Repairing minor scratches and nicks

teddy_boy · Post by **teddy_boy** » Sun Jun 12, 2005 7:12 am

Hi!

Is it possible to cover minor scratches and nicks at home somehow? I've only had my 620MB for half a year but gigs seem to destroy the finish on my guitar rather quick. I have some belt scratches on the back and some very small dings on the front.

Best,

Thomas Lilley

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Sun Jun 12, 2005 7:57 am

Thomas, if the scratches and nicks don't go through the finish into the maple underneath, they can be filled with several applications of clear nail polish, which is allowed to dry THOROUGHLY ( a few days) and then flattened CAREFULLY with #1500 wet or dry paper, wetted out with Windex.

You can then polish out the fine haze left by the 1500 with some fine polishing compound and give it a little wax.

Many luthiers use cyanoacrylate (super) glue for this purpose. I have found that this stuff yellows with time, however. But it takes a decade or so! It's faster, and that's another reason they use it--time is money.

If you want to go full pro, you could use a catyalyzing urethane clearcoat on a brush; just remember that this must be mixed very accurately and is pricey (about $50.00 a quart, and it doesn't come in smaller packages.)

I prefer the nail polish route.

teddy_boy · Post by **teddy_boy** » Sun Jun 12, 2005 9:49 am

Thanks Paul!

I'll have to clear a few things out though. Windex? Is it a chemical used for cleaning windows?

Can you recommend a fine polishing compound to use?

Do I add one layer of nailpolish, then wait a few days and add another, or do I apply all the layers during one day and then let it dry out for a few days?

Thomas

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Sun Jun 12, 2005 10:47 am

Thomas, Windex is an American brand of window cleaner. I'm not sure what the Finnish equivalent is. You can simply use water with a couple of drops of dishwashing detergent and a small amount of ammonia added in.

Fine polishing compounds come also in different brands. Meguiar's has worldwide distribution and you would want to try to find their Swirl Remover. I've mentioned Scratch-X, many times in this Forum. It is also a Meguiar's product. In the UK, there used to be a brand called Swarfega, but I haven't checked on its availability in awhile.

You can put on coats of nail polish about an hour apart until you've built up the surface again, slightly higher than the surrounding surface. Then you should let it dry for several days, until it feels hard when you try to dent it with your fingernail. Then it will be hardened enough to sand it and polish it out again.

I forgot to mention--when sanding these nicks, use some sort of small block (1" square is a good size) of wood or rubber. Go easy and stay away from the edges! Check your progress often by drying the area with a clean cloth or paper towel. When in looks and feels flat, you're ready for the polishing step.

loverickbass · Post by **loverickbass** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 10:07 am

What about a ding that goes all the way to the maple?

Cole

nattiep · Post by **nattiep** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 11:22 am

Yeah... I have plenty of dings on the headstock of my 4001.. and there are stress marks all over the place, and the finish is just flaking off. Not to mention the tailpiece is lifting and taking the finish on the front with it!

I tried to cover them up with a sharpie (my bass is jetglo) but it still seems funny.

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 12:57 pm

Nattie, yours is refin fodder. Too many finish problems of too many varieties to get it right any other way. The "stress marks" are usually from thermal shock, and there's no way to get rid of 'em.

Cole, A ding (actually a chip) through to maple (I assume on a mapleglo Rick?) can be successfully filled with gap-filling superglue and carefully flattened back, and then polished to bring back the gloss. HOWEVER, if there's dirt or wax or any other kind of residue in the chip, it needs to be thoroughly cleaned before filling, and I don't mean with soap and water. I use naphtha and a toothbrush, and then I blow it out with compressed air before filling it.

Don't use accelerator on the super glue--it often will cause bubbling. Let it air dry naturally. Be patient.

nattiep · Post by **nattiep** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 2:18 pm

Well I'd refin it black then. I do have a couple stress marks from dropping it.. hehe. Hey, it fell off my strap! Yeah I need locks, I know.

kcole4001 · Post by **kcole4001** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 2:27 pm

Nate, all I use is a washer under the strap bolt & screw that sucker back in place over top of the strap with a small dab of wood glue in the hole. It's NOT going to fall off that way, of course you need a strap for every guitar, but that's not much of a cost compared to the value of the guitar! I've never trusted strap locks fully. I'm just kind of paranoid.

harvey49 · Post by **harvey49** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 2:56 pm

Paul, I've have a small chip out of the finish on the headstock of my 350 FG, (compliments of the previous owner).

It has annoyed me for some time but when I asked a repairer here in Oz about it, he said because the chip is down to the FG colouring, to leave it alone.

Now I'm not questioning what you are saying, (I'm excited that I may have a solution, in light of what you said about the Maple finish!!!!), do you think the above would apply to my situation?

As time is of no consequence to me would using the clear nail polish be suitable for a chip rather than the superglue?

And finally, brand types of clear polish, what would you recommend, el cheapo, moderate priced or recognised top brand? Are all clear nail polishes essentially the same?

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 3:19 pm

If it's not through the colouring, into bare maple, of course it's a good chance that the super glue thing will work.

Depending upon the size of the chip, nail polish will work also, but be aware that clear nail polish has retarders added to allow flow-out, and they will remain soft in this thickness for days or even weeks.

That's why I recommend super glue for such repairs (although a few months ago I wouldn't touch it, because the old stuff used to yellow). A good brand like Satellite City or 3M is good.

If you are going to go the nail polish route, get the best! Why not? I don't think that all clear nail polishes are the same; I'm sure that ingredients are better in the better brands. It's only a few bucks one way or the other--treat your guitar!

harvey49 · Post by **harvey49** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 4:07 pm

With regards to cleaning Paul, what is naphtha, (is it a solvent?) is that a trade name or chemical type, and where would you most likely buy it?

Apart from the time to fill a chip using nail polish, do you think it wiser to use the gap filling superglue for these jobs? We are only talking a few dollars for each product, but could the result could be of consequence?

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 5:25 pm

The result could be of consequence. The superglue is much harder and is actually an acrylic material. The lacquer is, well, lacquer, and will be softer by nature.

Naphtha is more commonly known to us Jimi Hendrix fans as "lighter fluid".

jojo99 · Post by **jojo99** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 6:48 pm

Ah...maybe Hendrix was really trying to *clean* his strat at Monterey and botched it horribly?
Just wondering...for a jetglo finish chip that hasn't marred the coloring...would it be better to use clear nail polish, or black nail polish? (thank heaven for little goth girls....)

FWIW, One of those little plastic bread package fasteners makes a quick-n-easy strap lock.
Oh, and why the heck do people wear belts when they are playing their instrument?? Never understood that... and never buy a used Rick from a WWF champion!

ozover50 · Post by **ozover50** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 6:58 pm

...or if it was once owned by John Holmes....

You wouldn't know what he'd done to it!!