alan hipson Posted March 8, 2004 Report Share Posted March 8, 2004 Hi Should you stain the wood before or after grain filling ? I have stained before filling and have had to sand through the stain to get all the excess filler removed. What a mess the grain filler makes...I scraped the exess off before leaving to dry but when sanding if goes all gungy and blocks the sandpaper. I take it I have done this all wrong ? Anyone any tips on filling swamp ash, or removing the filler ? I have only removed the filler from the back so any help with removing the rest would be great...I will post a photo later so you can have a look at the devastation. Chalk 1 up to experiance. Alan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alan hipson Posted March 8, 2004 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2004 Hi Pics as promised Thats the back after much sanding the dark areas are the thicker gunky filler. This is the front still to have the filler removed so if anyone has any ideas .....? I will sand it down if this draws a blank Alan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morben Guitars Posted March 8, 2004 Report Share Posted March 8, 2004 You should be using this before you dye/stain the guitar. It also appears that you're using a white or "Clear" filler...I'd suggest using a darker filler. The filler will actually darken the wood a bit, and often I just go with that. There shouldn't really be too much filler to sand off...it's more of a flattening process rather than a removal process. 1. Apply grain filler and rub into the wood. Let this sit for ~5 minutes 2. using an old credit card, scrape the filler off the wood. You should be removing almost all of it, leaving only the portions in the actual grain. Let this sit overnight. 3. Lightly sand with 220 (with the grain!) using a block. 4. Repeat steps 1 & 2 until you can't see open pores in the wood when held to the light. Hope that helps, I'd tell you to sand that guitar back all the way and start over...sorry, probably not what you wanted to hear.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darren wilson Posted March 8, 2004 Report Share Posted March 8, 2004 Why is the filler applied so unevenly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alan hipson Posted March 8, 2004 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2004 Hi Its not actually uneven the leftovers after scrapeing it off didnt work to well thats why i got the patches thanks for looking...looks like sanding back time Alan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southpa Posted March 8, 2004 Report Share Posted March 8, 2004 The filler should be applied with the grain then scrape off at a 45 degree angle to the grain. So, as is, the surface of the guitar is level? That is, the white areas were low spots? If that is the case I would scrape off what you can with a putty knife, if its still gummy, and then sand flat with a rigid sanding block. Just check the surface from every angle with a straight edge like a steel ruler looking for gaps and pinch points (humps). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted March 8, 2004 Report Share Posted March 8, 2004 it really looks like you need to do some leveling of the body...if you don't,your finish will not be as good as you want it to.i swear i see alot of pits and deep scratches in the picture of the back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alan hipson Posted March 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2004 Hi The back is very smooth no scratches or dinks i think its just the picture. The darker bits are still a bit gunky but are level. Thanks for everyones comments...I will post some photos when sanded back and resealed properly. its going to be a long weekend Alan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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