MIJ body sunburst respray help

[Kyri]

OK, so I need your help. I got my first experience with refinishing in nitro on an old neck which I used to put together a guitar that I planned to get a suitable matching japanese body for at some later stage. The temporary arrangement was a squier affinity body which was actually very nice but a little light due to it being thinner than normal. Here is a reference to the neck:
http://www.strat-talk.com/forum/squi...n-project.html

I recently found a candidate which was a beat up japan strat body, which I have bought but not received yet. A relic attempt had been done to make it look like a gilmour strat.

My plan is to refinish it, and having done a white one and a black one I really want a nice sunburst, but I am not sure where to start, please help me. I just hope the wood underneath is consistent.

I will first strip the body to the wood. Then, seal with clear nitro. Then I need to buy some sprays, black and what? How do I apply them, in what order, any tips or pictures from anyone who has done it?

I intend to take my time over this, and learn a lot during the process, usually I take 1-2 weeks but time constraints will slow me down this time.

If the neck happens to match this body well then I will try to make a good job of it. If the dinks in the body are deep, I will do it anyway it will just look older. Some pictures of the body are below. Thanks for any help and advice!!
regards
Kyri

[fenderkev]

I have no idea, but this guy seems to know what he's talking about.Guitar Refinishing

[ThaLowEndTheory]

Get yourself a reranch burst kit, and read this several times. Sunbursts

My results using the reranch 3 color kit



Reranch 2 color kit

[Kyri]

Thats some great reading, thanks. And those basses look amazing... did it take much practise to get to that level?

[BeatupGeetars]

it looks like in his attempt to make it a true gilmour strat he did the bridge cavity for when gilmour had a kahler bridge on his black strat and filled it in when he went back to vintage fender tremolo. Hopefully he just made it look like that superficially. If he did the actual route chances are it's not going to look very pretty as bare wood grain, or a burst. Bummer man.

You got a leg up on a building a killer gilmour black strat though.

[Kyri]

Originally Posted by BeatupGeetars

it looks like in his attempt to make it a true gilmour strat he did the bridge cavity for when gilmour had a kahler bridge on his black strat and filled it in when he went back to vintage fender tremolo. .

Its ok its only scratches in the existing finish from what I gathered. I just hope that all the marks in it are only in the finish otherwise it will be a relic sunburst which I don't really want as the neck looks like new (apart from the vintage tint).

[BeatupGeetars]

looks superficial. for your sake I hope the rest of the damage was done this poorly so you can sand the whole thing back to square one!

Best of luck. Cheers.

[ThaLowEndTheory]

Originally Posted by Kyri

Thats some great reading, thanks. And those basses look amazing... did it take much practise to get to that level?

No, I mean I'd done some refinishes before, but these were my first 2 attempts at spraying a burst. The jazz was my first one. I practiced spraying the burst pattern on the cardboard template I cut out first. Then I jumped right in. The kit comes with fine tip nozzles which make it alot easier. I didn't use black on either one of these either. I used the 2 color brown edge instead. After several passes it looks almost black which is the look I was after.

[grumpy old git]

Originally Posted by Kyri

..... A relic attempt had been done to make it look like a gilmour strat..........
Kyri

So, you bought that! I was watching it for a relic Gimour to add to my NOS look one

There's some good info on sunbursts here,
and he sells the nitro as well.

Looking forward to seeing this one finished

[mijstratsq]

wow those are some killer bursts.makes me want to give it a shot.most of the diy look like crap. is it the kit that helped you ace it???

[ThaLowEndTheory]

Originally Posted by mijstratsq

wow those are some killer bursts.makes me want to give it a shot.most of the diy look like crap. is it the kit that helped you ace it???

Thanks, I have to give lots of credit to the reranch supplies. The colors are light enough to allow a little room for error, and the process is fairly easy. Just takes a steady hand spraying those edges, and being careful of drips. Another little trick is to spray a coat or two of clear between the layers of color in case you need to sand back and repray. I used a different order than suggested by the site. It's easier to spray the black or dark brown band first. Then spray amber, then the 3 color edge as the site suggests. I did the amber first, then the red band, then the dark band. One day I will wear through those colors in that order.

