Shine

Rather than show more pics of me in the spray booth, I kind of skipped those this time... but we did that for the past two days, the process being the same for these guitars as for the electrics.... Spray on several coats, sand it back to smooth, spray touch ups on the places where you sanded through, then several more coats. This morning we wet sanded and by the end of the day, I got to buff my guitar out to a high shine. Here is me at the buffing wheel, and the result is magnificent. Although I tend to prefer a satin finish, the gloss on these definitely brings out the flame in the maple, which is absolutely luminous.

The balloon, btw, is to keep lacquer out of the inside of the body of the guitar during the spray process, and here to keep soapy water from the wet sanding process out.

Next we have to get the bridges finished and glued on, and the necks get their final set and they get joined up and glued in. Then it's all about stringing them up, and getting the nut, saddle and set-up finalized. Somewhere in there, we'll add a pickguard too.

I am hyper aware right now of all the flaws. And each flaw is a lesson and I'm here to learn, of course. I'm sure these will recede as I'm farther away from the building process and actually get to enjoy playing it. Today was a very exciting day... wet sanding is hard work but it was very rewarding.