tone to everything. WOuld it work to apply on a sanded down strat body? I am thinking nice yellow/dark type stain look, super shiney!

[WRGKMC]

You cant mix polyuerothans and Lacquer.

[Belva]

DON'T use Rustoleum lacquer. It's an inferior product that will get sticky when the weather gets a bit warm. It's cheap, but this is truly a case of getting what you paid for. I've tried it and will never use it again.

[WRGKMC]

 

DON'T use Rustoleum lacquer. It's an inferior product that will get sticky when the weather gets a bit warm. It's cheap, but this is truly a case of getting what you paid for. I've tried it and will never use it again.

 

 

I think I might have used it on my last build. At least the label looks familure, so I have to verify.

I had a semi hollow build that I nicked up cutting the pickup routes, It had a thin coat of semigloss on it already.

I resanded the nicks out then oversprated it with about 10 coats for about 1mm thickness completed.

It worked fine for me.

 

I think I still had some in the can so I'll verify if it was the rustoleum brand. I bought it at Home Depot so it may

just be a simular looking label on the can.

[Belva]

 

I think I might have used it on my last build. At least the label looks familure, so I have to verify. I had a semi hollow build that I nicked up cutting the pickup routes, It had a thin coat of semigloss on it already. I resanded the nicks out then oversprated it with about 10 coats for about 1mm thickness completed. It worked fine for me. I think I still had some in the can so I'll verify if it was the rustoleum brand. I bought it at Home Depot so it may just be a simular looking label on the can.

 

This could go along with a previous comment about some companies mixing paint so it won't be compatable with other brands. I've only tried the clear over Duplicolor. Deft, however, seems to work well with both Duplicolor and Reranch.

[WRGKMC]

Could be. There are plenty of issues where this props up.

It could be a shelf life problem or bad batch as well.

Just dont know in some cases. You can see the active ingreediants on a can

but the wuantities might not be there.I'd say with the auto stuff they try to make it easy

for The guy trying to spiff up his ride so they most likely have the matching paints and clear coats.

Something from a hardware store will likely be much more wider ranged, and more wood specific.

Buying chems at a home depot would more likely be bought from something being built new. If there

were compatibility problems with new wood builds, I'd sure they would pull it from their stores rather quickly.

[Belva]

With the Rustoleum, I think it's a matter of getting what you paid for.