Showing posts with label guitar finish. Show all posts
Showing posts with label guitar finish. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

This Little Light Of Mine, I'm Gonna Let It Shine...

No, I am not going to get all religious on ya. What my headline is referring to is how I judge a buffed out lacquer finish.

After the lacquer has cured for a week, I wet sand the body with P1000 grit paper to level the surface. Then, I quickly move through P1500 and P2000.

One might think that at P2000 grit, the surface would be ready to buff. It isn't unless you start with a very course buffing compound, which I don't like to use due to its aggressiveness. Before I can buff, I like to go over the surface of my guitars with Micro Mesh sandpaper. I start with 3200 grit and work my way through all of the available grits to 12000. I use the same technique I used with the wet/dry paper except I spend less time with each grit.

After finishing with the 12000 grit, I polish the surface on a buffing machine, starting with Menzerna Pre-Polish. Then, I move to another wheel loaded with Menzerna Very Fine polish. Check out the results:

It took me a couple of years to perfect my technique, but the results were with the effort.

I know I am finished buffing when I can clearly see the reflection of my lamp without any scratches.