[fenderkev]

Originally Posted by ThaLowEndTheory

Get yourself a reranch burst kit, and read this several times. Sunbursts

My results using the reranch 3 color kit



Reranch 2 color kit

Those are really well done! I've seen pro' finishes that weren't as good as those. Congratulations on some great work.

[Kyri]

Well, I got the body earlier today. Some of the dents are quite deep, but the biggest one is on the back, there is one on the top horn on the front that may be down to the wood, see what you think.

[Kyri]

I thought I'd have a go at sanding down the front to see what the wood grain is like underneath, as a good s/b needs a nice enough piece of wood.

I forgot how tough these finishes are... my arms are hurting now. I used rough paper and got all the black off, and most of the sealer but its not down to the wood properly yet, only the bottom third is through the sealer. I wetted it to show more easlily what the grain is like.

The body is nicely deeply contoured and the wood is reasonably nice, in three pieces with the colour of the strips pretty well matched, and no obvious distinct conflicting grain lines where the joins are.

[Kyri]

Originally Posted by BeatupGeetars

looks superficial. for your sake I hope the rest of the damage was done this poorly so you can sand the whole thing back to square one!

Best of luck. Cheers.

I have now got to a position where I know what the damage is like. I sanded the body down, and got rid of the colour. Then the work really started when I had to sand through the sealer...(fujiplast? ) what a job, it took me quite a few hours last night/tonight, I think I will feel the pain tomorrow as it was quite a workout....

Anyway, the front is mostly ok just one or two small marks near the bridge. The back, is another story...

[Kyri]

OK, here are the problems. Some dents that are quite deep. I could filll them, but they will be in the grainy amber area, so will look bad. I could try to scrape out the back paint. I could sand the whole body down another mm or 2 but I honestly dont think I have the strength or inclination to do that. Any other ideas would be welcome!!

Here are some pictures of the offending parts. Luckily they are on the back.

[ThaLowEndTheory]

Maybe try to find some wood filler close to the color of the wood. It won't totally disappear, but I think it might look better than the black spots. Other than sanding that's the best I can think of right now.

[Kyri]

Originally Posted by ThaLowEndTheory

Maybe try to find some wood filler close to the color of the wood. It won't totally disappear, but I think it might look better than the black spots. Other than sanding that's the best I can think of right now.

That was a good idea, but I could not find any filler the right colour, so I made some using sawdust from all the sanding I did, mixed with some nitro. I prepped the areas by picking out the remaining black paint with the point of a blade. Not a perfect solution, but better than it was... I then used a blade to smooth the filler, so that when it dries it is flat ready for sanding.

[Kyri]

Finished the sanding now, ready for spraying the first few sealing coats. I did it all by hand and its taken me a lot of hard work and significant time to do it. I did this twice before, but forgot how difficult it was, the sanding sealer is the worst to get off. I have seen people use paint stripper but I don't think that gets through the sealer, not sure though. In any case this 3 part body has a nice corner to it, shame it will be covered in dark paint...

[marksound]

Originally Posted by ThaLowEndTheory

Dang, Chris. That's just purt near the perfect burst. How did I miss this one?

[Kyri]

A few coats of clear, I will get a good few layers on and sand before starting the black outer and amber coats.

Not sure if I have enough spray to do a practice run first... I suppose if I mess it up I will have yet another black strat

[ThaLowEndTheory]

Originally Posted by marksound

Dang, Chris. That's just purt near the perfect burst. How did I miss this one?

Thanks Mark!

[ThaLowEndTheory]

Originally Posted by Kyri

A few coats of clear, I will get a good few layers on and sand before starting the black outer and amber coats.

Not sure if I have enough spray to do a practice run first... I suppose if I mess it up I will have yet another black strat

That is looking much better. Good idea with the makeshift filler.

[Kyri]

As per the advice in the links posted, i sprayed the black rim first, then the amber. The grain is showing nicely. I will put some coats of clear on tonight. Then tomorrow I will attempt the transition... I really hope I have enough black paint left, its getting a bit low and when its nearly empty it doesn't spray as well, I wish I had bought another one now.

