Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I need your enlightment, dear Sir Curmudgeon.

I accidentally hit the headstock of my 4003 FG onto some mic stand during a gig last year and got this wound:


As there was absolutely no guitar repairer/builder knowing anything about and having conversion varnish, I had a guitar building friend of mine fill the wound and respray the area. He only had urethane type paint which he said was close to what Gibson used. He was too busy to have time to make the retouched area seamless before I took the bass back for an upcoming gig. The new paint is a hair thicker than the original CV, so there's a 1-inch long "cascade" line from the E tuner bushing to the edge of the headstock between the new paint and the old CV, and a couple of little shallow holes on the surface.



I'd like to get rid of the uneveness on the finish. I have #1000 sand paper, Scratch and Zymol. Please educate me on how to proceed.

Thank you, Sir!

paul_yan wrote: I accidentally hit the headstock of my 4003 FG onto some mic stand during a gig last year and got this wound:

Paul , you seriously have to work on your stage choreography!

The uneven "ridge" can be taken out with the 1000 and a small block of wood or plastic. Wet sand carefully, checking every few strokes. Once the area is flat, you can rub it out.

Scratch-X is not aggressive enough to bring the gloss out again. You'll need white polishing compound, like 3M Perfect-it 3, although DuPont white compound, available worldwide, should work. Don't use DuPont #44, though--it'll scratch badly. Once the gloss is back you can use Scratch-X and Zymol.

Those little craters are commonly called "fish-eyes" and are from oil or silicone, either on the bass, or in the air of the area in which the bass was touched up. They won't come completely out, because they go all the way down to the old surface, and sanding them flat will expose the old surface and the "burn-in" edge, which may prove difficult to buff without showing a line. So the choice is: line or tiny crater? and I would vote "crater, considering the risks involved.

Thank you very much for your advice and education, Paul! I’ll try to get the white polishing compound from the car shop close to my home. I wonder if the compound can be substituted by the Japanese “Zact” brand of smoker's toothpaste that is quite more abrasive than normal Colgate toothpaste?

Peter, much agreed!

Paul, Is 3M Perfect-It II, which is locally available, good enough for the job?

Yes, that'll work. Either 3M doesn't sell the 3000 in China yet (which I doubt) or your local supplier doesn't stock it.

II is fine.

Very cool, Paul!

Most of them stock the II, some have the iV, but no one stocks III.

I forgot to ask, Paul, should I rub the white compound with my finger, or with a piece of cotton cloth? With or without the small block?

Always with a cotton cloth. You can wrap it around the block if you notice it works better for you...

Got it! Thank you, Paul!

Best of luck to you, Paul...let us know how it turns out.

What is this - meeting of the Pauls? It's appalling!

OK. This was the first time I "hurt" a guitar "on purpose" with something scratchy like sand peper. Nervous...


As the working area was not big, I used the cap of a lip Balm stick as my "finger block".


Done with wet sanding. Index finger sore. The craters were gone easily.


Done with 3M Perfect-It II


After the Scratch-X and Zymol treatment





Thank you very much for the guidance, Paul!

Wow, this thread is great. Could almost be an infomercial

'Seams' like you got a handle on it!