Guitar finish

[Harpymorgan]

Hi all
Be interested if anyone can give me any help on a restoration project. Its an old archtop with a carved spruce top, but when I've taken the finish off the top its all blotchy as bare wood. I don't know if its the old finish which I'll never remove. I know an easy answer would be to darken it all down, but as its got a lovely flamed maple (sycamore?) back and sides I dont really want to do that.
Any suggestions?

Its not a guild by the way, its an old hofner bought as a box of bits with a broken neck.

 

[Yoko Oh No]

a pic or two would help. i've bleached wood before, but if it's the stain/finish i'm not sure that would work.

 

[SFIV1967]

Was it a blonde top or a sunburst?
Ralf

 

[Harpymorgan]

Ralf
Its a blonde president from 58. I think the markings may have something to do with stripping the finish, as they look a little like liquid or water marks.
What is the correct method for stripping the finish. I find paint strippers dont really touch the finish, so I've been using it to soften the finish, then using a scraper.
I'll post some pics soon.

 

[davismanLV]

If you want the finish GONE, mask and drape off anything you don't want effected by the stripper. I always use Jasco Paint and Epoxy Remover. This stuff is STRONG and you have to use protective gear!! Lay it on with a paint brush kinda thick, let it bubble and do its job then scrape off and do a final removal with fairly coarse steel wool. Then you're done. Jasco pretty much removes EVERYTHING that's on the wood. Then once it dries, start sanding. Have you sanded it yet?

If you don't get every bit of finish off, your refin job is gonna not look very good. Get it down to raw wood and sand it clean. If you wanna know what it's gonna look like once it's lacquered, wet a cloth with denatured alcohol and rub it over the top. The color you see when the wood is wet with alcohol is what it's gonna look like finished. Also, any dark spots or stains will show up at that time.

Photos would help. Key is getting EVERY bit of finish off and sanding down to bare wood. :encouragement:

Huge p.s. - this stuff is STRONG!! It's like aliens blood, it'll melt through EVERYTHING, including your skin. Wear chemical gloves and eye protection!!

 

[Harpymorgan]

Thanks Tom. Think I know where I'm going with this one.

 

[Walter Broes]

If it's all blotchy, there's some residue of something on there, either finish, either stripper. Sand it very lightly with a fine grit, and see if you can get it out. If you want to refinish spruce, spray it the color or "stain" or shade you want - I wouldn't use a stain, really hard to get that even on something like spruce, it will probably turn out blotchy all over.

Maple takes stain very well though.

 

[davismanLV]

Any time you're gonna stain, make sure you use a spit-coat first. It seals the wood. 5 parts denatured alcohol to 1 part clear shellac (from the can). Once the spit coat has dried you can stain and it will be much more even. Usually eliminates dark and light spots when staining. Never put stain on bare wood.

 

[Default]

Also, check out Stew-mac for their tips on darkening or lightening wood. Good stuff for getting splotchy wood to match.