[bluecar]

Kyri,

Looking great. Smart idea to use the sanding dust for the filler.

Keep us posted.

Best,
BC

[Kyri]

OK, so it isnt as easy as it looks... all credit to you Chris, to get those bursts first time is quite an achievement!

I have done the burst, front and back, but I am not too happy with it, and would like to try sanding the finish in some areas to get it to look right. It should be ok because I have some clear on top of the amber. Problem is that I have totally run out of black so if I sand too much there is no going back. Or I could just leave it as is, some of the information I have read states that the clear will cause some softening / merging of the colours. Any thoughts? Anyway here is the front and back:

[ThaLowEndTheory]

You could probably carefully sand back some of the overspray with a very fine grit sandpaper. It's kind of tough to sand the burst shape because you tend to end up with hard lines. I'd look at it with the pickguard on before I made my decision. The reddish band along with clear helps blend some, but it doesn't mask all. I can post pics of mine in different steps of completion if you want to get an idea of what to expect.

Did you use a fine tip nozzle while spraying the burst edge? The trick to it is that most of what you are spraying is going miss the body. Only the very trailing edge of the spray pattern should land on the body. I actually had a hard time getting more of the color onto the body. It took me several attempts before I was satisfied. Also stand on the opposite end of where you are spraying. If you are spraying the bridge end you should be standing at the neck pocket. Because of the fine tip nozzle you can also get the can closer to the body than usual, which allows you to be more accurate. Also be aware of drips since the can will be hovering right over the body. Nothing will piss you off more than spraying a perfect burst edge only to find drips in the middle of the amber part.(ask me how I know this)

If it were mine, I'd try sanding back a bit to see if you can get it to look the way you want. Worst case scenario is that you just order more and redo the burst. I've seen several guys sand back and respray with great results. It's a pain, but it's usually worth it. Plus you have a better idea of what to expect now. If you do reorder, consider getting the 2 color burst edge to spray the dark ring instead of black. It's more forgiving than black, and it gets very close to black. You already have the black sides taken care of, and you won't be able to notice the transition between the two. I didn't use any black on mine. Only the 2 color burst edge.

[Shaggy]

That looks beautifull as it is man!!!
keep it like that, she looks stunnning

[Tele like it is]

Kyri, my hat is off to you dude! Seriously awsome work, especially the idea for filling the dents! Keep up the effort and I have no doubt this will look fantastic when you're done!

[Kyri]

Originally Posted by ThaLowEndTheory

You could probably carefully sand back some of the overspray with a very fine grit sandpaper. It's kind of tough to sand the burst shape because you tend to end up with hard lines. I'd look at it with the pickguard on before I made my decision. The reddish band along with clear helps blend some, but it doesn't mask all. I can post pics of mine in different steps of completion if you want to get an idea of what to expect.

Did you use a fine tip nozzle while spraying the burst edge? The trick to it is that most of what you are spraying is going miss the body. Only the very trailing edge of the spray pattern should land on the body. I actually had a hard time getting more of the color onto the body. It took me several attempts before I was satisfied. Also stand on the opposite end of where you are spraying. If you are spraying the bridge end you should be standing at the neck pocket. Because of the fine tip nozzle you can also get the can closer to the body than usual, which allows you to be more accurate. Also be aware of drips since the can will be hovering right over the body. Nothing will piss you off more than spraying a perfect burst edge only to find drips in the middle of the amber part.(ask me how I know this)

If it were mine, I'd try sanding back a bit to see if you can get it to look the way you want. Worst case scenario is that you just order more and redo the burst. I've seen several guys sand back and respray with great results. It's a pain, but it's usually worth it. Plus you have a better idea of what to expect now. If you do reorder, consider getting the 2 color burst edge to spray the dark ring instead of black. It's more forgiving than black, and it gets very close to black. You already have the black sides taken care of, and you won't be able to notice the transition between the two. I didn't use any black on mine. Only the 2 color burst edge.

