Today's progress report...

[curtisstetka]

...total freaking crap.

I am so fed up with this stupid thing. I wish, for about the thousandth time, that I'd just paid to have this buggered piece of monkey poo finished by somebody who know what the hell they were doing. I could be playing my new tele instead of still horsing around with it.

It's not like I've even saved a whole lot of money, considering what I've now blown on various painting supplies, sandpaper, rags, solvents, etc and the AGGRAVATION has probably taken about 5 years off my life.

It had 2 color coats on it and there were a few weird spots. I sanded it with 800 grit. Man, that just made a disaster of it. It seemed these little balls of... I dunno... paint and sandpaper... would form and dig themselves into the finish.

Then, when I sprayed on another coat of color I got a LOT of bad spots - blobs, bubble-looking things, just an utter mess.

I have a feeling that A) I'm a complete dumbass and B) the spraycans went bad sitting around for so long. I've had them... 3? 4? years and during that time they were exposed to some fairly extreme variations in temperature.

So now I'm at the crossroads (and nobody seems to know me).

Do I give up? Get a new body or pay somebody else to finish this one?

Or do I sand this f'ing thing back down to primer and order a fresh can from Reranch and try again?

Or do I sand this f'ing thing back down to wood and finish it clear with the Minwax wipe-on poly which may be the only finish this dumbass is capable of not screwing up?

Or do I take a chainsaw to the f'er, some lighter fluid and a match, sell off the other parts on ebay, and try to forget the whole episode ever happened?

[cooltone]

You're the guy who made this:



..and now you're a perfectionist?

[chuckocaster]

you're killing me cooltone!

looks like curtis got a check minus for the day?

best to put it away for now and come back to it when you're not all torqued up. trust me, i've done some really bad things to some unsuspecting guitars when i was in your state (and i screwed a beagle...)

[curtisstetka]

What? You don't think the Uglocaster was perfect?!?!?!?


Okay, now that the coat has dried it looks much better. I'm not as enraged as I was before.

[tugboat]

What? You don't think the Uglocaster was perfect?!?!?!?


Okay, now that the coat has dried it looks much better. I'm not as enraged as I was before.

I've learned that taking a deep breath, forgetting about it for a while, and coming back to it with a level head does wonders for your sanity when finishing a guitar.

[frank thomson]

sorry, i dont know the complete story

hity me up some details and or a thread where i can peruse your efforts till now....then i can try to give you my $.02

[Jonnda]

...total freaking crap.

I am so fed up with this stupid thing....
So now I'm at the crossroads (and nobody seems to know me).

Do I give up? Get a new body or pay somebody else to finish this one?

"nobody seems to know me"

Everybody just pass on by? Well not me. I just want to cheer you on. It took me 2 years but it ended up being worth it.

Run? You can run. Sure, but let me tell you my friend willie brown, I've been to the crossroads a few times with my own project tele. And while I do believe you were sinking down, I know that you too can pull your self up out of it.

[G.g.]

Sand it down and do it again with new paint. 2 coats a day en let it dry after long enough after a few coats.

[Offshore Angler]

Are sanding wet or dry? Sounds like dry if it's balling up.

[curtisstetka]

Thanks, gents. I just need to fume for a while. Things looked better last night after the coat dried. I took the buffer to it and things got shiny and smooth. There are still some spots where the color is funky.

I believe I will order some new paint from Reranch and consider what I've done so far just a "base coat". While I'm waiting for that to arrive I can try to fill the one or two dings I've made. I've come this far, may as well try to do it right.

Really, I am a perfectionist. These "flaws" that are jumping out at me wouldn't even be visible from 5 feet away.

[Tonedog]

Remember.... go slow.....

It's way too soon to get a buffer anywhere near that paint. Wait 30 days to buff. You can do it sooner, like after a week or two, but the paint will not be fully hardened.

[curtisstetka]

So how do I get out the sanding marks? I'm using 800 and upwards grit sandpaper and still ending up with visible scratches all over. I would like to have the color coat smooth before applying finish coats.

[curtisstetka]

Ahh. I just realized Reranch has a forum. I just haven't been giving the paint enough time to harden. I'm sanding the next day when I should be letting it go for a few weeks.

Man, this really will take me all year!

I've got every other piece of hardware for the guitar already too. Must be patient...

[Wilko]

Use clean sandpaper. Clean water. rinse the paper often. Light touch. Let the sandpaper do the work.

[NeoFauve]

It probably took me over a moth to refinish my Schecter.

It's a little unnerving when you don't quite know what you're doing.

The stripping part was particularly scary. There was a stage, when the old paint was stubbornly melting and it looked like something had either just given birth to it or had eaten and half digested it.
I thought I was done for.

You'll get it done, curtis.

[NTBluesGuitar]

I just about have a Strat body prepped for a "vintage blonde" treatment. All the old finish is gone (it was the Crimson Transparent finish from 2004), and the wood is nice and clean.

If it's any consolation, reading this thread has given me a good understanding on how to proceed; even though I'm not using a primed/painted finish.

[curtisstetka]

I'm glad my suffering has helped another. It's all worth it.

[Tonedog]

You may want to wet sand using mineral spirits instead of water too. This is especially true if you already have pickguard holes or tuner bushing holes, etc. Water can get into those holes and cause the wood to swell, then when you sand it flat using a sanding block (always use a sanding block or you'll get bad results too) you sand it flat, but then the swelling goes away and you have low spots. Mineral spirits won't cause the wood to swell like water does.

[tugboat]

You may want to wet sand using mineral spirits instead of water too. This is especially true if you already have pickguard holes or tuner bushing holes, etc. Water can get into those holes and cause the wood to swell, then when you sand it flat using a sanding block (always use a sanding block or you'll get bad results too) you sand it flat, but then the swelling goes away and you have low spots. Mineral spirits won't cause the wood to swell like water does.

Good suggestion. Thanks!