A good poly finish

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Its probably considered sacrilege around here.
But are there any good options in acrylic cans

I have not sprayed my builds in the past sticking to oil, wax etc hand finishing. As much as I like guitars finished in Nitro I am also just as happy with well-done poly and not wanting to relic or anything like that. 

My concern with the current ones I have lined up is the time for Nitro to gas off and I hear time scales like 5 to 6 weeks etc etc. 

How long do people take to can spray with Nitro to and would poly take less time? and allow quicker assembly etc. 

regards  


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Comments

  • WezVWezV Frets: 16546
    The chestnut one is pretty good.  I haves used the satin version quite a few times
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  • WezVWezV Frets: 16546
    Nitro is actually hard within minutes.

    the 5-6 weeks is for it to be ready to buffed.  It can be handled a lot sooner than that of you need to.  
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  • Jez6345789Jez6345789 Frets: 1756
    Cheers as always WezV the fountain of knowledge round here.
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  • Jez6345789Jez6345789 Frets: 1756
    How long to finish and buff a poly finish approx
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  • GoldenEraGuitarsGoldenEraGuitars Frets: 8820
    tFB Trader
    Nitro can be handled within minutes (if you want to see your handprint all over your nicely sprayed surface). It's wise to leave it an hour or so before attempting to touch it (but there's really no need). You can wet sand and buff after 2 weeks but i would avoid attaching hardware for another few weeks as if you remove it at a later date you'll inevitably end up removing chunks of lacquer. 

    Polyurethane will allow you to wet sand, buff and assemble within 7-10 days. If you want a plastic coating to work with for speed and protection, that's your product.

    Nitro never fully hardens either. It will move via fluctuation in temperature and humidity.. not to mention the end result is a wafer thin layer on the wood.
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  • Jez6345789Jez6345789 Frets: 1756
    edited October 2017
    Ok sounds like I need UV cured then lol.

    so much hanging around lol

    i watched them at the Taylor factory last year with their UV cure system that's the way to get the job done. By the time it's moved round the carousel it ready for sanding buffing etc
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  • GoldenEraGuitarsGoldenEraGuitars Frets: 8820
    tFB Trader
    Ok sounds like I need UV cured then lol.

    so much hanging around lol

    i watched them at the Taylor factory last year with their UV cure system that's the way to get the job done. By the time it's moved round the carousel it ready for sanding buffing etc
    Haha yeah although I'd imagine you may have to sell a kidney for that sort of setup. If you're dubious about spraying and waiting contact someone to do it for you. It'll allow you to focus on other parts of what you're doing.
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  • WezVWezV Frets: 16546
    lonestar said:
    Nitro can be handled within minutes (if you want to see your handprint all over your nicely sprayed surface). It's wise to leave it an hour or so before attempting to touch it (but there's really no need). 
    Is that the second time you have contradicted me on that point?

    lets clarify. It's more likely a difference in method. Are you using spray cans or doing it properly with a compressor?

    i am using cans at the momen.  I do light coats.  The lacquer is touch dry within 5 minutes every time and can be lightly handled and moved... although I agree leaving an hour is much safer.

    given limited space and multiple projects it's important to be able to move things around quite quickly.  
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  • GoldenEraGuitarsGoldenEraGuitars Frets: 8820
    tFB Trader
    WezV said:
    lonestar said:
    Nitro can be handled within minutes (if you want to see your handprint all over your nicely sprayed surface). It's wise to leave it an hour or so before attempting to touch it (but there's really no need). 
    Is that the second time you have contradicted me on that point?

    lets clarify. It's more likely a difference in method. Are you using spray cans or doing it properly with a compressor?

    i am using cans at the momen.  I do light coats.  The lacquer is touch dry within 5 minutes every time and can be lightly handled and moved... although I agree leaving an hour is much safer.

    given limited space and multiple projects it's important to be able to move things around quite quickly.  
    Yip, I guess I have contradicted you.. a second time. I use a compressor (I'm doing this professionally which is perhaps where the difference of opinion is) and I'm able to mix the ratio of thinner to paint how I want as well as air flow, fan pattern and width. 

