desert rose - Posted - 10/16/2009:  17:18:35

Actually I do, maybe thats a great short addition I can add while writing the next detail chapter

Ill add that tonight thanks

Scott

Desert Rose Musical Instruments
desertrosebanjo.com

banjomartin88 - Posted - 10/16/2009:  22:02:49

Sorry Scott after i re read my post it seemed like i came across an jack@%&. I meant no disrespect what so ever.

uncle.fogey - Posted - 10/17/2009:  10:24:17

Scott, I can't get over the great information you've provided on this thread. It's just fantastic. I thought your comment about not messing with an old finish because you'd diminish the value was right on the money.

I have an old Gibson with a resonator that someone did exactly that to and I'd like to try to mitigate as much of the damage as I can. How do you go about spraying CO2 onto a lacquer finish? would a soda siphon work?

Thanks,
Ken

A man wouldn't need many plastic heads in a lifetime.

banjomartin88 - Posted - 11/15/2009:  21:56:49

Bump

DHoffmeyer - Posted - 11/16/2009:  07:48:30

This thread has been valuable to many, and I hope I can ask a question without steering too far in the wrong direction.
Recently, during the staining of resonators, I've some of the stain seeping into small cracks in both the w/b/w purfling rings and the white binding (RB-3 style resos). This has been repeated more than three times on different batches. What are the leading causes of such things?

Dean

Edited by - DHoffmeyer on 11/18/2009 20:51:09

rottenwood - Posted - 11/19/2009:  08:03:04

I'm viewer # 10000! Do I win a prize?!

desert rose - Posted - 11/21/2009:  02:53:12

Hello Dean

First, it was always good to see you at ibma! I just got the new issue of Moonshiner and see you contributed a lot of pictures, congratulations.

Now to answer your very good question.

If you are finishing a mahogany banjo and the target is anything resembling a traditional mahogany look, you DONT stain the wood!

As I mentioned in this thread you first add grain filler and then spray sealer. After spraying enough sealer to sand to a flat surface, only then do you color the banjo and this is done by adding color to the sprayed lacquer. You should tape off the rings and binding of course and expect to remove the tape and do a little touch up scraping to make things perfect after coloring and before final application of multi clear coats.

This process will give you the look of the 3,000 to 4,000 dollar banjos you are shooting for and make it as easy as possible.

As a side line, any time you use alcohol stains on wood they will bleed and travel, by nature, so scraping after coloring is always in order when hand coloring the wood directly

Im going to follow this post with detailed instructions on how to deal with rings in the resonator and coloring and scraping. I have a way thats VERY easy to get perfect results.

Tonight or tomorrow check back

Scott

MoTomCat - Posted - 04/02/2010:  15:29:02

BUMP
BUMP

desert rose - Posted - 04/02/2010:  17:36:16

Hey Tom

Thanks for the nudge!

Ill dig my notes and try and add the nest step over the weekend if possible

Scott

MoTomCat - Posted - 04/02/2010:  18:18:32

Hey Scott,

Really look forward to it.

Tom

klgera - Posted - 04/09/2010:  08:46:39

This info is priceless!
Thanks.


PS Looking forward to the next installment

Old Hickory - Posted - 04/13/2010:  07:27:01

Scott:

Thanks for sending me here from the other thread on filling mahogany. I am definitely loking forward to learning how to deal with the rings on the back of a resonator if the resonator is colored -- either by direct stain or by tinted lacquer.

By the way, I'm familiar with this technique of spraying color over sealed wood. I did that on a 1972 P-bass, my one and only refinish project to-date.

Old Hickory - Posted - 05/13/2010:  13:19:30

Bump -- to request that detailed description of dealing with the rings. I won't be staining or lacquer-tinting my mahogany resonator. Just clear coating. But I will be filling the pores with a dark water base product and I'm curious as to how to avoid staining the wood and rings.

desert rose - Posted - 05/13/2010:  17:15:25

You can buy fine line detail tape at auto parts shops but one of the big advantages of water based fillers is they are much less agressive to staining binding and rings. The old oil based fillers are bad for this

Scott

Old Hickory - Posted - 05/13/2010:  17:31:35

Detail tape. Thanks.

And here's an interesting approach to water-based pore filling: dyed drywall joint compound!

Video from Luthier's Mercantile International:

youtube.com/watch?v=Zhk6rZ2UI1Y

Edited by - Old Hickory on 05/13/2010 17:32:49

banjomartin88 - Posted - 09/04/2010:  10:32:33

bump