So I decided to strip my Tele...

[DRodriguez]

Yeah, I started doing the heat gun method with one of my projects, but didn't like the way I was scratching and toasting the outer layer of wood. I figured I'd have to sand anyways, so I just switched to sanding it all. Much slower process, but I like the way it looks a little better (especially since I'm going for a more natural finish vs paint.

Can't wait to see this project finished up!

[CyaNitrate]

Good call in your case. I'm doing an opaque so I'm not terribly worried about it.

[repoman]

I went through the same process with a VM Jag. The finish on these is nuclear war proof. It took forever to get the paint off with a heatgun. I tried chemical stripper too but the primer/base epoxy stuff just didn't budge with either and I had to wind up sanding forever to get down to wood.

There was a thread on offset guitars where the guy just sanded the top coat with 400 grit and then painted lacquer on top of the poly which seems to work fine. Much easier and his results were very nice.

http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/vie ... =8&t=93517

[DRodriguez]

The problem with that (in theory) is you want to minimize the total paint on a guitar for tonal reasons. Whether or not you agree on that is a personal call.

Similar to what you said, a lot of people will get the poly completely off, sand the sealer, and then paint over that. Gets rid of the thick stuff, but saves you the hard work of getting rid of the sealer.

[CyaNitrate]

Update time. So here's the back, stripped of color, but still caked in the sealer.

On the end, you can make out the individual pieces..I think I counted six or seven.

[CyaNitrate]

Removing the sealer was sloooow going...chipped off in grains of rice instead of big flakes like the color coat.

And the front, post Fullerplast removal. there were two spots, one on the bass bout and one near the wiring route, were I went to fast or the sealer was just stubborn and took a bit of wood with it. No worries, I'll just fill it since I'm not doing a burst or natural finish.

[kosta]

I went through the same process with a VM Jag. The finish on these is nuclear war proof. It took forever to get the paint off with a heatgun. I tried chemical stripper too but the primer/base epoxy stuff just didn't budge with either and I had to wind up sanding forever to get down to wood.

There was a thread on offset guitars where the guy just sanded the top coat with 400 grit and then painted lacquer on top of the poly which seems to work fine. Much easier and his results were very nice.

http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/vie ... =8&t=93517

That guy's refin is so good. Damn.

[Dandolin]

Dat refin

The wood on the Tele looks good--no butcher block there....

[MarkCult]

Im pretty hyped about this thread.... working on a relic job on my SG (£40 off a mate) and though it doesnt look terrible, I feel ashamed and may go for a refinish...

Anyone else done any home made relics, and more importantly well (must do some more searches)?

[CyaNitrate]

I've got mixed feelings about relics..I love the look like most people, but for starters, it's cheating. The guitar isn't actually old and didn't get the look through years of love. It's like buying jeans that come with holes in them...I fucking hate that. Plus, doing a convincing job is hard..a lot of times you can tell it was aged by builder, not time and wear.

So, short of buying a real vintage relic, or building one from parts, I'm opting for nitro, as thin as I can do, and just playing the hell out of it.

Last week I saw a guy playing a parts caster strat that he built 30 years ago. It was so beat to fuck it just exuded cool. But that's what 30 years of playing a guitar you love will get you.

[CyaNitrate]

Having second thoughts on the color choice...

So. The pick guard is kinda the star, and black is boring, so that's where the seafoam green came from. Love the color and thought the guard would look great on it.

However, after looking at other projects, I also think it would look pretty damn good against shell pink...

I've not ordered anything yet, so there's time for discussion

What's say you, Fellow ILFers?

[DRodriguez]

I love beat up guitars, whether natural, or by design, The main reason being that I am no longer afraid to just play it instead of treating it like an idol. My nice guitars all look almost as good as the day I bought them, Not that I mistreat my beat up ones, but I hesitate less to just rock out with them.

I personally would go for seafoam green, but shell pink also rocks. Just comes down to what speaks to you the most. Your pickguard would blend a little more on the pink, and pop more on the green.

[lost in music]

So did this end up pink or green or what?

o. The pick guard is kinda the star,

Ain't that the truth?

[CyaNitrate]

It's still naked wood!

I didn't touch it through the winter, but it's wareally enough now in AZ to paint, so I'm back at it. I finished stripping it, plugged the old stock bridge holes, and need to fill some other imperfections. Then it's sanding sealer, and finally ordering laquer. Starting to get excited again.