    Ive tried light/multiple coat methods but they simply don't work for me tbh. I believe cans have a higher ratio of thinner to paint so dusting is sometimes a wiser route to go down. I usually put a pretty wet edge on towards the end which works well for me.

    Do you hang the bodies from the neck pocket or do you lay them flat on a raised surface to spray them (genuine question, not being a smart ass)?
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  • JalapenoJalapeno Frets: 6378
    My first Poly spray (Montana Gold sprays) was way too soft - it never cured.  Their recommendation was a clear nitro top coat
    Imagine something sharp and witty here ......

    Feedback
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  • WezVWezV Frets: 16546
    i do both depending on the guitar and the finish.   It tends to be laid flat for colours and metallics and hung for the clears finish.  

    The recent Les Paul build was only laid flat for the gold top.... hung for the rest
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  • WezVWezV Frets: 16546
    i would also suggest looking at Rustins Plastic Coating if you have a well ventilated area to use it.   I used to be able to get a really good finish just with a decent lacquer brush, even better when sprayed (when i had that option)   .

    Its pretty nasty stuff though, and there are a few quirks to be aware of.   New coats within a day burn in fine, after a day they can wrinkle the previous coat, a few days later you can re-coat but it wont burn in - you need to key the surface

    I used to do about 15 brushed coats within 3 days.  I would flat off any remaining brush marks at the start of each day, but yu can minimise them with a decent lacquer brush.  A week later it can be buffed and is really tough
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  • Andyjr1515Andyjr1515 Frets: 3127
    Just a cautionary note ref buffing poly.  There's poly and there's poly...

    I use standard polyurethance varnish most of the time and that works fundamentally differently to nitro and some other finishes.  With Nitro and certain other finishes, each coat 'melts' into the previous coats.  As such, you end up with a single, homogeneous layer that you can buff rigorously down to a shine.

    With products such as standard polyurethane varnish - and a number of other finishing products, including some acrylics - each coat dries and is then covered by each next coat.  What you end up with, therefore, is a number of distinct bonded layers making up the full thickness of the finish (think welsh slate...).  Having got the final-but-one coat super smooth, you apply the final one which gives you the final gloss.  Once that is hard you can polish it - but you can't buff it as you would nitro.  If you do, then the buffing will cut through successive layers and you end up with contour lines of mixed levels of gloss.

    This might not apply in the product you are considering - but it's worth looking at the spec first.  
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  • WezVWezV Frets: 16546
    Yeah, witness lines  can be present in any finish that doesn't burn in.   Many water based lacquers can suffer from it too.

    you need that last coat to be near perfect.  
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  • Jez6345789Jez6345789 Frets: 1756
    Very educational and a big part of stuff I need to learn. I will use cans for these three as they are only a top coat over cherry stain. And I got gun compressor etc last year but still have not sorted the space to do it

    i used rustins on stuff years ago a tele istr after reading Melvin Hiscock book when it first came out never heard of it before that. As you say works pretty fast with a brush and nasty if you inhale. That tele has never aged the stuff is like armour plating but probably way over did it back then.

    probably just get some nitro cans and get on with it and stop procrastinating. Thanks 
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  • SargeSarge Frets: 2370
    I'm a total convert to Rustins Plastic Coating, so damn easy to apply, I snapped my good varnish brush (stood on it) after the first coat so used a bog standard paint brush and it still went on easy, I've done 3 now and the results are spectacular! 
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  • GizmoGizmo Frets: 1073
    Another vote for RPC,just make sure you use a good grain filler, if you have large open pores,i used the egg whites/dust pore fill method on one of my idigbo builds and it was total smooth when applied and given 2 weeks to vent then leveled/polished,but now after a few months the RPC has total eaten the egg white grain filler and sunk back,doesn't really bother me much but there you go.  
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