Thanks for the detailed reply... I ended up using a polishing paste rather than paper which allowed me to more easily get rid of the two offending parts near the jack socket hole and towards the upper horn on the left. Then I clear coated which helped a bit. It looked OK with a guard on, so I decided not to start again, also this body was too damaged to get a perfect finish. It has ended up looking quite like a real 50's body especially as I have finished it so quickly, so depending when I do final clearcoat and sand it the finish should look quite old and sunk.

I have taken your points on board about the colour, spraying tips and position - I chose the tip out of all the ones I had but I have to admit it wasn't easy to control and finer would have been better. Also the way I mounted it meant that getting to the bottom edge was tough, at one stage I was holding the mounting stick/neck in one hand and spraying with the other, grimacing under my mask as I realised how easy it would be to mess it up Here is a pic after a little sanding and a few sealing layers, with the flash on to see the 'old' finish...
and by the way any pictures from you would be welcome and educating, I do this for and also to learn, I am sure others would benefit from seeing your pics too, the ones so far are pretty amazing
regards
Kyri

[Kyri]

Thanks for the comments Shaggy and Tele, I have yet to try the neck on this body as its on another strat but I may get the parts together soon to see how it looks, it will be the first time I have an all nitro strat (neck plus body). I need a few more bits as well and to put a pickguard etc together, but that will hopefully help with my impatience as its hardening in the next days/weeks.

[Kyri]

I put the parts together to see how they would fit. How I love the consistency of parts made in japan, everything lined up perfectly and the neck pocket was a perfect fit for the old JV neck. The neck is from 83 and the body from 04 or 05 but they were a perfect match. Having said that I haven't strung it up yet.

[jflintmac]

That looks great!
Now I know that a camera can lie but from here it looks really good.
I am a cabinetmaker and a finisher so I know how we criticize our own work.
I don't know if you have finished your clear coat yet but if not, just remember that it will
look a lot better a month after you put it on. And by next year, no one will be able to tell that it isn't a factory job.
The point is to keep the clear coats even and thinish. Tone should be your main concern now so not too many coats eh?
Good going man!!!

[ThaLowEndTheory]

Originally Posted by jflintmac

That looks great!
Now I know that a camera can lie but from here it looks really good.
I am a cabinetmaker and a finisher so I know how we criticize our own work.
I don't know if you have finished your clear coat yet but if not, just remember that it will
look a lot better a month after you put it on. And by next year, no one will be able to tell that it isn't a factory job.

+1
Kyri you are a genius! That's 2 ideas in this project alone that did not occur to me. The filler and the paste were great ideas and worked really well. You've taught me something with this one. Those pics look great. I wouldn't change a thing at this point. I remember on my jazz, I kept looking at what I thought were trouble spots. Not doing anything was the best choice I made. You nailed the 50's look. Keep us posted on your progress. Great job!

[Lua1]

Originally Posted by ThaLowEndTheory

My results using the reranch 3 color kit

has anyone ever mentioned to you that your a stud? that pic is like you just popped your shirt open

[Kyri]

Well, I had not finished clear coating at the point the strat was assembled, its back in bits now and the body is getting some more clear coats. I think I will use 1 more tin after this and then leave it for a while before sanding. Thanks for the comments but without the advice and links I would not have known where to start. Seeing that beautiful bass also helped inspire me to do it knowing it is possible to do it as long as you have the right sprays.
regards
Kyri

[Kyri]

I put it together and it needed almost no setting up. The body is pretty much identical to a jv body that I have, and since the neck was from a jv (i bought it separately), it fit really well. Here is a picture of the assembled guitar. The only thing I need now is a jack that fits (the ones I have are a tiny bit too small so I can't fit both screws in)

Later I may put another tin of clear on to get more thickness to sand to a smoother finish, but I like the way it looks and feels, the thin coating is nice. I was very careful when sanding not to go through the clear, but possibly I was too cautious. I figured it was better that way than having a homer simpson moment if I had sanded through the burst

[ThaLowEndTheory]

That came out nice Kyri. Good job on your first burst. Have you started planning the next one yet?

[Shaggy]

i came, i saw, i came again.

[Falstaff48]

Gee, I hope it was the guitar your reacting to and not the picture of Fabio...